First December Social Security Payments Arrive This Week, Ahead of 2026 COLA Increase

The first round of Social Security payments will be issued on Dec. 10, just weeks before the 2026 cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) takes effect.

Audrey Simons

Published: 12/9/2025, 2:47:41 AM EST

First December Social Security Payments Arrive This Week, Ahead of 2026 COLA Increase — A Social Security Administration (SSA) office in Washington on March 26, 2025. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

The first round of Social Security payments will be issued on Dec. 10, just weeks before the 2026 cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) takes effect.

Beneficiaries whose birthdays fall between the 1st and 10th of any month will receive their benefit payments on the second Wednesday of December, in accordance with the Social Security Administration’s standard schedule.

Social Security benefits—paid to seniors, individuals with disabilities, and survivors of deceased workers—are usually distributed on the second, third, and fourth Wednesdays of each month based on birth date.

Those with birthdays between the 11th and 20th can expect payments on Dec. 17, while recipients born between the 21st and 31st will receive their benefits on Dec. 24.

The monthly payments are dependent on a worker's earnings history and are allocated based on the amount they have contributed to the Social Security system through payroll taxes.

This differs from Supplemental Security Income (SSI), which is a needs-based program for seniors and people with disabilities who have limited income.

Recipients who began receiving Social Security before May 1997, or who receive both Social Security and SSI, got their Social Security payment on Dec. 3 and their SSI payment on Dec. 1.

SSI beneficiaries can also expect a second payment on Dec. 31. Since Jan. 1 falls on a federal holiday, January benefits will be issued a day early.

"We do this to avoid putting you at a financial disadvantage and make sure that you don't have to wait beyond the first of the month to get your payment," the SSA notes online. "It does not mean that you are receiving a duplicate payment in the previous month, so you do not need to contact us to report the second payment."

In this photo illustration, a Social Security card sits alongside checks from the U.S. Treasury in Washington, DC, on Oct. 14, 2021. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images) — In this photo illustration, a Social Security card sits alongside checks from the U.S. Treasury in Washington, DC, on Oct. 14, 2021. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

COLA Increase

Social Security and SSI recipients will soon see bigger payments when the Social Security Administration (SSA) applies its COLA increase for 2026, affecting more than 70 million Americans.

The 2.8 percent increase—up from 2.5 percent in 2025—will see standard Social Security retirement benefits go up by about $56 per month. Nearly 7.5 million people receiving SSI will see increased payments on Dec. 31, the SSA previously announced in October.

SSA Commissioner Frank Bisignano said at the time that the adjustment was “a vital part of how Social Security delivers on its mission."

"Social Security is a promise kept,” Bisignano added, “And the annual cost-of-living adjustment is one way we are working to make sure benefits reflect today’s economic realities and continue to provide a foundation of security.”

The 2.8 percent increase has drawn mixed reactions online.

"An increase of $56 is nothing compared to real inflation costs. Cheap food for one week is all it covers. Those of us living on social security need more," one beneficiary shared.

"Thank you, Social Security Department administration, and praise God," another added.

Another change the SSA implemented this year was the shift to paperless payments. This followed a March executive order signed by President Donald Trump directing the federal government to stop issuing paper checks in an effort to modernize its payment infrastructure.

The policy took effect on Sept. 30 and primarily affected beneficiaries who had not already switched to electronic payment methods.