Bureau of Labor Statistics > Consumer Price Index > Methods > Quality Adjustment

Quality Adjustment in the CPI

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is calculated using prices for a fixed basket of goods and services through time. While the basket is periodically revised to reflect changing consumer expenditures, some items being priced in the sample come and go from the marketplace, making collection of these prices from month to month difficult. When an item is no longer available in the marketplace, a similar replacement item is selected. Often there are no similar items from which to choose, and as a result, a less comparable item is selected, potentially introducing quality change and an associated price differential into the index.

The hedonic quality adjustment method removes any price differential attributed to a change in quality by adding or subtracting the estimated value of that change from the price of the old item. Hedonic quality adjustments for rent and owners equivalent rent are used primarily to adjust for the age of a rental unit, and for utility adjustments.

More information on hedonic quality adjustment may be found on our page containing responses to frequently asked questions.

Publications, Research and Other Documentation

QA model factsheets are hyperlinked for some items in “Quality Adjustment Methodology List” below.
Information on hedonic research in the CPI and PPI can be found in A Review of Hedonic Price Adjustment Techniques for Products Experiencing Rapid and Complex Quality Change.

Quality Adjustment Methodology List
ELI	Entry Level Item (ELI) Title	Quality Adjustment Method

AA011	Men's suits	Hedonic adjustments (QA model factsheet: Men's suits)
AA012	Men's sport coats and tailored jackets	Hedonic adjustments
AA013	Men's outerwear	Hedonic adjustments
AA021	Men's underwear, hosiery, nightwear, and swimwear	Hedonic adjustments (QA model factsheet: Men's underwear)
AA022	Men's accessories	none
AA023	Men's active sportswear	none
AA033	Men's shirts, sweaters, and vests	Hedonic adjustments
AA041	Men's pants and shorts	Hedonic adjustments
AB011	Boys' outerwear	Hedonic adjustments
AB012	Boys' shirts and sweaters	Hedonic adjustments (QA model factsheet: Boys' shirts and sweaters)
AB013	Boys' underwear, nightwear, hosiery, accessories, & swimwear	none
AB014	Boys' suits, sport coats, and pants	Hedonic adjustments
AB015	Boys' active sportswear	none
AC011	Women's outerwear	Hedonic adjustments (QA model factsheet: Women’s Outerwear)
AC021	Women's dresses	Hedonic adjustments
AC031	Women's tops	Hedonic adjustments (QA model factsheet: Women's tops)
AC032	Women's skirts, pants, and shorts	Hedonic adjustments
AC033	Women's suits and suit coordinates	Hedonic adjustments
AC041	Women's undergarments, nightwear, shapewear, and swimwear	Hedonic adjustments (QA model factsheet: Women's bras)
AC042	Women's hosiery and accessories	none
AC043	Women's active sportswear	none
AD011	Girls' outerwear	Hedonic adjustments
AD012	Girls' dresses	Hedonic adjustments
AD013	Girls' tops	Hedonic adjustments (QA model factsheet: Girls' tops)
AD014	Girls' skirts, pants, and shorts	Hedonic adjustments
AD015	Girls' active sportswear	none
AD016	Girls' underwear, nightwear, hosiery, accessories, & swimwear	none
AE011	Men's footwear	Hedonic adjustments (QA model factsheet: Men's footwear and QA model factsheet: Athletic footwear)
AE021	Boys' footwear	Hedonic adjustments
AE022	Girls' footwear	Hedonic adjustments
AE031	Women's footwear	Hedonic adjustments (QA model factsheet: Women's footwear and QA model factsheet: Athletic footwear)
AF011	Infants' & toddlers' outer/play/dress/sleep wear & accessories	none
AF012	Infants' & toddlers' underwear & diapers	none
AG011	Watches	Hedonic adjustments (QA model factsheet: Watches)
AG021	Jewelry	none
EA011	College textbooks	none
EA012	Elementary and high school books and supplies	none
EA013	Encyclopedias and other sets of reference books	none
EB011	College tuition and fixed fees	none
EB021	Elementary and high school tuition and fixed fees	none
EB031	Day care and preschool	none
EB041	Technical and business school tuition and fixed fees	none
EC011	Postage	none
EC021	Delivery services	none
ED031	Wireless phone service	Hedonic adjustments
ED041	Land-line telephone services	Hedonic adjustments
EE011	Personal computers and peripheral equipment	Cost based adjustments (Measuring Price Change in the CPI: Computers, peripherals, and smart home assistant devices)
EE021	Computer software and blank media	none
EE031	Internet access and other information services	Hedonic adjustments
EE041	Phones, accessories, and smartwatches	Hedonic adjustments
EE042	Calculators, typewriters,& other information processing equipment	none
FA011	Flour and prepared flour mixes	none
FA021	Breakfast cereal & cereal bars	none
FA031	Rice, pasta, cornmeal	none
FB011	Bread	none
FB021	Fresh biscuits, rolls, and muffins	none
FB031	Cakes and cupcakes (excluding frozen)	none
FB032	Cookies	none
FB041	Crackers and bread & cracker products	none
FB042	Sweetrolls, coffee cake and doughnuts(excluding frozen)	none
FB043	Frozen bakery products and frozen/refrigerated doughs and batters	none
FB044	Pies, tarts, turnovers (excluding frozen)	none
FC011	Uncooked ground beef	none
FC021	Uncooked beef roasts	none
FC031	Uncooked beef steaks	none
FC041	Uncooked other beef and veal	none
FD011	Bacon, breakfast sausage and related products	none
FD021	Ham	none
FD031	Pork chops	none
FD041	Other pork including roasts, steaks, and ribs	none
FE011	Frankfurters	none
FE012	Lunchmeats	none
FE013	Lamb, organ meats, and game	none
FF011	Chicken	none
FF021	Other poultry including turkey	none
FG011	Fresh fish and seafood	none
FG021	Processed fish and seafood	none
FH011	Eggs	none
FJ011	Milk	none
FJ021	Cheese and cheese products	none
FJ031	Ice cream and related products	none
FJ041	Other dairy and related products	none
FK011	Apples	none
FK021	Bananas	none
FK031	Citrus fruits	none
FK041	Other fresh fruits	none
FL011	Potatoes	none
FL021	Lettuce	none
FL031	Tomatoes	none
FL041	Other fresh vegetables including fresh herbs	none
FM011	Canned fruits and vegetables	none
FM021	Frozen fruits and vegetables	none
FM031	Dried fruits and vegetables	none
FN011	Carbonated drinks	none
FN021	Frozen noncarbonated juices and drinks	none
FN031	Non-frozen noncarbonated juices and drinks	none
FP011	Coffee	none
FP021	Tea	none
FP022	Other beverage materials	none
FR011	Sugar and artificial sweeteners	none
FR021	Candy and chewing gum	none
FR031	Other sweets	none
FS011	Butter and margarine	none
FS021	Mayonnaise, salad dressing, and sandwich spreads	none
FS031	Peanut butter and other nut butters	none
FS032	Other fats and oils	none
FT011	Soups and soup bases	none
FT021	Frozen prepared foods	none
FT031	Snacks	none
FT041	Salt and other seasonings and spices	none
FT042	Olives, pickles, relishes	none
FT043	Sauces and gravies	none
FT044	Other condiments(excluding olives, pickles, relishes)	none
FT051	Baby food	none
FT061	Prepared salads	none
FT062	Other miscellaneous foods	none
FV011	Full service meals and snacks	none
FV021	Limited service meals and snacks	none
FV031	Food at employee sites and schools	none
FV041	Food from vending machines and mobile vendors	none
FV051	Board, catered events and other food away from home	none
FW011	Beer, ale and other malt beverages at home	none
FW021	Distilled spirits at home	none
FW031	Wine at home	none
FX011	Alcoholic beverages away from home	none
GA011	Cigarettes	none
GA021	Tobacco products other than cigarettes	none
GB011	Products for the hair	none
GB012	Dental and shaving products, including nonelectric articles	none
GB013	Deodorant, suntan, sanitary & foot care products	none
GB014	Electric personal care appliances	none
GB021	Cosmetics/perfume/bath/nail preparations and implements	none
GC011	Haircuts and other personal care services	none
GD011	Legal services	none
GD021	Funeral expenses	none
GD031	Laundry and dry cleaning services	none
GD041	Shoe repair and other shoe services	none
GD042	Clothing, alterations, rentals and repairs	none
GD043	Watch and jewelry repair	none
GD051	Checking account and other bank services	none
GD052	Tax return preparation and other accounting fees	none
GE011	Stationery, stationery supplies, gift wrap	none
GE012	Luggage	none
GE013	Infants' equipment	none
HA011	Rent of primary residence	Age bias, structural change, Facility adjustments for parking and A/C units, Analyst adjustments (For more information, see A review of recent improvements to the CPI’s housing age-bias adjustment, Updating the Housing Age-Bias Regression Model in the CPI, Updating the rent sample for the CPI housing survey, and the factsheet)
HB011	Lodging while at school	none
HB021	Rental of lodging away from home	none
HC011	Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence	Age bias, structural change, Removal of the cost of landlord-provided utilities (cost of utilities) for the calculation of pure rents, Facility adjustments for parking and A/C units, Analyst adjustments (For more information, see A review of recent improvements to the CPI’s housing age-bias adjustment, Updating the Housing Age-Bias Regression Model in the CPI, Updating the rent sample for the CPI housing survey, and the factsheet)
HD011	Tenants' and household insurance	none
HE011	Fuel oil	none
HE021	Other household fuels	none
HF011	Electricity	none
HF021	Utility (piped) gas service	none
HG011	Residential water and sewerage service	none
HG021	Garbage and trash collection	none
HH011	Floor coverings	none
HH021	Curtains and drapes	none
HH022	Window coverings	none
HH031	Bathroom linens	none
HH032	Bedroom linens	none
HH033	Kitchen and dining room linens	none
HJ011	Mattresses and foundations	none
HJ012	Bedroom furniture other than mattresses and springs	none
HJ021	Sofas, sofa sleepers, furniture covers and decorative pillows	none
HJ022	Living room chairs	none
HJ023	Living room tables	none
HJ024	Kitchen and dining room furniture	none
HJ031	Infants furniture	none
HJ032	Outdoor furniture	none
HJ033	Occasional furniture	none
HK011	Refrigerators and freezers	Hedonic adjustments (QA model factsheet: Refrigerators)
HK012	Washers and dryers	Hedonic adjustments (QA model factsheet: Clothes washers) (QA model factsheet: Clothes dryers)
HK013	Ranges and cooktops	Hedonic adjustments
HK014	Microwave ovens	Hedonic adjustments (QA model factsheet: Microwaves)
HK021	Floor cleaning equipment	none
HK022	Small electric kitchen appliances	none
HK023	Other electric appliances	none
HL011	Lamps and lighting fixtures	none
HL012	Household decorative items and clocks	none
HL021	Indoor plants and fresh cut flowers	none
HL031	Dishes	none
HL032	Flatware	none
HL041	Nonelectric cookware	none
HL042	Nonelectric kitchenware	none
HM011	Paint, wallpaper tools and supplies	none
HM012	Power tools	none
HM013	Miscellaneous hardware, supplies and equipment	none
HM014	Non-powered hand tools	none
HM021	Lawn and garden and outdoor equipment and grills	none
HM022	Lawn & garden materials, other decorative items & pesticides	none
HN011	Laundry and cleaning products	none
HN012	Laundry and cleaning equipment	none
HN021	Household paper products	none
HN031	Miscellaneous household products	none
HP011	Domestic services	none
HP021	Gardening and lawn care services	none
HP031	Moving, freight, and storage expenses	none
HP041	Appliance repair	none
HP042	Reupholstery of furniture	none
HP043	Inside home maintenance and repair services	none
MC011	Physicians' services	none
MC021	Dental services	none
MC031	Eyeglasses and eye care	none
MC041	Services by other medical professionals	none
MD011	Hospital services	none
MD021	Nursing and convalescent home care	none
MD022	Adult day care	none
MD031	Care of invalids, the elderly, and convalescents in the home	none
MF011	Prescription drugs	none
MF021	Nonprescription drugs	none
MG011	Dressings and first aid kits	none
MG012	Medical equipment for general use	none
MG013	Supportive and convalescent medical equipment	none
RA011	Televisions	Hedonic adjustments
RA021	Cable and satellite television service	Hedonic adjustments
RA031	Other video equipment	Hedonic adjustments
RA041	Prerecorded video discs/digital files/downloads and other media	none
RA042	Rental of video discs and other media	none
RA051	Audio media players, recorders, systems, and other equipment	none
RA061	Recorded music and music subscriptions	none
RB011	Pet food	none
RB012	Purchase of pets, pet supplies, accessories	none
RB021	Pet services	none
RB022	Veterinarian services	none
RC011	Outboard motors and powered sports vehicles	none
RC012	Unpowered boats and trailers	none
RC013	Bicycles and accessories	none
RC021	General sports equipment excluding water	none
RC022	Water sports equipment	none
RC023	Hunting, fishing and camping gear	none
RD011	Film and photographic supplies	none
RD012	Photographic equipment	Hedonic adjustments
RD021	Photographer's fees	none
RD022	Photo processing	none
RE011	Toys, games, hobbies, and playground equipment	none
RE012	Video game consoles, software, and accessories	none
RE021	Sewing items	none
RE031	Music instruments and accessories	none
RF011	Club dues and fees for participant sports/group exercises	none
RF021	Admission to movies, theaters, concerts & other recurring events	none
RF022	Admission to sporting events	none
RF031	Fees for lessons or instructions	none
RG011	Single copy newspapers and magazines	none
RG012	Subscriptions to newspapers and magazines	none
RG021	Books purchased through book clubs	none
RG022	Books purchased at retail outlets other than book clubs	none
TA011	New car and truck purchase	Cost based adjustments (Quality Adjustment in the CPI: New Vehicles)
TA012	New motorcycles	none
TA021	Used cars and trucks	Cost based adjustments (Measuring Price Change in the CPI: Used Cars and Trucks)
TA031	Vehicle leasing	Cost based adjustments (Measuring Price Change in the CPI: Leased cars and trucks)
TA041	Automobile and truck rental	none
TB011	Regular unleaded gasoline	none
TB012	Mid-grade unleaded gasoline	none
TB013	Premium unleaded gasoline	none
TB021	Automotive diesel fuel	none
TB022	Alternative motor fuels	none
TC011	Tires	none
TC021	Vehicle parts and equipment other than tires	none
TC022	Motor oil, coolant and fluids	none
TD011	Motor vehicle body work	none
TD021	Motor vehicle maintenance and servicing	none
TD031	Motor vehicle repair	none
TE011	Motor vehicle insurance	none
TF011	State vehicle registration and driver's license	none
TF031	Parking fees and tolls	none
TF032	Automobile service clubs	none
TG011	Airline fares	none
TG021	Intercity bus fares	none
TG022	Intercity train fares	none
TG023	Ship fares	none
TG031	Intracity mass transit	none
TG032	Taxi fares	none
TG033	Car and van pools	none

Download an XLSX version of this table here:

CPI Quality Adjustment Methodology List (XLSX)

Last Modified Date: October 29, 2024