The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the Northeast Region increased 0.1 percent in August, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today. The all items less food and energy index increased 0.2 percent. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

The Northeast Region all items CPI-U advanced 3.9 percent for the 12 months ending in August. The index for all items less food and energy advanced 2.9 percent over the year. Energy prices rose 18.0 percent. Food prices rose 2.9 percent.

  

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Chart 1. Over-the-year percent change in CPI-U, Northeast region, August 2023–August 2026

Month	All items	All items less food and energy
Aug 2023	2.8	3.7
Sep 2023	3.0	3.5
Oct 2023	2.7	3.4
Nov 2023	2.5	3.5
Dec 2023	2.6	3.5
Jan 2024	2.5	3.5
Feb 2024	2.4	3.2
Mar 2024	3.4	4.0
Apr 2024	3.6	4.1
May 2024	3.9	4.3
Jun 2024	3.8	4.3
Jul 2024	3.6	3.9
Aug 2024	3.4	4.0
Sep 2024	3.4	4.2
Oct 2024	3.5	4.4
Nov 2024	3.5	4.3
Dec 2024	3.5	3.9
Jan 2025	3.7	4.1
Feb 2025	3.9	4.2
Mar 2025	3.2	3.4
Apr 2025	3.1	3.5
May 2025	2.8	3.1
Jun 2025	3.0	3.2
Jul 2025	3.2	3.4
Aug 2025	3.3	3.4
Sep 2025	3.1	3.0
Oct 2025	-	-
Nov 2025	3.1	2.8
Dec 2025	3.3	3.1
Jan 2026	2.8	2.7
Feb 2026	2.7	2.6
Mar 2026	3.6	2.9
Apr 2026	4.4	3.1
May 2026	5.0	3.6
Jun 2026	4.3	3.3
Jul 2026	4.1	3.2
Aug 2026	3.9	2.9
Note: The October 2025 data values are not available due to the 2025 lapse in appropriations.

Food prices declined 0.1 percent for the month of August. Prices for food at home declined 0.3 percent, with lower prices for nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials (-2.1 percent) and fruits and vegetables (-1.4 percent). Prices for food away from home rose 0.2 percent for the same period.

Food prices rose 2.9 percent over the year. Prices for food at home advanced 2.6 percent, and prices for food away from home rose 3.5 percent.

The energy index increased 0.4 percent over the month. Gasoline prices increased 1.0 percent. Prices for electricity decreased 1.0 percent, and prices for natural gas service decreased 1.4 percent for the same period. 

Energy prices rose 18.0 percent over the year. Gasoline prices increased 30.5 percent. Prices for natural gas service increased 8.6 percent, and prices for electricity rose 4.1 percent during the past year.

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.2 percent in August. Among the index’s components, prices were higher for education and communication (+1.9 percent), shelter (+0.3 percent), and apparel (+3.6 percent). In contrast, prices were lower for recreation (-0.5 percent) and new and used motor vehicles (-0.3 percent).

The index for all items less food and energy advanced 2.9 percent over the year. Components contributing to the increase included shelter (+3.7 percent), education and communication (+3.9 percent), and public transportation.

The September 2026 Consumer Price Index for the Northeast Region is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, October 14, 2026.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measure of the average change in prices over time in a fixed market basket of goods and services. The Consumer Price Index for the Northeast region is published monthly. The set of components and sub-aggregates published for regional and metropolitan indexes is more limited than at the U.S. city average level; these indexes are byproducts of the national CPI program.

The Northeast region is comprised of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

Refer to the national CPI news release technical note or the Handbook of Methods for more information.

If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.

Table 1. Northeast region CPI-U by expenditure category for August 2026, not seasonally adjusted (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Expenditure category	Indexes				Percent change from:
	Historical data	Jun. 2026	Jul. 2026	Aug. 2026	Aug. 2025	Jun. 2026	Jul. 2026
All items		349.552	349.414	349.921	3.9	0.1	0.1
All items (December 1977 = 100)		550.437	550.221	551.018	-	-	-
Food and beverages		349.385	350.115	349.741	2.9	0.1	-0.1
Food		352.512	353.186	352.796	2.9	0.1	-0.1
Food at home		325.933	326.135	325.097	2.6	-0.3	-0.3
Cereals and bakery products		405.924	406.655	406.811	3.7	0.2	0.0
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs		339.376	337.594	337.122	0.9	-0.7	-0.1
Dairy and related products		285.973	284.944	283.974	-0.1	-0.7	-0.3
Fruits and vegetables		367.951	370.812	365.575	2.9	-0.6	-1.4
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials		242.221	250.930	245.733	5.1	1.4	-2.1
Other food at home		293.398	289.728	292.037	3.2	-0.5	0.8
Food away from home		400.007	401.649	402.608	3.5	0.7	0.2
Alcoholic beverages		306.293	307.659	307.479	2.0	0.4	-0.1
Housing		388.085	387.415	388.151	4.0	0.0	0.2
Shelter		383.297	385.015	385.486	4.3	0.6	0.1
Rent of primary residence		478.796	480.389	481.417	4.1	0.5	0.2
Owners' equivalent rent of residences(1)		492.431	493.938	495.071	4.1	0.5	0.2
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(1)		491.918	493.422	494.560	4.0	0.5	0.2
Fuels and utilities		361.148	358.888	359.011	8.5	-0.6	0.0
Household energy		327.464	324.652	324.428	9.4	-0.9	-0.1
Energy services		323.273	319.944	316.382	5.5	-2.1	-1.1
Electricity		332.469	327.713	324.528	4.1	-2.4	-1.0
Utility (piped) gas service		282.561	282.293	278.230	8.6	-1.5	-1.4
Household furnishings and operations		154.222	153.567	153.088	1.3	-0.7	-0.3
Apparel		136.582	133.070	137.822	1.1	0.9	3.6
Transportation		290.278	289.266	286.801	6.7	-1.2	-0.9
Private transportation		286.621	285.093	283.352	5.0	-1.1	-0.6
New and used motor vehicles(2)		126.964	127.703	127.368	0.1	0.3	-0.3
New vehicles		176.777	177.076	177.217	0.8	0.2	0.1
New cars(3)		167.865	168.242	168.555	1.5	0.4	0.2
Used cars and trucks		194.923	196.510	196.808	-2.0	1.0	0.2
Motor fuel		361.454	349.573	353.347	30.8	-2.2	1.1
Gasoline (all types)		360.016	348.313	351.817	30.5	-2.3	1.0
Gasoline, unleaded regular(3)		354.570	342.606	346.133	31.4	-2.4	1.0
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(3)(4)		391.817	380.823	384.323	27.4	-1.9	0.9
Gasoline, unleaded premium(3)		385.586	375.564	379.017	25.9	-1.7	0.9
Medical care		593.699	594.418	594.996	1.4	0.2	0.1
Medical care commodities		423.145	419.665	419.122	-2.1	-1.0	-0.1
Medical care services		643.892	645.941	646.872	2.2	0.5	0.1
Professional services		446.607	448.501	448.785	3.1	0.5	0.1
Recreation(2)		148.931	150.138	149.349	2.3	0.3	-0.5
Education and communication(2)		160.966	162.667	165.766	3.9	3.0	1.9
Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(5)		104.185	105.105	106.495	3.6	2.2	1.3
Other goods and services		652.785	656.270	658.090	4.1	0.8	0.3
Footnotes (1) Indexes on a December 1982=100 base. (2) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. (3) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (4) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base. (5) Indexes on a December 2024=100 base.
- Data not available. Note: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.

Table 2. Northeast region CPI-U by special aggregate index for August 2026, not seasonally adjusted (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Special aggregate index	Indexes				Percent change from:
	Historical data	Jun. 2026	Jul. 2026	Aug. 2026	Aug. 2025	Jun. 2026	Jul. 2026
All items		349.552	349.414	349.921	3.9	0.1	0.1
Food		352.512	353.186	352.796	2.9	0.1	-0.1
Energy		343.082	336.450	337.903	18.0	-1.5	0.4
All items less food and energy		357.597	357.944	358.533	2.9	0.3	0.2
All items less energy		354.905	355.302	355.737	2.9	0.2	0.1
All items less medical care		338.922	338.743	339.248	4.1	0.1	0.1
All items less shelter		305.468	305.427	305.661	4.0	0.1	0.1
Commodities		241.819	241.194	242.147	4.4	0.1	0.4
Commodities less food		190.969	189.888	191.299	5.5	0.2	0.7
Commodities less food & beverages		186.621	185.464	186.923	5.7	0.2	0.8
Durables		121.622	122.093	122.087	-0.3	0.4	0.0
Nondurables		298.698	297.324	298.873	6.0	0.1	0.5
Nondurables less food & beverages		249.028	245.660	249.030	10.5	0.0	1.4
Nondurables less food		252.108	249.081	252.192	9.7	0.0	1.2
Services		452.906	453.259	453.311	3.5	0.1	0.0
Services less rent of shelter(1)		442.609	443.884	442.524	3.4	0.0	-0.3
Services less medical care services		439.831	440.059	440.047	3.7	0.0	0.0
Footnotes (1) Indexes on a December 1982=100 base.
- Data not available. NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.