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

26-500-PHI
Wednesday, March 11, 2026

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:

Consumer Price Index, Baltimore-Columbia-Towson — February 2026

Area prices down 0.1 percent over the two months, up 1.7 percent over the year

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for Baltimore-Columbia-Towson was down 0.1 percent from December to February, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today. Regional Commissioner Alexandra Hall Bovee noted that energy prices decreased, as did the food index while prices increased for the all items less food and energy index. (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 1.7 percent for the 12 months ending in February. The index for all items less food and energy rose 2.9 percent, and the food index increased 1.2 percent. In contrast, the energy index fell 12.8 percent over the same period.

Food

The food index declined 0.6 percent for the two months ending in February. The index for food at home decreased 1.2 percent, with lower prices in other food at home (-3.7 percent) and meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (-3.1 percent). The food away from home index increased 0.2 percent for the same period.

The food index rose 1.2 percent over the year. The food away from home index advanced 3.6 percent. In comparison, the food at home index declined 0.3 percent as prices fell for other food at home (-2.7 percent) and meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (-2.2 percent).

Energy

The energy index decreased 11.0 percent over the February two-month pricing period. Gasoline prices increased 4.5 percent.

The energy index declined 12.8 percent from February 2025 to February 2026. Over the year, the gasoline index declined 4.6 percent.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.7 percent from December to February. The index for medical care was up 4.2 percent, as prices for medical care services increased. Within the same period, increases included the index for other goods and services (+6.1 percent), and the index for apparel (+6.2 percent). In contrast, indexes for new and used motor vehicles (-1.5 percent), and household furnishings and operations (-1.7 percent) declined.

The index for all items less food and energy advanced 2.9 percent over the year. The shelter index (+2.5 percent) was the largest contributor to the increase, due in part to the increases in the owners’ equivalent rent of primary residences (+2.6 percent) and rent of primary residence (+2.2 percent) indexes. Other increases include the medical care index (+10.4 percent), and other goods and services (+11.8 percent). In contrast, prices for new and used motor vehicles were down 1.3 percent for the same period as prices for used cars and trucks decreased 3.6 percent.

The Consumer Price Index for April 2026 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. (ET).


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 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.

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.

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

Table 1. Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD, CPI-U by expenditure category for February 2026, not seasonally adjusted (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Expenditure category

 Indexes Percent change from:
Historical
data		 Dec.
2025		 Jan.
2026		 Feb.
2026		 Feb.
2025		 Dec.
2025		 Jan.
2026

All items

 327.542 - 327.147 1.7 -0.1 -

All items (1967=100)

 979.651 - 978.469 - - -

Food and beverages

 350.133 - 348.053 1.5 -0.6 -

Food

 350.376 - 348.183 1.2 -0.6 -

Food at home

 306.496 308.156 302.785 -0.3 -1.2 -1.7

Cereals and bakery products

 379.962 373.935 374.259 0.2 -1.5 0.1

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

 337.839 341.633 327.411 -2.2 -3.1 -4.2

Dairy and related products

 268.978 269.270 269.553 1.3 0.2 0.1

Fruits and vegetables

 323.218 335.738 331.548 2.5 2.6 -1.2

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)

 238.658 247.130 243.802 3.2 2.2 -1.3

Other food at home

 275.661 269.602 265.509 -2.7 -3.7 -1.5

Food away from home

 413.337 - 414.246 3.6 0.2 -

Alcoholic beverages

 342.187 - 341.672 4.4 -0.2 -

Housing

 335.763 - 330.521 1.2 -1.6 -

Shelter

 392.556 391.777 393.607 2.5 0.3 0.5

Rent of primary residence

 455.994 455.260 453.928 2.2 -0.5 -0.3

Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)

 412.750 413.193 413.255 2.6 0.1 0.0

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)

 412.750 413.193 413.255 2.6 0.1 0.0

Household furnishings and operations

 141.829 - 139.391 4.3 -1.7 -

Apparel

 117.692 - 124.981 2.1 6.2 -

Transportation

 281.708 - 280.436 -1.4 -0.5 -

Private transportation

 288.599 - 284.527 -2.3 -1.4 -

New and used motor vehicles(3)

 135.589 - 133.596 -1.3 -1.5 -

New vehicles(1)

 275.915 - 278.168 0.1 0.8 -

Used cars and trucks(1)

 325.714 - 310.531 -3.6 -4.7 -

Motor fuel

 248.645 256.885 259.848 -4.6 4.5 1.2

Gasoline (all types)

 242.792 250.927 253.734 -4.6 4.5 1.1

Unleaded regular(4)

 243.694 252.039 254.705 -4.9 4.5 1.1

Unleaded midgrade(4)(5)

 272.144 279.185 283.475 -3.6 4.2 1.5

Unleaded premium(4)

 262.575 270.389 274.319 -3.0 4.5 1.5

Medical care

 544.054 - 566.701 10.4 4.2 -

Recreation(3)

 155.994 - 155.405 0.3 -0.4 -

Education and communication(3)

 163.033 - 164.740 1.0 1.0 -

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(1)

 1,480.891 - 1,487.369 3.8 0.4 -

Other goods and services

 600.505 - 637.053 11.8 6.1 -

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 2026, not seasonally adjusted (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Special aggregate index

 Indexes Percent change from:
Historical
data		 Dec.
2025		 Jan.
2026		 Feb.
2026		 Feb.
2025		 Dec.
2025		 Jan.
2026

All items

 327.542 - 327.147 1.7 -0.1 -

Food

 350.376 - 348.183 1.2 -0.6 -

Energy

 293.614 301.597 261.221 -12.8 -11.0 -13.4

All items less food and energy

 329.669 - 331.958 2.9 0.7 -

All items less energy

 332.329 - 333.916 2.6 0.5 -

All items less medical care

 316.838 - 315.333 1.1 -0.5 -

All items less shelter

 303.350 - 302.385 1.4 -0.3 -

Commodities

 231.865 - 231.647 0.3 -0.1 -

Commodities less food

 185.415 - 185.910 -0.1 0.3 -

Commodities less food & beverages

 180.609 - 181.130 -0.3 0.3 -

Durables

 130.609 - 129.104 -1.0 -1.2 -

Nondurables

 282.614 - 283.608 0.9 0.4 -

Nondurables less food & beverages

 224.962 - 229.162 0.4 1.9 -

Nondurables less food

 231.494 - 235.363 0.8 1.7 -

Services

 420.966 - 420.387 2.4 -0.1 -

Services less rent of shelter(1)

 469.045 - 466.017 2.4 -0.6 -

Services less medical care services

 409.675 - 406.511 1.5 -0.8 -

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 11, 2026