What is the difference between a cost of living raise and a regular pay raise?

What is the difference between a cost of living raise and a regular pay raise?
A cost of living raise is based on the cost of living. A regular pay raise is not.Another Answer:
Regular pay is how much you get paid regularly. If you get a "regular" raise, that means that you have been doing well in the firm and you earned the money. If Cost Of Living raises that means what it says, the cost of living has raised. This way, it does not mean that you deserve a raise, just that you need one because of expenses.