United States · data to Sep 2026
How's inflation?
Mixed.
Prices are rising 3.7% a year, a little away from what the Federal Reserve aims for.
For context: 3.7% is higher than 66% of all 944 figures since 1948.
Prices, year over year
Annual change in consumer prices (CPI), with the range we count as Good
The strip under the chart shows the verdict each period would get by today's rules:Good Mixed Bad
See the latest numbers
| Period | Value | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2026 | 3.7% | Mixed |
| Aug 2026 | 3.4% | Mixed |
| Jul 2026 | 3.3% | Mixed |
| Jun 2026 | 3.5% | Mixed |
| May 2026 | 4.2% | Bad |
| Apr 2026 | 3.8% | Mixed |
| Mar 2026 | 3.3% | Mixed |
| Feb 2026 | 2.4% | Good |
| Jan 2026 | 2.4% | Good |
| Dec 2025 | 2.7% | Good |
| Nov 2025 | 2.7% | Good |
| Sep 2025 | 3.0% | Mixed |
Source: BLS, Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), all items, annual % change, via FRED · Series CPIAUCSL · Latest Sep 2026
How we judged this
What we test: The latest figure (prices, year over year). Right now that's 3.7%.
- Good if from 1.5% to under 3.0%
- Mixed if from 0.5% to under 1.5%
- Mixed if from 3.0% to under 4.0%applies now
- Bad if anything the rules above don’t cover
Rules are checked from the top. The first one that fits decides the verdict.
About this data
- Measure
- Prices, year over year
- Latest
- 3.7% (Sep 2026)
- Published
- Monthly, by BLS
- Verdict counts for
- Equal weight with the others in the overall verdict
Inflation is how fast prices are rising. A little is normal and healthy. A lot means your paycheck and savings buy less each year.
The Federal Reserve targets 2% inflation on a different measure, the PCE price index. We use the Consumer Price Index because it's the one in the news and closest to what households pay. CPI usually runs a little above PCE, so our Good range is 1.5% to 3%.
Very low or falling prices count against the economy too: they usually come with a downturn, as in 2009 and 2020.