What is US Inflation Rate?

US Inflation Rate measures the annual or monthly change of US Consumer Price Index (CPI). It is calculated and published monthly by US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

The Inflation Rate can be presented in 2 ways:

Annual Inflation Rate - The CPI change rate from a year ago, calculated as: ( (This Month CPI) - (Year-Ago CPI)) / (Year-Ago CPI). For example:

Dec 2024 CPI: 317.68
Dec 2023 CPI: 308.74

Dec 2024 Annual Inflation Rate: 
  (317.68 - 308.74) / 308.74 = 0.028956403446265457 = 2.90% 

Monthly Inflation Rate - The CPI change rate from a month ago, calculated as: ( (This Month CPI) - (Last Month CPI) ) / (Last Month CPI). For example:

Dec 2024 CPI: 317.68
Mov 2024 CPI: 316.44

Dec 2024 Monthly Inflation Rate: 
  (317.68 - 316.44) / 316.44 = 0.003918594362280398 = 0.39% 

The Inflation Rate can be broken down into categories: All Items, Food, Energy, Core (All without Food and Energy), as shown on the US Bureau of Labor Statistics Website.

Note that Annual All-Item Inflation Rate is commonly referred as the Inflation Rate.

⇒ Historical Values of Unadjusted YoY Inflation Rates

⇐ Historical Values of Seasonally Adjusted CPI

⇑ Introduction to US CPI and Inflation Rate

⇑⇑ Interest Rates