STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — New year, new Social Security calendar.
For the millions of Americans who depend on Social Security and Supplemental Security Income payments, the schedule of when these benefits get issued may determine how a month goes.
The good news is that the cost-of-living adjustment — or COLA, as it is colloquially referred to as — is 2.8% in 2026, giving recipients an average of an additional $56 in their pockets each month.
The Social Security Administration issues payments based different schedules. For Social Security, the payments are based on birthday and are usually issued on Wednesdays; for SSI, the payments come typically on the first of the month, regardless of birthday.
So, if a recipient’s birthday is between the 1st and the 10th, they will get their payment on the second Wednesday of each month. Recipients with birthdays between the 11th and 20th will get their payment on the third Wednesday of each month. Finally, recipients with birthdays between the 21st and the 31st will get their payment on the fourth and final Wednesday of each month.
The benefit payment schedule for 2026 is as follows for Social Security recipients:
- January: 14, 21, and 28
- February: 11, 18, and 25
- March: 11, 18, and 25
- April: 8, 15, and 22
- May: 13, 20, and 27
- June: 10, 17, and 24
- July: 8, 15, and 22
- August: 12, 19, and 26
- September: 9, 16, and 23
- October: 14, 21, and 28
- November: 10, 18, and 25
- December: 9, 16, and 23
As for SSI recipients, benefits get issued on the first of the month as long as it isn’t a federal holiday or falls on a weekend — then things get a little sticky.
Here are the 2026 alterations to the SSI payment schedule:
- February’s payment will be issued on Jan. 30 due to Feb. 1 being a Sunday
- March’s payment will be issued on Feb. 27 due to March 1 being a Sunday
- August’s payment will be issued on July 31 because Aug. 1 is a Saturday
- November’s payment will be issued on Oct. 30 because Nov. 1 is a Sunday
- January 2027’s payment will be issued on Dec. 31 because Jan. 1, 2027, is a federal holiday
March, August, and November’s SSI payments being issued near the end of the prior month means that there will not be payments in those three months.
