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Consumer Price Index, CPI-U (CUSR0000SAES) · Education and communication services, U.S. city average, seasonally adjusted

What is the consumer price index for education and communication services?

The consumer price index for education and communication services was 128.6 in the month ended , up 3.1% from a year earlier.

Consumer price index for education and communication services, U.S. city average, seasonally adjusted, each month

January 2010 to September 2026Seasonally adjusted, as published

Consumer price index for education and communication services, U.S. city average, seasonally adjusted, each month (January 2010 to September 2026), recessions shaded
Consumer price index for education and communication services, U.S. city average, seasonally adjusted, each month (September 2016 to September 2026), recessions shaded
Consumer price index for education and communication services, U.S. city average, seasonally adjusted, each month (September 2024 to September 2026)

Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to .

Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to .

Consumer price index for education and communication services, U.S. city average, change from a year earlier, each month (ours)

January 2010 to September 2026Ours, from the published values

Consumer price index for education and communication services, U.S. city average, change from a year earlier, each month (ours) (January 2010 to September 2026), recessions shaded
Consumer price index for education and communication services, U.S. city average, change from a year earlier, each month (ours) (September 2016 to September 2026), recessions shaded
Consumer price index for education and communication services, U.S. city average, change from a year earlier, each month (ours) (September 2024 to September 2026)

Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: 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".

MeasureLatestThe month beforeA year earlierFive years earlierTen years earlier
Month
Consumer price index for education and communication services, U.S. city average128.6128.5124.7116.2110.8
Change over a year+3.1%+3.1%+1.1%+1.7%+0.5%

The table scrolls sideways; the first column stays in place.

Observed .

Right now

The consumer price index for education and communication services was 128.6 in September 2026, the highest since our record begins in January 2010.

Over a year it is up 3.1% (ours).

See every month of the last ten years

ChangeOurs

PeriodThenChange
One month128.5 in 0.0%
Three months125.6 in +2.4%
Twelve months124.7 in +3.1%
Five years116.2 in +10.6%
Ten years110.8 in +16.0%

In historyOurs

The consumer price index for education and communication services of 128.6 in was higher than in 199 of the 199 other months since , the same in 0 and lower in 0.

Highest since : 128.6 in . Lowest since : 100.1 in .

AverageOurs

Average since : 112.41 (ours, a plain mean of the 200 months).

ComparedOurs

Over a year the consumer price index for education and communication services is up 3.1%, which ranks 11 of the 22 rows of the table, where 1 is the largest change.

The table sets the consumer price index for education and communication services beside the recreation, education and communication items on their inflation page, by the change over a year in each one's newest month.

See every row of the ranking

Understanding the consumer price index for education and communication services

Where it stands today

The consumer price index for education and communication services was 128.6 in September 2026.

What does the consumer price index for education and communication services measure?

This is the consumer price index for education and communication services: 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 December 2009 level 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 recreation, education and communication items on their inflation page, and the history in one chart and one file.

The numbers behind the chart

What was the consumer price index for education and communication services in each month?The last ten years, 119 months, newest first; the chart and the file have every month since Jan 2010
Consumer price index for education and communication services, U.S. city average, seasonally adjusted, by month, newest first (Index, December 2009 = 100; the change ours)
MonthValueChange over a year
128.6+3.1%
128.5+3.1%
126.2+1.3%
125.6+1.0%
126.6+1.9%
125.5+1.1%
125.6+1.0%
125.4+1.1%
125.0+1.2%
124.5+1.1%
125.6+2.2%
124.7+1.1%
124.6+1.0%
124.5+1.1%
124.3+1.1%
124.2+1.0%
124.1+1.2%
124.3+1.6%
124.0+1.6%
123.6+1.7%
123.2+1.8%
122.9+1.8%
123.2+2.1%
123.4+2.3%
Show 95 more rows
MonthValueChange over a year
123.3+2.3%
123.1+2.2%
123.0+2.3%
122.9+2.0%
122.6+1.6%
122.3+1.4%
122.1+1.5%
121.5+1.3%
121.0+1.3%
120.8+1.4%
120.7+2.3%
120.6+2.5%
120.6+2.6%
120.5+2.7%
120.2+2.4%
120.5+2.8%
120.7+3.1%
120.6+3.2%
120.3+2.9%
120.0+2.8%
119.5+2.4%
119.2+2.2%
118.0+1.3%
117.7+1.3%
117.6+1.5%
117.3+1.5%
117.4+1.7%
117.3+1.7%
117.0+1.7%
116.8+1.6%
116.9+1.7%
116.8+1.7%
116.7+1.7%
116.6+1.7%
116.4+1.7%
116.2+1.7%
115.8+1.3%
115.6+1.2%
115.5+2.3%
115.3+2.2%
115.1+2.0%
114.9+2.0%
114.9+2.1%
114.8+2.0%
114.7+2.3%
114.6+2.4%
114.5+2.8%
114.3+2.8%
114.3+2.9%
114.2+2.9%
112.8+1.7%
112.9+2.0%
112.8+2.1%
112.6+2.1%
112.5+2.1%
112.5+2.2%
112.1+2.0%
111.9+1.9%
111.4+1.1%
111.1+0.9%
111.1+1.0%
111.0+1.0%
110.9+1.2%
110.7+1.3%
110.5+1.5%
110.3+1.2%
110.2+1.1%
110.1+0.8%
109.8+0.5%
109.8+0.6%
110.2+1.3%
110.2+1.6%
110.0+1.6%
109.9+1.5%
109.6+1.1%
109.3+0.7%
109.0+0.3%
108.9+0.1%
109.0−1.7%
109.2−1.6%
109.2−1.6%
109.1−1.6%
108.8−1.7%
108.5−2.1%
108.3−2.6%
108.2−2.6%
108.4−2.4%
108.5−2.3%
108.6−2.3%
108.9−2.1%
110.9−0.1%
111.1−0.1%
111.0+0.1%
110.9+0.1%
110.7+0.2%
How does it compare with the recreation, education and communication items on their inflation page?Ranked by the change over a year
Consumer price index for education and communication services, U.S. city average beside the recreation, education and communication items on their inflation page, newest month of each, by the change over a year (ours); equal changes share a rank
SeriesMonthValueChange over a yearRank
Postage and delivery services290.4+12.9%1
Recreational reading materials314.6+7.0%2
Other recreational goods35.2+6.0%3
Sporting goods129.4+4.7%4
College tuition and fees996.9+4.0%5
Video and audio services163.5+4.0%5
Education323.5+3.8%7
Tuition and childcare930.9+3.8%7
Recreation commodities87.5+3.6%9
Video and audio124.1+3.6%9
Education and communication services128.6+3.1%11
Recreation services159.8+2.3%12
Pets and pet products236.1+2.2%13
Educational books and supplies772.2+1.9%14
Video and audio products33.2+1.9%14
Photography87.0+1.8%16
Other recreation services212.7+1.3%17
Communication73.6+1.1%18
Information processing68.9+0.9%19
Information technology99.7−1.1%20
Education and communication goods51.0−2.6%21
Information technology goods34.5−2.8%22

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 December 2009 level. 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, Education and communication services, U.S. city average, seasonally adjusted, through September 2026. Compiled by 500metrics, "What is the consumer price index for education and communication services?", https://500metrics.com/recreation-and-education-inflation/education-and-communication-services.

Can the data be downloaded?recreation-and-education-inflation-education-and-communication-services.csv

Download the full history as CSV: 200 rows, to , 4,006 bytes.

Our text and compilation: CC BY 4.0.

Recession dates from the National Bureau of Economic Research.

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