U.S. inflation accelerated in March as a sharp rise in energy costs drove the overall increase, while underlying price pressures remained relatively restrained, according to the Labor Department report released Friday, April 10.
The headline monthly inflation figure showed a 0.9% increase in U.S. consumer prices in March — in line with consensus estimates — after a 0.3% rise in February, as measured by the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI).
The Consumer Price Index (CPI), a key inflation gauge, measures what American consumers pay for a wide range of everyday goods and services, from eggs to energy.
Food prices were unchanged in March after rising 0.4% in February. Grocery store prices fell 0.2% for the month, following a 0.4% increase, while restaurant prices rose 0.2% after a 0.3% gain.
Over the past year, food prices increased 2.7%, down from 3.1%. Grocery prices rose 1.9%, compared to 2.4% previously, while dining-out costs climbed 3.8%, slightly below the prior 3.9%.
In other sectors, gasoline prices jumped 21.2% in March after rising 0.8% in February. Year over year, they increased 18.9% after having fallen 5.6%.
The broader energy index, which includes gasoline, electricity, and fuel oil, rose 10.9% in March after a 0.6% increase in February. From a year earlier, it was up 12.5% after a previous 0.5% gain.
Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the rate of core consumer prices rose 0.2% in March, one-tenth of a percentage point below expectations and matching February’s increase.
Shelter costs advanced 0.3% for the month after rising 0.2% in February. Over the past year, shelter prices increased 3.0%, matching the gains in February and January.
Annual shelter inflation has steadily eased from recent highs. For comparison, 12-month increases were:
- January 2026: 3.0%
- December 2025: 3.2%
- November 2025: 3.0%
- October 2025: Unavailable
- September 2025: 3.6%
- August 2025: 3.6%
- July 2025: 3.7%
- June 2025: 3.8%
- May 2025: 3.9%
- April 2025: 4.0%
- March 2025: 4.0%
- February 2025: 4.2%
- January 2025: 4.4%
- December 2024: 4.6%
- November 2024: 4.7%
- October 2024: 4.9%
- September 2024: 4.9%
- August 2024: 5.2%
- July 2024: 5.1%
- June 2024: 5.2%
- May 2024: 5.4%
- April 2024: 5.5%
- March 2024: 5.7%
- February 2024: 5.7%
- January 2024: 6.0%
- December 2023: 6.2%
- November 2023: 6.5%
- October 2023: 6.7%
- September 2023: 7.2%
- August 2023: 7.3%
- July 2023: 7.7%
- June 2023: 7.8%
- May 2023: 8.0%
- April 2023: 8.1%
- March 2023: 8.2% – the highest since June 1982
The shelter component of the CPI includes prices for items such as apartment rents, owners’ equivalent rent – a measure of what homeowners would pay to rent or earn from renting their property – lodging away from home, like hotels and motels, and housing at schools.
In other key pricing categories:
- Clothing prices rose 1.0% in March after a 1.3% gain in February and were 3.4% higher than a year earlier.
- New vehicle prices edged up 0.1% for the month after being unchanged and were 0.5% higher year over year.
- Used car and truck prices fell 0.4% for a second straight month and were 3.2% lower than a year earlier.
- Airline fares rose 2.7% in March after increasing 1.4% in February and were 14.9% higher than a year earlier.
For the headline annual rate, inflation rose 3.3% over the 12 months ending in March, in line with forecasts, after increasing 2.4% in February.
Core inflation rose 2.6% over the year through March, one-tenth of a percentage point below forecasts, after increasing 2.5% in February — the lowest core rate since March 2021.
This core, "all items less food and energy" index, is one of the benchmark inflation rates monitored by the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) to help guide the central bank’s interest-rate decisions.
The following table of key inflation figures is for the last seven months through March, as published by the U.S. Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (www.bls.gov/cpi) on April 10, 2026. To compile the data each month, the BLS monitors the prices of about 80,000 consumer goods and services from around the nation. All monthly and annual pricing changes are in percentages.
September 2025 to March 2026 Consumer Prices – Gains & Losses in Percent
(Seasonally Adjusted from Prior Month and Unadjusted 12-Month)
| Sep 2025 | Oct 2025* | Nov 2025* | Dec 2025 | Jan 2026 | Feb 2026 | March 2026 | 12 Month | |
| All items | 0.3 | – | – | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.9 | 3.3 |
| Food | 0.2 | – | – | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 2.7 |
| Food at home | 0.3 | – | – | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.4 | -0.2 | 1.9 |
| Food away from home | 0.1 | – | – | 0.7 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 3.8 |
| Energy | 1.4 | – | – | 0.3 | -1.5 | 0.6 | 10.9 | 12.5 |
| Energy commodities | 3.4 | – | – | -0.3 | -3.3 | 1.1 | 21.3 | 19.4 |
| Gasoline (all types) | 3.6 | -1.3 | 2.7 | -0.3 | -3.2 | 0.8 | 21.2 | 18.9 |
| Fuel oil | 0.7 | – | – | -0.8 | -5.7 | 11.1 | 30.7 | 44.2 |
| Energy services | -0.4 | – | – | 1.0 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 5.0 |
| Electricity | -0.3 | – | – | 0.2 | -0.1 | -0.7 | 0.8 | 4.6 |
| Utility (piped) gas service | -0.9 | – | – | 3.7 | 1.0 | 3.1 | -0.9 | 6.4 |
| All items less food, energy | 0.2 | – | – | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 2.6 |
| Commodities less food, energy | 0.2 | – | – | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 1.2 |
| New vehicles | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.5 |
| Used cars and trucks | -0.2 | 0.7 | 0.1 | -0.9 | -1.8 | -0.4 | -0.4 | -3.2 |
| Apparel | 0.5 | – | – | 0.3 | 0.3 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 3.4 |
| Medical care | -0.1 | – | – | 0.3 | -0.1 | 0.0 | -1.0 | 0.3 |
| Services less energy | 0.2 | – | – | 0.3 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 3.0 |
| Shelter | 0.2 | – | – | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 3.0 |
| Transportation | 0.3 | – | – | 0.4 | 1.4 | 0.2 | 0.6 | 4.1 |
| Medical care | 0.2 | – | – | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 3.7 |
*In 2025, pricing information for October and November was limited because a lapse in appropriations halted data collection, leaving typical month-over-month changes unavailable.
The BLS releases inflation data around the middle of the month, covering consumer prices surveyed up to the previous month. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for April and the latest annual period will be made public on May 12, 2026.
The CPI data is also used to calculate inflation rates and power this site’s U.S. Inflation Calculator, which displays the cumulative inflation and the change in the buying power of the U.S. dollar over time.
