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

25-1385-DAL
Thursday, September 11, 2025

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (972) 850-4800

Consumer Price Index, Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land area – August 2025

Area prices fell 0.1 percent in July and August, up 1.1 percent over the year

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land area declined 0.1 percent for the two months ending in August 2025, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Michael Hirniak noted that a 2.1-percent fall in the energy index was the leading factor in the all items decrease. The index for food rose 0.4 percent over the same period, while the all items less food and energy index was unchanged. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, bi-monthly changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

The Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land area all items CPI-U increased 1.1 percent for the 12 months ending in August. The index for all items less food and energy advanced 1.3 percent and food prices rose 2.6 percent. Energy prices fell 3.4 percent over the same period.

  Line chart of 12-month percent changes in the CPI-U all items and all items less food and energy for Houston, not seasonally adjusted. An accessible version is available in View Chart Data link below the chart.
View Chart Data
Food

Food prices rose 0.4 percent for the two months ending in August. Prices for food at home (grocery store purchases) increased 0.7 percent, with 5 of the 6 grocery categories contributing to the rise. The index for food away from home (restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) was unchanged for the same period. Within the food at home index, the category for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (+2.0 percent) led the rise, followed by dairy and related products (+2.9 percent) and nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials (+1.9 percent). The index for cereals and bakery products (-3.2 percent) declined over the two-month period.

The food index rose 2.6 percent over the year. The indexes for food at home and food away from home both advanced, up 2.5 percent and 2.7 percent, respectively, since August 2024. The index for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs contributed most to the 12-month increase in the food at home category, rising 9.5 percent.

Energy

The energy index decreased 2.1 percent for the two months ending in August. Prices paid for gasoline fell 0.7 percent for the same period.

From August 2024 to August 2025, energy prices declined 3.4 percent. The index for gasoline decreased 9.4 percent over the year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy was unchanged during the two-month period. Among the index’s components, prices were higher for owners’ equivalent rent of residences (+0.6 percent), apparel (+5.3 percent), and motor vehicle maintenance and repair. In contrast, prices were lower for education and communication (-3.7 percent), lodging away from home, and household furnishings and operations (-0.6 percent).

The index for all items less food and energy advanced 1.3 percent over the year. Components contributing to the increase included owners’ equivalent rent of residences (+1.5 percent), medical care services, and household furnishings and operations (+4.9 percent). In contrast, prices were lower for education and communication (-4.5 percent).

The October 2025 Consumer Price Index for the Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land area is scheduled to be released on Thursday, November 13, 2025.

Changes to the health insurance index

With the release of October 2025 data on November 13, 2025, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) will remove long-term care (LTC) insurance from the health insurance index. Changes in the market for LTC insurance have made it out of scope and ineligible for pricing in the CPI market basket.


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 Houston 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 Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, Texas, Core Based Statistical Area includes the counties of Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, and Waller.

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. Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX, CPI-U by expenditure category for August 2025, not seasonally adjusted (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Expenditure category

 Indexes Percent change from:
Historical
data		 Jun.
2025		 Jul.
2025		 Aug.
2025		 Aug.
2024		 Jun.
2025		 Jul.
2025

All items

 279.067 - 278.771 1.1 -0.1 -

All items (1967=100)

 895.068 - 894.120 - - -

Food and beverages

 309.113 - 310.066 2.5 0.3 -

Food

 311.559 - 312.719 2.6 0.4 -

Food at home

 295.556 298.049 297.590 2.5 0.7 -0.2

Cereals and bakery products

 337.886 337.745 326.936 -4.4 -3.2 -3.2

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

 336.355 340.852 343.137 9.5 2.0 0.7

Dairy and related products

 233.552 240.272 240.261 4.6 2.9 0.0

Fruits and vegetables

 382.831 375.140 384.506 4.1 0.4 2.5

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)

 358.442 366.217 365.256 1.1 1.9 -0.3

Other food at home

 243.628 247.461 244.914 -1.4 0.5 -1.0

Food away from home

 323.613 - 323.656 2.7 0.0 -

Alcoholic beverages

 258.682 - 256.516 2.9 -0.8 -

Housing

 277.779 - 277.251 2.0 -0.2 -

Shelter

 333.230 333.472 333.980 1.1 0.2 0.2

Rent of primary residence

 329.048 330.218 329.301 0.9 0.1 -0.3

Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)

 311.688 313.291 313.416 1.5 0.6 0.0

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)

 311.688 313.291 313.416 1.5 0.6 0.0

Household furnishings and operations

 164.055 - 163.035 4.9 -0.6 -

Apparel

 184.032 - 193.815 2.6 5.3 -

Transportation

 236.829 - 237.190 -1.5 0.2 -

Private transportation

 239.190 - 239.693 -1.8 0.2 -

New and used motor vehicles(3)

 101.532 - 101.585 0.8 0.1 -

New vehicles(1)

 196.144 - 196.001 0.7 -0.1 -

Used cars and trucks(1)

 302.655 - 307.129 5.6 1.5 -

Motor fuel

 243.497 244.748 241.904 -9.3 -0.7 -1.2

Gasoline (all types)

 243.732 244.871 241.974 -9.4 -0.7 -1.2

Unleaded regular(4)

 243.513 244.418 241.462 -10.1 -0.8 -1.2

Unleaded midgrade(4)(5)

 281.951 284.667 282.118 -6.1 0.1 -0.9

Unleaded premium(4)

 291.712 294.674 291.584 -5.2 0.0 -1.0

Medical care

 560.025 - 558.808 2.7 -0.2 -

Recreation(3)

 132.207 - 132.334 1.6 0.1 -

Education and communication(3)

 122.327 - 117.776 -4.5 -3.7 -

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(1)

 1,320.534 - 1,313.099 -3.2 -0.6 -

Other goods and services

 501.712 - 499.528 4.3 -0.4 -

(1) Index is on a April 1978=100 base.
(2) Index is on a December 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. Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX, CPI-U by special aggregate index for August 2025, not seasonally adjusted (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Special aggregate index

 Indexes Percent change from:
Historical
data		 Jun.
2025		 Jul.
2025		 Aug.
2025		 Aug.
2024		 Jun.
2025		 Jul.
2025

All items

 279.067 - 278.771 1.1 -0.1 -

Food

 311.559 - 312.719 2.6 0.4 -

Energy

 207.142 203.691 202.776 -3.4 -2.1 -0.4

All items less food and energy

 286.366 - 286.389 1.3 0.0 -

All items less energy

 290.079 - 290.226 1.5 0.1 -

All items less medical care

 265.025 - 264.764 1.0 -0.1 -

All items less shelter

 257.965 - 257.246 1.1 -0.3 -

Commodities

 208.618 - 209.252 0.5 0.3 -

Commodities less food

 167.134 - 167.594 -0.6 0.3 -

Commodities less food & beverages

 164.081 - 164.577 -0.7 0.3 -

Durables

 113.983 - 113.880 1.7 -0.1 -

Nondurables

 263.214 - 264.765 0.3 0.6 -

Nondurables less food

 220.404 - 222.204 -1.8 0.8 -

Nondurables less food & beverages

 218.303 - 220.311 -2.2 0.9 -

Services

 350.145 - 348.947 1.4 -0.3 -

Services less rent of shelter(1)

 363.527 - 359.928 1.7 -1.0 -

Services less medical care services

 325.577 - 324.399 1.1 -0.4 -

(1) Indexes on a December 1982=100 base.

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

 

Last Modified Date: Thursday, September 11, 2025