Social Security COLA for 2024 may see smallest increase due to cooling inflation.

Social Security beneficiaries are likely to receive a smaller cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in 2024 due to a quirk in the calendar and the use of an alternative index to determine the adjustment. The annual Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) fell to 3.6% in May, which is the index used to determine the COLA for Social Security recipients. Advocacy groups estimate that the COLA for 2024 could be as small as 2.7%, which would be a significant decrease from this year's 8.7% bump. Retirees have been struggling with the soaring cost of everyday items, and inadequate COLA increases have left many behind on household costs.