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Bureau of Labor Statistics > Geographic Information > Northeast > News Release
News Release Information

26-220-BOS
Friday, February 13, 2026

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (646) 264-3600

Consumer Price Index, Boston-Cambridge-Newton — January 2026

Area prices up 0.1 percent over the two months, 1.4 percent over the year

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for Boston-Cambridge-Newton was up 0.1 percent from November to January, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today. Acting Regional Commissioner Michael G. Phinney noted that the index for all items less food and energy was the largest contributor to the increase. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

The Boston area all items CPI-U advanced 1.4 percent for the 12 months ending in January. The index for all items less food and energy rose 1.5 percent, and the food index also increased 1.5 percent. In contrast, the energy index declined 0.5 percent over the same period.

  Line chart of 12-month percent changes in the Consumer Price Index CPI-U for all items and all items less food and energy for Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, January 2023 to January 2026, not seasonally adjusted. Accessible version is available in View Chart Data link below the chart.
View Chart Data
Food

The food index was little changed from November to January, up 0.1 percent. The food away from home index (restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) increased 1.3 percent. The index for food at home (grocery store purchases) decreased 0.7 percent, with lower prices in 4 of the 6 major grocery store food groups.

The food index rose 1.5 percent over the year. The food away from home index increased 5.1 percent. In comparison, the food at home index declined 1.2 percent. Five of the six major grocery store food group indexes declined over the year, including meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (-3.1 percent).

Energy

The energy index increased 0.2 percent over the two-month pricing period. Gasoline prices declined 2.5 percent.

The energy index decreased 0.5 percent from January 2025 to January 2026. Over the year, the gasoline index declined 2.5 percent.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy ticked up 0.1 percent from November to January, reflecting higher prices for recreation (+2.6 percent), apparel (+3.4 percent), education and communication (+0.8 percent) and airline fares. In contrast, the index for medical care declined 1.4 percent. Within new and used motor vehicles (-1.1 percent), prices for used cars and trucks decreased 4.9 percent. Within shelter (-0.1 percent), prices for lodging away from home fell, while prices rose for owners’ equivalent rent (+0.5 percent) and for rent of primary residence (+0.7 percent).

The index for all items less food and energy increased 1.5 percent over the year. The shelter index (+2.0 percent) was the largest contributor to the increase, due in part to increases in owners’ equivalent rent of residences (+4.1 percent) and rent of primary residence (+3.6 percent). Other categories with increases included tuition, other school fees, and childcare, which advanced 6.7 percent, the largest over-the-year increase recorded since the series start in 2018.

The Consumer Price Index for February 2026 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, March 11, 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 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 includes 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.

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

Table 1. Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, CPI-U by expenditure category for January 2026, not seasonally adjusted (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Expenditure category

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

All items

 347.892 - 348.343 1.4 0.1 -

All items (1967=100)

 1,011.157 - 1,012.467 - - -

Food and beverages

 356.608 - 357.355 1.6 0.2 -

Food

 361.306 - 361.694 1.5 0.1 -

Food at home

 315.369 315.122 313.195 -1.2 -0.7 -0.6

Cereals and bakery products

 383.673 381.358 378.694 -2.5 -1.3 -0.7

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

 334.630 337.966 328.894 -3.1 -1.7 -2.7

Dairy and related products

 349.596 353.053 356.836 -0.8 2.1 1.1

Fruits and vegetables

 364.069 371.402 379.648 -1.3 4.3 2.2

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)

 227.299 222.467 224.123 7.1 -1.4 0.7

Other food at home

 248.149 245.457 242.520 -1.8 -2.3 -1.2

Food away from home

 444.093 - 450.082 5.1 1.3 -

Alcoholic beverages

 309.734 - 313.699 2.5 1.3 -

Housing

 384.811 - 384.671 1.9 0.0 -

Shelter

 455.109 454.161 454.572 2.0 -0.1 0.1

Rent of primary residence

 480.236 481.998 483.368 3.6 0.7 0.3

Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)

 493.672 495.537 496.263 4.1 0.5 0.1

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)

 493.672 495.537 496.263 4.1 0.5 0.1

Household furnishings and operations

 149.907 - 149.111 1.3 -0.5 -

Apparel

 124.674 - 128.934 -8.6 3.4 -

Transportation

 237.665 - 237.971 0.2 0.1 -

Private transportation

 247.725 - 246.133 -0.6 -0.6 -

New and used motor vehicles(3)

 141.060 - 139.484 -3.6 -1.1 -

New vehicles(1)

 240.780 - 240.448 0.2 -0.1 -

Used cars and trucks(1)

 433.253 - 411.932 -2.1 -4.9 -

Motor fuel

 268.902 267.001 262.138 -2.5 -2.5 -1.8

Gasoline (all types)

 266.286 264.402 259.582 -2.5 -2.5 -1.8

Unleaded regular(4)

 254.092 252.101 247.246 -2.8 -2.7 -1.9

Unleaded midgrade(4)(5)

 308.328 307.187 302.867 -0.9 -1.8 -1.4

Unleaded premium(4)

 308.580 307.563 303.545 -1.0 -1.6 -1.3

Medical care

 762.945 - 752.354 -1.2 -1.4 -

Recreation(3)

 118.545 - 121.580 3.7 2.6 -

Education and communication(3)

 183.374 - 184.798 3.3 0.8 -

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(1)

 1,654.043 - 1,662.595 6.7 0.5 -

Other goods and services

 699.606 - 687.612 6.2 -1.7 -

Footnotes
(1) Index is on a January 1978=100 base.
(2) Index is 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.

Table 2. Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, CPI-U by special aggregate index for January 2026, not seasonally adjusted (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Special aggregate index

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

All items

 347.892 - 348.343 1.4 0.1 -

Food

 361.306 - 361.694 1.5 0.1 -

Energy

 321.014 325.748 321.742 -0.5 0.2 -1.2

All items less food and energy

 355.997 - 356.474 1.5 0.1 -

All items less energy

 355.353 - 355.821 1.5 0.1 -

All items less medical care

 331.985 - 332.819 1.6 0.3 -

All items less shelter

 306.722 - 307.614 1.0 0.3 -

Commodities

 228.771 - 228.885 -0.5 0.0 -

Commodities less food

 172.263 - 172.226 -2.1 0.0 -

Commodities less food & beverages

 166.823 - 166.648 -2.4 -0.1 -

Durables

 118.224 - 117.946 -1.8 -0.2 -

Nondurables

 286.997 - 287.417 -0.1 0.1 -

Nondurables less food

 225.655 - 226.024 -2.2 0.2 -

Nondurables less food & beverages

 220.117 - 220.184 -2.7 0.0 -

Services

 455.383 - 456.113 2.3 0.2 -

Services less rent of shelter(1)

 471.088 - 473.612 2.6 0.5 -

Services less medical care services

 432.500 - 433.738 2.5 0.3 -

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

- Data not available.

 

Last Modified Date: Friday, February 13, 2026