Consumer Price Index, CPI-U (CUSR0000SAF11) · Food at home, U.S. city average, seasonally adjusted
What is the consumer price index for food at home?
The consumer price index for food at home was 321.1 in the month ended , up 1.8% from a year earlier.
Consumer price index for food at home, U.S. city average, seasonally adjusted, each month
Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to .
Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to .
Consumer price index for food at home, U.S. city average, change from a year earlier, each month (ours)
Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to .
Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to .
Each point is one month of the series as the source publishes it, or a change worked out from those values (ours). The US recessions are shaded. Pointing at the chart shows the month and the value.
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Inspect and compare dates
The newest month beside the one before it and the nearest ones a year, five and ten years earlier. The last ten years are in the table under "The numbers behind the chart".
| Measure | Latest | The month before | A year earlier | Five years earlier | Ten years earlier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | |||||
| Consumer price index for food at home, U.S. city average | 321.1 | 321.3 | 315.5 | 262.5 | 237.9 |
| Change over a year | +1.8% | +2.1% | +2.7% | +4.5% | −2.2% |
The table scrolls sideways; the first column stays in place.
Observed .
Right now
The consumer price index for food at home was 321.1 in September 2026, the lowest since May 2026.
Over a year it is up 1.8% (ours).
ChangeOurs
| Period | Then | Change |
|---|---|---|
| One month | 321.3 in | −0.1% |
| Three months | 321.4 in | −0.1% |
| Twelve months | 315.5 in | +1.8% |
| Five years | 262.5 in | +22.3% |
| Ten years | 237.9 in | +35.0% |
In historyOurs
The consumer price index for food at home of 321.1 in was higher than in 892 of the 895 other months since , the same in 0 and lower in 3.
Highest since : 321.4 in . Lowest since : 29.1 in .
AverageOurs
Average since : 132.08 (ours, a plain mean of the 896 months).
ComparedOurs
Over a year the consumer price index for food at home is up 1.8%, which ranks 14 of the 24 rows of the table, where 1 is the largest change.
The table sets the consumer price index for food at home beside the food and drink items on the food inflation page, by the change over a year in each one's newest month.
Understanding the consumer price index for food at home
Where it stands today
The consumer price index for food at home was 321.1 in September 2026.
What does the consumer price index for food at home measure?
This is the consumer price index for food at home: one of the series of the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), U.S. city average. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) publishes it each month, about two weeks after the month ends, and scales it so that the 1982-84 average is 100. It is seasonally adjusted: BLS removes the regular swings of the calendar year, so that one month can be set beside the next.
Read more
What 500metrics adds: the change over one month, three months, a year and five years, the highest and lowest value since the series begins, how the change over a year ranks among the food and drink items on the food inflation page, and the history in one chart and one file.
The numbers behind the chart
What was the consumer price index for food at home in each month?The last ten years, 119 months, newest first; the chart and the file have every month since Jan 1952
| Month | Value | Change over a year |
|---|---|---|
| 321.1 | +1.8% | |
| 321.3 | +2.1% | |
| 321.2 | +2.6% | |
| 321.4 | +2.7% | |
| 320.8 | +2.7% | |
| 320.6 | +3.0% | |
| 318.5 | +2.0% | |
| 319.0 | +2.6% | |
| 317.6 | +2.2% | |
| 317.0 | +2.3% | |
| 315.0 | +1.9% | |
| 315.5 | +2.7% | |
| 314.6 | +2.7% | |
| 313.0 | +2.2% | |
| 313.0 | +2.4% | |
| 312.3 | +2.3% | |
| 311.4 | +2.0% | |
| 312.2 | +2.3% | |
| 311.0 | +1.8% | |
| 310.8 | +1.8% | |
| 309.8 | +1.7% | |
| 309.1 | +1.6% | |
| 307.9 | +1.2% | |
| 307.3 | +1.3% |
Show 95 more rows
| Month | Value | Change over a year |
|---|---|---|
| 306.4 | +0.9% | |
| 306.3 | +1.1% | |
| 305.6 | +1.2% | |
| 305.4 | +1.1% | |
| 305.4 | +1.2% | |
| 305.0 | +1.2% | |
| 305.4 | +1.0% | |
| 305.2 | +1.2% | |
| 304.5 | +1.3% | |
| 304.3 | +1.6% | |
| 304.4 | +2.1% | |
| 303.4 | +2.4% | |
| 303.6 | +3.0% | |
| 303.0 | +3.6% | |
| 302.1 | +4.7% | |
| 302.2 | +5.8% | |
| 301.8 | +7.2% | |
| 301.5 | +8.3% | |
| 302.4 | +10.1% | |
| 301.7 | +11.2% | |
| 300.6 | +11.7% | |
| 299.4 | +12.0% | |
| 298.0 | +12.4% | |
| 296.4 | +12.9% | |
| 294.9 | +13.6% | |
| 292.5 | +13.1% | |
| 288.6 | +12.3% | |
| 285.5 | +12.0% | |
| 281.6 | +10.8% | |
| 278.3 | +10.0% | |
| 274.7 | +8.7% | |
| 271.2 | +7.4% | |
| 269.0 | +6.5% | |
| 267.5 | +6.4% | |
| 265.1 | +5.3% | |
| 262.5 | +4.5% | |
| 259.6 | +3.0% | |
| 258.5 | +2.6% | |
| 257.1 | +0.9% | |
| 255.0 | +0.7% | |
| 254.1 | +1.2% | |
| 252.9 | +3.2% | |
| 252.8 | +3.5% | |
| 252.5 | +3.7% | |
| 252.5 | +4.0% | |
| 251.4 | +3.6% | |
| 251.6 | +4.0% | |
| 251.2 | +4.0% | |
| 252.1 | +4.7% | |
| 252.0 | +4.6% | |
| 254.7 | +5.6% | |
| 253.2 | +4.8% | |
| 251.1 | +4.1% | |
| 245.0 | +1.0% | |
| 244.2 | +0.9% | |
| 243.5 | +0.8% | |
| 242.9 | +0.7% | |
| 242.7 | +1.0% | |
| 242.0 | +1.0% | |
| 241.4 | +0.6% | |
| 240.9 | +0.5% | |
| 241.0 | +0.6% | |
| 241.2 | +0.9% | |
| 241.6 | +1.2% | |
| 241.2 | +0.7% | |
| 242.5 | +1.4% | |
| 242.1 | +1.2% | |
| 241.6 | +0.7% | |
| 241.1 | +0.7% | |
| 240.2 | +0.5% | |
| 239.6 | +0.2% | |
| 240.0 | +0.5% | |
| 239.8 | +0.4% | |
| 239.6 | +0.3% | |
| 239.0 | +0.2% | |
| 238.9 | 0.0% | |
| 239.5 | +0.4% | |
| 239.1 | +0.3% | |
| 239.2 | +0.6% | |
| 239.9 | +1.2% | |
| 239.4 | +0.9% | |
| 238.9 | +0.6% | |
| 239.0 | +0.5% | |
| 238.9 | +0.4% | |
| 238.8 | +0.3% | |
| 238.9 | +0.2% | |
| 238.5 | −0.1% | |
| 238.9 | −0.2% | |
| 238.6 | −0.7% | |
| 238.4 | −0.8% | |
| 237.8 | −1.6% | |
| 237.1 | −1.9% | |
| 237.1 | −2.0% | |
| 237.4 | −2.1% | |
| 237.7 | −2.3% |
How does it compare with the food and drink items on the food inflation page?Ranked by the change over a year
| Series | Month | Value | Change over a year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coffee | 298.8 | +7.1% | 1 | |
| Fish and seafood | 381.2 | +6.9% | 2 | |
| Sugar and sweets | 324.4 | +5.5% | 3 | |
| Coffee and tea materials | 166.0 | +5.0% | 4 | |
| Fresh fruits | 435.4 | +4.9% | 5 | |
| Beef and veal | 506.5 | +3.5% | 6 | |
| Food away from home | 398.8 | +3.5% | 6 | |
| Juices and nonalcoholic drinks | 186.3 | +3.3% | 8 | |
| Cereals and cereal products | 292.8 | +3.2% | 9 | |
| Fresh vegetables | 398.8 | +2.8% | 10 | |
| Processed fruit and vegetables | 213.1 | +2.7% | 11 | |
| Alcohol away from home | 458.8 | +2.6% | 12 | |
| Food | 350.5 | +2.5% | 13 | |
| Food at home (this page) | 321.1 | +1.8% | 14 | |
| Bakery products | 414.5 | +1.7% | 15 | |
| Farm-produced food | 330.6 | +1.4% | 16 | |
| Other foods | 294.5 | +1.4% | 16 | |
| Poultry | 314.3 | +1.1% | 18 | |
| Alcohol at home | 231.3 | +0.2% | 19 | |
| Dairy and related products | 269.6 | −0.7% | 20 | |
| Pork | 269.9 | −0.7% | 20 | |
| Fats and oils | 311.8 | −0.8% | 22 | |
| Other meats | 298.1 | −1.6% | 23 | |
| Eggs | 287.8 | −20.6% | 24 |
The table scrolls sideways; the first column stays in place.
What do these figures leave out, and how are they cited?Limits, dates and how to cite
What this number cannot tell you
- The index measures the change of prices, not the prices themselves and not the dollars spent. Prices at a value of 150 are 50% above the 1982-84 average. The index of one item says nothing about how high its prices are compared with those of another item.
- The values are seasonally adjusted, and BLS revises the adjusted values of the last five years each February, so a past value on this page can change. The change over 12 months that BLS headlines is worked out from values that are not seasonally adjusted, and can differ from the change on this page.
- BLS did not collect prices for October 2025 because of the lapse in appropriations. Where BLS publishes no value for that month, the page has none and the chart shows a gap.
- The index is shown to one decimal, but the changes, the ranks and the highest and lowest values are ours, worked out from the values BLS publishes, which have three. A change is in percent, and can differ by 0.1 from one worked out from the values as shown.
Observed . Checked .
How to cite this
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index, Food at home, U.S. city average, seasonally adjusted, through September 2026. Compiled by 500metrics, "What is the consumer price index for food at home?", https://500metrics.com/food-inflation/food-at-home.
Can the data be downloaded?food-inflation-food-at-home.csv
Download the full history as CSV: 896 rows, to , 16,361 bytes.
Our text and compilation: CC BY 4.0.
Recession dates from the National Bureau of Economic Research.
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