The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the South region increased 0.3 percent in February, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today. The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.3 percent over the month. The energy index increased 0.5 percent in February and the index for food rose 0.1 percent. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

The South all items CPI-U advanced 1.8 percent for the 12 months ending in February, after increasing 1.9 percent for the 12 months ending January. The index for all items less food and energy rose 1.9 percent over the last 12 months. The food index increased 2.6 percent for the 12 months ending February. The energy index declined 0.9 percent over the last year.

  

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

Month	All items	All items less food and energy
Feb 2023	6.4	6.2
Mar 2023	5.3	6.3
Apr 2023	5.5	6.3
May 2023	4.4	6.0
Jun 2023	3.3	5.5
Jul 2023	3.4	5.0
Aug 2023	4.1	4.8
Sep 2023	4.2	4.6
Oct 2023	3.7	4.5
Nov 2023	3.4	4.4
Dec 2023	3.7	4.2
Jan 2024	3.4	4.3
Feb 2024	3.7	4.4
Mar 2024	3.8	4.0
Apr 2024	3.3	3.6
May 2024	3.2	3.3
Jun 2024	2.9	3.1
Jul 2024	2.9	3.1
Aug 2024	2.3	2.9
Sep 2024	2.1	3.0
Oct 2024	2.5	3.1
Nov 2024	2.7	3.1
Dec 2024	2.8	3.1
Jan 2025	2.8	3.1
Feb 2025	2.3	2.6
Mar 2025	1.9	2.4
Apr 2025	2.0	2.5
May 2025	2.0	2.5
Jun 2025	2.3	2.6
Jul 2025	2.3	2.8
Aug 2025	2.6	2.8
Sep 2025	2.7	2.7
Oct 2025	-	-
Nov 2025	2.2	2.1
Dec 2025	2.2	2.2
Jan 2026	1.9	2.0
Feb 2026	1.8	1.9
Note: The October 2025 data values are not available due to the 2025 lapse in appropriations.

The food index rose 0.1 percent in February. The index for food away from home (restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) increased 0.2 percent over the month The index for food at home (grocery store purchases) rose 0.1 percent in February.

The food index increased 2.6 percent over the last 12 months. The food away from home index rose 3.7 percent over the past year. The food at home index increased 1.9 percent for the 12 months ending February as prices increased in 5 of the 6 major grocery store food groups, including other food at home (+2.8 percent) and nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials (+5.2 percent).

The energy index rose 0.5 percent in February. The gasoline index increased 2.7 percent over the month. The index for natural gas rose 2.1 percent in February. In contrast, the index for electricity declined 2.0 percent over the same period.

The energy index declined 0.9 percent over the past 12 months. The gasoline index fell 6.8 percent over the 12 months ending February. In contrast, the electricity index rose 4.0 percent over this 12-month span and the index for natural gas increased 10.0 percent.

The index for all items less food and energy increased 0.3 percent in February. The apparel index rose 4.5 percent over the month. Medical care services (+0.5 percent) and household furnishings and operations (+0.8 percent) were among the indexes to increase in February. In comparison, the index for used cars and trucks (-1.3 percent) was among the indexes to decline over the month.

The index for all items less food and energy rose 1.9 percent over the last 12 months. The shelter index increased 2.5 percent over the last year. The index for owners’ equivalent rent rose 2.7 percent over the same period. Other indexes with notable increases over the last year include other goods and services (+7.2 percent) and medical care (+2.3 percent).

The Consumer Price Index for March 2026 is scheduled to be released on Friday, April 10, 2026, 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 the South 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 South region is comprised of Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.

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. South region 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		313.675	314.740	315.689	1.8	0.6	0.3
All items (December 1977 = 100)		508.824	510.552	512.091
Food and beverages		335.808	336.155	336.576	2.6	0.2	0.1
Food		340.017	340.422	340.877	2.6	0.3	0.1
Food at home		314.286	314.766	315.037	1.9	0.2	0.1
Cereals and bakery products		368.013	369.508	370.555	1.7	0.7	0.3
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs		346.275	343.643	343.370	1.5	-0.8	-0.1
Dairy and related products		271.234	272.677	272.906	0.7	0.6	0.1
Fruits and vegetables		332.261	337.640	335.493	-0.5	1.0	-0.6
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials		230.206	232.045	232.797	5.2	1.1	0.3
Other food at home		280.123	279.151	280.364	2.8	0.1	0.4
Food away from home		383.662	383.916	384.716	3.7	0.3	0.2
Alcoholic beverages		277.282	276.746	276.629	1.6	-0.2	0.0
Housing		327.911	329.384	329.186	2.8	0.4	-0.1
Shelter		383.736	384.923	384.707	2.5	0.3	-0.1
Rent of primary residence		406.324	406.689	406.509	1.7	0.0	0.0
Owners' equivalent rent of residences(1)		388.201	388.924	388.801	2.7	0.2	0.0
Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(1)		388.098	388.819	388.694	2.7	0.2	0.0
Fuels and utilities		321.009	325.517	322.759	4.6	0.5	-0.8
Household energy		260.673	265.296	261.728	4.7	0.4	-1.3
Energy services		261.123	265.870	262.186	4.9	0.4	-1.4
Electricity		253.546	258.368	253.156	4.0	-0.2	-2.0
Utility (piped) gas service		289.550	293.493	299.600	10.0	3.5	2.1
Household furnishings and operations		152.345	153.163	154.387	3.8	1.3	0.8
Apparel		137.324	139.285	145.490	3.0	5.9	4.5
Transportation		267.121	265.442	267.591	-1.6	0.2	0.8
Private transportation		268.768	266.686	268.647	-2.1	0.0	0.7
New and used motor vehicles(2)		125.729	124.407	123.922	-1.4	-1.4	-0.4
New vehicles		185.016	185.771	185.840	0.3	0.4	0.0
New cars(3)		182.380	183.609	183.872	0.7	0.8	0.1
Used cars and trucks		181.816	176.177	173.909	-3.7	-4.3	-1.3
Motor fuel		237.849	233.971	240.369	-6.7	1.1	2.7
Gasoline (all types)		236.257	232.497	238.832	-6.8	1.1	2.7
Gasoline, unleaded regular(3)		228.377	224.587	230.926	-7.2	1.1	2.8
Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(3)(4)		276.648	273.013	279.478	-4.9	1.0	2.4
Gasoline, unleaded premium(3)		275.397	272.240	278.288	-4.1	1.0	2.2
Medical care		548.027	552.374	554.491	2.3	1.2	0.4
Medical care commodities		383.672	388.972	388.363	0.5	1.2	-0.2
Medical care services		603.091	607.090	610.148	2.7	1.2	0.5
Professional services		417.497	420.612	422.856	3.3	1.3	0.5
Recreation(2)		142.106	142.326	143.031	0.8	0.7	0.5
Education and communication(2)		140.423	140.755	140.715	0.1	0.2	0.0
Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(5)		1,586.098	1,586.872	1,588.223	2.1	0.1	0.1
Other goods and services		560.320	581.978	584.336	7.2	4.3	0.4
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 1977=100 base.
Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.

Table 2. South region 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		313.675	314.740	315.689	1.8	0.6	0.3
Food		340.017	340.422	340.877	2.6	0.3	0.1
Energy		244.278	244.732	246.013	-0.9	0.7	0.5
All items less food and energy		319.847	321.094	322.092	1.9	0.7	0.3
All items less energy		322.290	323.421	324.344	2.0	0.6	0.3
All items less medical care		300.585	301.474	302.358	1.8	0.6	0.3
All items less shelter		286.980	288.003	289.439	1.5	0.9	0.5
Commodities		221.713	221.659	222.894	0.9	0.5	0.6
Commodities less food		175.575	175.385	176.797	-0.2	0.7	0.8
Commodities less food & beverages		172.528	172.345	173.779	-0.2	0.7	0.8
Durables		125.781	125.040	124.675	-0.3	-0.9	-0.3
Nondurables		275.613	276.263	278.874	1.4	1.2	0.9
Nondurables less food		224.828	225.665	229.934	0.0	2.3	1.9
Nondurables less food & beverages		222.067	222.975	227.473	-0.2	2.4	2.0
Services		406.612	408.838	409.477	2.4	0.7	0.2
Services less rent of shelter(1)		433.083	436.692	438.507	2.4	1.3	0.4
Services less medical care services		387.831	389.896	390.332	2.4	0.6	0.1
Footnotes (1) Indexes on a December 1982=100 base.
Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.