2026 Pay Raise for Disabled Veterans and Military Retirees
Military retirees and disabled veterans will receive a 2.8% increase to their monthly paychecks for 2026, according to the annual Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) tied to inflation.
The 2.8% raise for 2026 is an increase from 2.5% in 2025, following a series of raises, including an 8.7% increase in 2023.
The Social Security Administration announced the COLA increase, which is determined by the Department of Labor's measurement of the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
The CPI compares the cost of consumer goods and expenses to the previous year, resulting in a COLA if there is an increase, and no change if there is no increase.
Most government disability and retirement payments must, by law, go up annually by the same amount to account for the rate of inflation.
For more information, see the 2026 VA Disability Pay Rates.
Author's summary: Disabled veterans get 2.8% pay raise.