MACRO · INFLATION
US core consumer price inflation
The rise from the same month a year earlier in the consumer price index excluding food and energy.
Current value2.6%+0.1 ppChange from previous observation · as of Sep 1, 2026
Latest value
Published monthly| Current value | 2.6% |
|---|---|
| Observation date | Sep 1, 2026 |
| Published | Monthly |
| vs previous observation | +0.1 pp |
| vs 1 month ago | +0.1 pp |
| vs 1 year ago | -0.5 pp |
| Past-year range | 2.4% to 3.0% |
| Position in range | 33% (0% = 1-year low, 100% = 1-year high) |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: All Items Less Food and Energy in U.S. City Average [CPILFESL], retrieved from FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
What this number measures
Food and energy prices swing on factors separate from overall inflation, such as weather or decisions by oil producers. It is common practice to look at the series without them as well, often called core inflation.
The word core makes it sound like a more accurate measure, but it only means the series excludes food and energy. Households still spend on both.
How it is calculated and when it is released
The consumer price index excluding food and energy, converted into a rise from the same month a year earlier. The method is the same as for headline consumer price inflation.
Released on the same day as the headline consumer price index, once a month, with a lag.
What this number does not tell you
- It leaves out the food and fuel that households actually pay for, so it can sit further from felt inflation than the headline index.
- What to leave out is a convention, not a fixed truth. Some institutions use different core measures.
- It covers the US.
Common misreadings
- Thinking it is the more accurate figure
The compiling agency itself describes this series as the one users consider core. It does not mean it is officially the more correct measure of prices.
- Seeing the gap with headline as an error
It is normal for the two values to differ. The gap shows that food and energy prices moved differently during that period.
※ This explains the definition and past observations of the indicator. It does not forecast future values or market direction.
Other indicators in this group (Inflation)
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