Social Security benefits generally increase every year, and that's thanks to the program's annual cost of living adjustment (COLA). The COLA is meant to help retiree benefits keep pace with inflation, so it's not uncommon to see benefits increase by a few percentage points each year.
Over time, these percentage points have compounded into a large increase. Here's what the average Social Security check was in 2004 and what it is now.
Trying to keep pace with inflation
In 2004, the average monthly Social Security check was $954.89, or nearly $11,459 annually. Following several recent years of some of the highest inflation in 40 years, retirees have seen their benefits increase significantly.
The average Social Security check in November 2024 was $1,925.46, or about $23,105 annually. However, the 2025 COLA is 2.5%, so we can assume the average monthly benefit check will rise to $1,973.60, or $23,683 annually.
That means the average monthly Social Security check has increased 107% since 2004. Sounds pretty good, right? Well, not according to the nonpartisan Senior Citizens League (SCL). In their annual 2024 study, the SCL said that benefits have lost 20% of their purchasing power since 2010. The SCL blames the eroding purchasing power on insufficient COLAs, which the group claims have trailed inflation in 8 of the last 15 years.
Furthermore, the SCL would prefer COLAs to be determined by the Consumer Price Index for Americans 62 Years of Age and Older (CPI-E) instead of the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). The SCL believes the CPI-E better reflects the costs of retirees and would lead to more accurate COLAs.
