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Bureau of Labor Statistics > Geographic Information > Mid-Atlantic > News Release
News Release Information

25-366-PHI
Wednesday, March 12, 2025

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:

Consumer Price Index, Baltimore-Columbia-Towson – February 2025

Area prices were up 1.5 percent over the past two months, up 3.2 percent over the year

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for Baltimore-Columbia-Towson was up 1.5 percent for the two months ending in February 2025, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Alexandra Hall Bovee noted that all items less food and energy index advanced 1.2 percent after decreasing 0.2 percent in December. The energy index and food index also saw increases. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

The Baltimore area all items CPI-U advanced 3.2 percent for the 12 months ending in February. The index for all items less food and energy rose 3.3 percent, as did the food index. The energy index was up 1.7 percent over the same period.

Food

The food index increased 1.4 percent from December to February. The index for food at home advanced 1.5 percent, with higher prices in 4 of the 6 major grocery categories. Prices for meats, poultry, fish and eggs rose 5.5 percent, the highest increase since June 2021 (+6.5 percent). Whereas dairy and related products recorded lower prices at 3.8 percent, its largest decline since the index began in February 2018. The food away from home index was up 1.2 percent.

The food index rose 3.3 percent over the year. Similarly, the food away from home index increased 3.4 percent and the food at home index advanced 3.2 percent. Four of the six major grocery indexes were up over the year, as seen in meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (+10.3 percent); and nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials (+8.0 percent).

Energy

The energy index advanced 6.9 percent over the two-month pricing period. Gasoline prices increased 6.2 percent.

The energy index rose 1.7 percent from February 2024 to February 2025, following a series of published index declines from August to December 2024. Over the year, the gasoline index decreased 5.8 percent.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy increased 1.2 percent from December to February. The index for shelter increased, up 1.7 percent over the bi-monthly period, as the index for owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence rose 1.0 percent. Other increases within all items less food and energy included apparel (+6.9 percent), recreation (+1.2 percent), and education and communication (1.1 percent).

The index for all items less food and energy advanced 3.3 percent over the year. The shelter index (+4.1 percent) was the largest contributor to the increase, due in part to the increase in the owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence (+3.4 percent) index. Additional index increases included recreation (+6.7 percent) and medical care (+2.0 percent). In contrast, the apparel index decreased, down 7.3 percent for the same period.

The Consumer Price Index for April 2025 for Baltimore-Columbia-Towson area is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, May 13, 2025.

Publication updates and changes

In accordance with annual practice, relative importance weights have been updated and are available online in the CPI Supplemental Table of Contents.

Effective with the January 2025 data release, several indexes and average price series were discontinued. More information is available on the CPI discontinued series page. Direct any inquiries to the CPI office using one of the CPI contact information options listed online.

 


Technical Note

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 Baltimore area is published bi-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. Each local index has a much smaller sample size than the national or regional indexes and is, therefore, subject to substantially more sampling and other measurement error. As a result, local-area indexes are more volatile than the national or regional indexes. In addition, local indexes are not adjusted for seasonal influences. NOTE: Area indexes do not measure differences in the level of prices between cities; they only measure the average change in prices for each area since the base period.

Percent changes for all-items data previously found in Table A of this release can be accessed in Chart 1 for this release and its attendant data table. A full all-items data series history for the original index value and for 1-month, 2-month, 3-month, 6-month, and 12-month percent changes can be accessed via BLS data query tools. A direct link to the all-items series is provided in Table 1 of this release under historical data.

The Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD, Core Based Statistical Area includes Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford, Howard, and Queen Anne’s counties, as well as Baltimore City, in Maryland.

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

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD, CPI-U by expenditure category for February 2025, not seasonally adjusted (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Expenditure category

 Indexes Percent change from:
Historical
data		 Dec.
2024		 Jan.
2025		 Feb.
2025		 Feb.
2024		 Dec.
2024		 Jan.
2025

All items

 316.753 - 321.541 3.2 1.5 -

All items (1967=100)

 947.383 - 961.702 - - -

Food and beverages

 338.691 - 343.028 3.1 1.3 -

Food

 339.221 - 343.981 3.3 1.4 -

Food at home

 299.153 297.868 303.673 3.2 1.5 1.9

Cereals and bakery products

 366.460 370.959 373.399 5.3 1.9 0.7

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

 317.336 319.861 334.779 10.3 5.5 4.7

Dairy and related products

 276.667 278.903 266.218 -2.8 -3.8 -4.5

Fruits and vegetables

 317.570 314.809 323.596 0.3 1.9 2.8

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)

 231.514 232.150 236.316 8.0 2.1 1.8

Other food at home

 274.787 267.573 272.790 -1.7 -0.7 1.9

Food away from home

 394.874 - 399.703 3.4 1.2 -

Alcoholic beverages

 327.684 - 327.212 1.0 -0.1 -

Housing

 320.891 - 326.506 3.7 1.7 -

Shelter

 377.815 380.283 384.148 4.1 1.7 1.0

Rent of primary residence

 441.779 442.699 444.057 3.9 0.5 0.3

Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)

 398.624 400.426 402.608 3.4 1.0 0.5

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)

 398.624 400.426 402.608 3.4 1.0 0.5

Household furnishings and operations

 136.304 - 133.701 -2.9 -1.9 -

Apparel

 114.563 - 122.435 -7.3 6.9 -

Transportation

 280.980 - 284.504 3.9 1.3 -

Private transportation

 287.706 - 291.231 4.9 1.2 -

New and used motor vehicles(3)

 135.088 - 135.299 0.6 0.2 -

New vehicles(1)

 276.392 - 277.917 0.1 0.6 -

Used cars and trucks(1)

 320.234 - 321.975 1.7 0.5 -

Motor fuel

 256.490 283.268 272.362 -6.0 6.2 -3.9

Gasoline (all types)

 250.594 276.741 266.051 -5.8 6.2 -3.9

Unleaded regular(4)

 251.460 279.099 267.860 -6.1 6.5 -4.0

Unleaded midgrade(4)(5)

 280.972 303.420 293.975 -4.3 4.6 -3.1

Unleaded premium(4)

 271.443 291.176 282.706 -4.2 4.1 -2.9

Medical care

 511.383 - 513.385 2.0 0.4 -

Recreation(3)

 153.083 - 154.925 6.7 1.2 -

Education and communication(3)

 161.240 - 163.078 -1.1 1.1 -

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(1)

 1,432.433 - 1,432.433 3.5 0.0 -

Other goods and services

 562.915 - 569.646 4.7 1.2 -

Footnotes
(1) Indexes on a March 1978=100 base.
(2) Indexes on a November 1982=100 base.
(3) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
(4) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample.
(5) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.

- Data not available.
NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.
Table 2. Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD, CPI-U by special aggregate index for February 2025, not seasonally adjusted (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Special aggregate index

 Indexes Percent change from:
Historical
data		 Dec.
2024		 Jan.
2025		 Feb.
2025		 Feb.
2024		 Dec.
2024		 Jan.
2025

All items

 316.753 - 321.541 3.2 1.5 -

Food

 339.221 - 343.981 3.3 1.4 -

Energy

 280.069 304.614 299.502 1.7 6.9 -1.7

All items less food and energy

 319.064 - 322.740 3.3 1.2 -

All items less energy

 321.652 - 325.455 3.3 1.2 -

All items less medical care

 307.083 - 311.989 3.3 1.6 -

All items less shelter

 294.164 - 298.333 2.7 1.4 -

Commodities

 226.587 - 230.862 -0.3 1.9 -

Commodities less food

 182.135 - 186.056 -2.5 2.2 -

Commodities less food & beverages

 177.641 - 181.668 -2.6 2.3 -

Durables

 129.847 - 130.393 -2.0 0.4 -

Nondurables

 273.828 - 281.021 0.5 2.6 -

Nondurables less food & beverages

 218.465 - 228.270 -2.6 4.5 -

Nondurables less food

 224.497 - 233.546 -2.4 4.0 -

Services

 405.075 - 410.468 5.3 1.3 -

Services less rent of shelter(1)

 451.146 - 455.305 6.7 0.9 -

Services less medical care services

 394.601 - 400.640 5.5 1.5 -

Footnotes
(1) Indexes on a November 1982=100 base.

- Data not available.
NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.

 

Last Modified Date: Wednesday, March 12, 2025