All Social Security Retirees Should Do This on Oct. 15

If you're someone who collects Social Security and those benefits constitute the bulk of your retirement income, then covering your expenses may be somewhat of a struggle

Or it may be a very big struggle, depending on where you and what your bills look

This analysis suggests that reality is that it's hard to primarily on Social Security even in the best of times

Conversely, And most retirees need a lot more replacement income than that to maintain a decent standard of living

Meanwhile, Image source: Getty Images, in today's financial world

But living mostly on Social Security has become even more challenging in recent years, thanks to rampant inflation

Although inflation has cooled over the past year or two, it seems stuck in an elevated pattern

Higher costs have put a strain on many seniors' budgets, forcing them to make hard choices

If you're someone who's very reliant on Social Security, then you're bably eager to find out what your upcoming cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will amount to

The bad news is that it's too soon to have that information (noteworthy indeed)

Conversely, The good news is that there's an easy way to know exactly when that official announcement will come through (fascinating analysis)

Additionally, And that's a good thing in terms of living costs

This demonstrates that 's a less favorable thing in the context of Social Security COLAs, though, since those annual raises are directly tied to inflation (noteworthy indeed)

More specifically, Social Security COLAs are based on movement in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) (which is quite significant)

When there's a rise in the CPI-W year over year, Social Security benefits get a boost

When there's no increase or a decrease, benefits remain flat (quite telling)

Additionally, That could change if inflation starts to pick up in the next month or two, in today's market environment

Additionally, Additionally, But that's also not a desirable outcome, as it would undoubtedly put a strain on seniors (and consumers in general)

When 2026's Social Security COLA gets announced Social Security COLAs are specifically based on third-quarter CPI-W data

For this reason, the Social Security Administration (SSA) makes an official COLA announcement each year in October

However, This year, September's CPI-W reading should be released on Oct

So, that's the day to tune in for the biggest Social Security announcement of the year

You can specifically check out the SSA's news section for more information

Once you know what Social Security COLA you're looking at for the new year, you can prepare financially -- for better or worse, considering recent developments.