Prices in the Boston area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), ticked up 0.1 percent over the two months ending in November 2024, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner William J. Sibley primarily attributed the November increase to higher prices for natural gas. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U increased 3.1 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) The index for all items less food and energy rose 3.7 percent over the year, influenced by a rise in shelter prices. Food prices increased 1.3 percent. Energy prices declined 1.2 percent. (See table 1.)

  

View Chart Data

Chart 1. Over-the-year percent change in CPI-U, Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, November 2021–November 2024

Month	All items	All items less food and energy
Nov 2021	5.3	3.3
Jan 2022	6.3	4.7
Mar 2022	7.3	5.2
May 2022	7.5	4.9
Jul 2022	7.0	3.9
Sep 2022	8.1	5.9
Nov 2022	7.0	4.7
Jan 2023	6.4	4.6
Mar 2023	4.7	4.1
May 2023	3.6	4.3
Jul 2023	2.8	4.0
Sep 2023	2.6	3.0
Nov 2023	2.4	3.4
Jan 2024	2.0	3.0
Mar 2024	3.3	4.4
May 2024	4.0	4.5
Jul 2024	3.5	3.7
Sep 2024	3.4	4.2
Nov 2024	3.1	3.7

Food prices increased 0.4 percent during the latest two-month period. Prices for food at home rose 0.4 percent, with price increases for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (3.3 percent) and nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials (3.5 percent). Prices for food away from home increased 0.4 percent.

Over the year, food prices rose 1.3 percent. Prices for food at home increased 0.5 percent, and prices for food away from home increased 2.5 percent.

The energy index increased 5.1 percent for the two months ending in November. The increase was mainly due to higher prices for household energy (13.3 percent) as prices rose for natural gas (60.5 percent) and electricity (1.3 percent). On the other hand, prices for gasoline fell 5.3 percent.

Energy prices decreased 1.2 percent over the year, driven by lower prices for gasoline (-11.9 percent). Prices paid for household energy increased 6.8 percent. Within household energy, prices rose for electricity (7.2 percent) and natural gas (13.8 percent).

The index for all items less food and energy declined 0.3 percent in the latest two-month period. Following seasonal trends, apparel prices fell 5.6 percent. Lower prices for household furnishings and operations (-2.4 percent) and airline fares also contributed to the decrease. Partially offsetting the decreases was an increase in shelter prices, with higher prices for residential rent (0.9 percent), owners’ equivalent rent (0.1 percent), and lodging away from home.

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy rose 3.7 percent. Contributing to the increase was a 5.8-percent increase in shelter prices. Within shelter, prices advanced for owners’ equivalent rent (5.5 percent), residential rent (6.1 percent), and lodging away from home. Higher prices were also recorded for medical care (4.8 percent). In contrast, prices declined for used cars and trucks (-4.6 percent) and household furnishings and operations (-1.5 percent).

The Consumer Price Index for January 2025 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, February 12, 2025, at 8:30 a.m. (ET).

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 Boston 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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH Core Based Statistical Area covered in this release is comprised of Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth, and Suffolk Counties in Massachusetts and Rockingham and Strafford Counties in New Hampshire.

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.