Real Inflation, year over year
Official CPI-U, year over year
Gap (Real Inflation minus CPI)
percentage points
Since Jan 2018
True inflation rate from everyday prices
Real Inflation is a cost of living tracker that measures actual inflation in the United States using real dollar prices of things nearly everyone pays for: rent, eggs, milk, gas, electricity, health insurance, a doctor visit, a stamp, Netflix and more. The same items are priced the same way every time, so the year over year inflation and month over month price changes you see reflect what everyday prices are really doing.
How is this different from CPI? The official Consumer Price Index tracks thousands of goods and services and adjusts for quality and substitution. Real Inflation skips those adjustments and weights rent, fuel and health costs heavily, which is why the two can diverge. The charts show inflation vs CPI side by side, and each tile shows inflation by item with its own price history.
Sources include the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (average prices via FRED), the Energy Information Administration, Zillow's rent index, KFF's employer health survey, NAIC's auto insurance database, The Economist's Big Mac Index, and officially dated company price changes. Prices are refreshed weekly, and all monthly price data is a free CSV download.
SponsoredReach people tracking real prices. Sponsor Real Inflation Data
Year-over-year inflation, %
Cumulative inflation since Jan 2018, %
How to read the tiles
In Real Inflation The item feeds our index; its weight is shown. In CPI The series is published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and is part of what the official CPI measures. Many tiles have both.
Real Inflation uses actual prices for a fixed list of items, with heavier weights on rent and fuel. Official CPI measures thousands of items using BLS's own methods. A tile with both badges appears in both sections.
In Real Inflation The item feeds our index; its weight is shown. In CPI The series is published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and is part of what the official CPI measures. Many tiles have both.
Real Inflation uses actual prices for a fixed list of items, with heavier weights on rent and fuel. Official CPI measures thousands of items using BLS's own methods. A tile with both badges appears in both sections.
1 · Used in Real Inflation Real Inflation items, with their weights
2 · Used in Government CPI official BLS CPI measures and the BLS series behind them
Browse prices price history for every tracked item
Real inflation calculator: what does $100 from 2018 cost today? · Latest CPI vs Real Inflation · All prices in one table
Shelter
US Rent PricesGroceries
Bread PricesChicken Breast Prices
Whole Chicken Prices
Egg Prices
Ground Beef Prices
Milk Prices
Banana Prices
Cheddar Cheese Prices
Coffee Prices
Potato Prices
Energy
Electricity PricesGas Prices
Natural Gas Prices
Diesel Prices
Heating Oil Prices
Health care
Doctor Visit Copay HistoryGeneric Prescription Copay History
Average Health Insurance Deductible History
Health insurance
Family Health Insurance Premium HistoryTransportation/Insurance
Car Insurance Cost HistoryServices & memberships
Medicare Part B Premium HistoryAmazon Prime Price History
Costco Membership Price History
Microsoft 365 Personal Price History
Planet Fitness Price History
Forever Stamp Price History
Subscriptions
Netflix Price HistorySpotify Premium Price History
PlayStation Plus Price History
Electronics
iPhone Price HistoryEducation
Public College Tuition HistoryRestaurant meal
Big Mac Price HistoryAlcohol
Beer PricesUtilities
NYC Water and Sewer Rate HistoryGovernment CPI
Movie and Concert Ticket PricesRestaurant Prices
CPI Rent Index
Used Car Prices
Core CPI Index History
CPI-U Index History
Use this chart
Download the data (CSV)
Downloadable inflation data, free under CC BY 4.0 (please credit Real Inflation Data). Use it like inflation calculator data: monthly prices for every item, so you can compute month to month inflation or any custom period.
prices_by_date.csv: one row per date and one column per tracked item, with units in the header, plus the Real Inflation index and CPI columns. Opens directly in Excel or Google Sheets. A blank cell means that source didn't publish on that date (sources update daily, weekly, monthly or yearly).prices_long.csv: the same data in long format (date, item_id, item_name, unit, value, source), which is easier for code.
index_monthly.csv: monthly Real Inflation and CPI index values and year-over-year rates. All files are regenerated on every update.
Contact & sponsorship
Interested in sponsoring Real Inflation Data, spotted an issue, or want an item added? Send a note and we'll reply by email.
Frequently asked questions
What is the true inflation rate right now?
Real Inflation is our estimate of actual inflation in the US, built from real prices of everyday items people pay for. The latest year over year reading is shown at the top of this page and updates weekly.
How is Real Inflation different from CPI?
The official CPI from the Bureau of Labor Statistics measures thousands of goods and services with quality adjustments. Real Inflation uses only actual dollar prices for a fixed list of everyday items, weighted heavily toward rent, fuel and health costs, so you can compare inflation vs CPI side by side.
Can I see month to month inflation and inflation by item?
Yes. Every item has its own price history and year over year change, and the downloadable files include monthly price data so you can calculate month over month price changes for any item.
Is the inflation data free to download?
Yes. All data is a free CSV download that opens in Excel or Google Sheets, licensed CC BY 4.0. Please credit Real Inflation Data.
How often is the data updated?
Prices are refreshed every week, and the index is recalculated whenever a source publishes new numbers, so US inflation 2026 readings stay current.
Where do the prices come from?
Government and primary sources: BLS average prices via FRED, EIA fuel prices, Zillow's rent index, KFF's employer health survey, NAIC's auto insurance database, The Economist's Big Mac Index, and dated official price changes from companies like Netflix, Spotify, Apple, Amazon, Costco and USPS.
Methodology
Real Inflation is our index built only from real, specific products with actual dollar prices tracked over time. There are no CPI or other index series inside it.
Inclusion rule: every item must have actual-dollar monthly prices going back at least 10 years (to Oct 2016 or earlier), from a source we can re-check the same way every time. Items that don't meet this are left out.
Items: 10 grocery staples (BLS average retail prices via FRED: Grade A large eggs $/dozen, whole milk $/gallon, white bread, ground beef, whole chicken, boneless chicken breast, bananas, ground coffee, cheddar cheese and potatoes, all $/lb); electricity ($/kWh), piped utility gas ($/therm) and heating oil (fuel oil #2, $/gal), all BLS average prices; regular gasoline and diesel ($/gal, EIA weekly, averaged by month); typical US rent ($/mo, Zillow ZORI, from Jan 2015); and Netflix Standard without ads (monthly price built from Netflix's dated US price changes since 2011, checked against Netflix's plans page); Spotify Premium Individual (US monthly price built from Spotify's dated US price changes since the Jul 2011 launch, checked against spotify.com/us/premium); USPS Forever stamp, Amazon Prime (annual), Costco Gold Star membership, the Medicare Part B premium, Microsoft 365 Personal (annual), NYC water + sewer, Planet Fitness Classic, PlayStation Plus 12-month, public college tuition and the KFF employer-plan averages for the family premium, the single-coverage deductible, the primary care visit copay and the generic prescription copay (monthly prices built from official dated price changes); car insurance (NAIC average annual expenditure per insured vehicle, one value per year); and the base iPhone (US unlocked starting price, monthly price built from Apple's launch prices since Sep 2014); and the US Big Mac price (The Economist's Big Mac Index source data, readings each January and July; each month uses the latest reading).
Each month, every item's price change from the previous month is combined with a weighted geometric mean and chained into an index (Jan 2019 = 100). Data gaps: BLS published no average prices for Oct 2025, so every BLS item (including utility gas and heating oil) is missing that month. Ground coffee is also missing Jun 2018–Sep 2019 (except Sep 2018), potatoes Mar–Apr 2020 and Nov 2025, and whole chicken May 2020. A gap of 3 months or less, closed by a newer price, is filled in with the last price for the index calculation only. Longer gaps drop the item from the index until it returns. Download files leave every gap blank. Full details are in AUDIT.md.
Weights (sum to 100%): rent 35.2%, groceries 14.0% (10 BLS staples), Electricity, US city avg 7.0%, Regular gasoline (EIA) 7.0%, Employer health insurance, family coverage (avg annual premium) 5.9%, Car insurance (avg annual expenditure per insured vehicle, NAIC) 4.5%, Utility (piped) gas, US city avg 3.5%, Medicare Part B standard premium (monthly) 3.5%, College tuition & fees, public 4-year in-state (1 year) 2.3%, McDonald's Big Mac (US average, The Economist) 2.3%, iPhone, base model (US unlocked starting price) 1.2%, Diesel (EIA) 1.2%, Heating oil (fuel oil #2), US city avg 1.2%, Doctor visit copay, primary care (avg, employer plans) 1.2%, Generic prescription copay, first tier (avg, employer plans) 1.2%, Health plan deductible, single coverage (avg, employer plans) 1.2%, Amazon Prime membership (US, annual) 1.2%, Netflix Standard (no ads), US 1.2%, NYC water + sewer, per 748 gallons (100 cu ft) 1.2%, Beer (malt beverages), per 16 oz 0.7%, Costco Gold Star membership (US, annual) 0.6%, Microsoft 365 Personal (US, annual) 0.6%, Planet Fitness Classic membership (new members) 0.6%, USPS Forever stamp (First-Class, 1 oz) 0.6%, Spotify Premium Individual (US, monthly) 0.6%, PlayStation Plus 12-month (Essential), US 0.4%.
Spotify: $9.99 from the Jul 2011 US launch until the first increase, $10.99 (Jul 24, 2023), $11.99 (Jun 3, 2024) and $12.99 (Jan 15, 2026), per Spotify Newsroom, The Verge, TechCrunch, BBC and Reuters. Each month uses the new-subscriber list price; existing subscribers paid the higher price about a month later.
Services & memberships: each is a monthly price built from officially dated price changes, using the month each change took effect. USPS Forever stamp: 47¢ (Apr 10, 2016), 49¢ (Jan 22, 2017), 50¢ (Jan 21, 2018), 55¢ (Jan 27, 2019), 58¢ (Aug 29, 2021), 60¢ (Jul 10, 2022), 63¢ (Jan 22, 2023), 66¢ (Jul 9, 2023), 68¢ (Jan 21, 2024), 73¢ (Jul 14, 2024), 78¢ (Jul 13, 2025), 82¢ (Jul 12, 2026), per the USPS Historian. Amazon Prime annual: $99 (from 2014), $119 (May 11, 2018), $139 (Feb 18, 2022), using the price for new members. Costco Gold Star: $55, $60 (Jun 1, 2017), $65 (Sep 1, 2024). Medicare Part B standard premium (changes each Jan 1): $121.80 (2016), $134.00 (2017 and 2018), $135.50 (2019), $144.60 (2020), $148.50 (2021), $170.10 (2022), $164.90 (2023), $174.70 (2024), $185.00 (2025), $202.90 (2026), per CMS and the Federal Register. In 2016–17 most enrollees were "held harmless" at lower premiums; we use the standard rate. Microsoft 365 Personal annual: $69.99 (from 2013), $99.99 (Jan 16, 2025, when Copilot was added; a no-AI 'Classic' plan kept $69.99 for existing subscribers). NYC water + sewer per 100 cubic feet (each Jul 1, per the NYC Water Board): $9.58 (2014), $9.87 (2015–2017), $10.10 (2018), $10.33 (2019–2020), $10.61 (2021), $11.12 (2022), $11.63 (2023), $12.61 (2024), $13.07 (2025), $13.86 (2026). Planet Fitness Classic (new members): $10 (since 1998), $15 (Jun 28, 2024). PlayStation Plus 12-month: $49.99 (2010), $59.99 (Sep 22, 2017), $79.99 (Sep 6, 2023). Employer health insurance, family coverage (KFF Employer Health Benefits Survey average annual premium, worker + employer shares; dated Jan 1 of each survey year): $17,545 (2015), $18,142 (2016), $18,764 (2017), $19,616 (2018), $20,576 (2019), $21,342 (2020), $22,221 (2021), $22,463 (2022), $23,968 (2023), $25,572 (2024), $26,993 (2025), $28,303 (2026). KFF publishes each new survey in October. From the same KFF survey (each Jan 1): primary care doctor visit copay $24 (2015), $24, $25, $25, $25, $26 (2020), $25, $27, $26, $26, $27 (2025), $27 (2026); generic (first-tier) prescription copay $11 (2015–2020), $12 (2021), $11 (2022–2023), $12 (2024–2026), rounded to whole dollars by KFF; single-coverage deductible $1,318 (2015), $1,478, $1,505, $1,573, $1,655, $1,644 (2020), $1,669, $1,763, $1,735, $1,787, $1,886 (2025), $1,955 (2026).
Car insurance: NAIC Auto Insurance Database average expenditure per insured vehicle, US (liability + collision + comprehensive written premium divided by insured car-years), dated Jan 1 of each data year: $896.66 (2015), $945.22 (2016), $1,008.35 (2017), $1,058.10 (2018), $1,075.08 (2019), $1,047.76 (2020), $1,060.85 (2021), $1,124.57 (2022), $1,281.92 (2023), $1,431.63 (2024). NAIC publishes about 20 months after each year ends and revises prior years in every edition, so the latest available year is 2024 (2024 Average Premium Supplement, Sept 2026); 2025 is expected around fall 2027. Each year uses the newest NAIC edition that contains it: 2015 from the 2018/2019 report, 2016 from 2019/2020, 2017 from 2020/2021, 2018 from 2021/2022, 2019–2023 from 2022/2023. Because of the lag, this item stays flat at the 2024 level until NAIC publishes the next year.
Rent note: Zillow ZORI is a dollar figure (typical asking rent, $/month), so we count it as a real price. It is smoothed and adjusted for the mix of homes listed, so it isn't one specific apartment.
iPhone: the starting US price of the standard (non-Pro, non-Plus) iPhone in its base storage, at the full unlocked price (no contract, no carrier discount), from each launch month: $649 iPhone 6 16GB (Sep 2014), $649 iPhone 6s 16GB (Sep 2015), $649 iPhone 7 32GB (Sep 2016), $699 iPhone 8 64GB (Sep 2017), $749 iPhone XR 64GB (Sep 2018), $699 iPhone 11 64GB (Sep 2019), $829 iPhone 12 64GB (Oct 2020), $829 iPhone 13 128GB (Sep 2021), $799 iPhone 14 128GB (Sep 2022), $799 iPhone 15 128GB (Sep 2023), $799 iPhone 16 128GB (Sep 2024), $799 iPhone 17 256GB (Sep 2025), $899 iPhone 17 256GB (Sep 9, 2026: Apple raised the price $100 on the day it announced iPhone 18 Pro, citing memory-chip costs, per MacRumors, The Verge and GSMArena. A base iPhone 18 hasn't launched yet). Most prices come from Apple Newsroom. Apple's 2014–15 releases quoted only 2-year-contract prices ($199), so the off-contract prices come from press reports. In 2020–21, Apple's headline $799 required carrier activation, and the unlocked price was $829. The spec changes every year (model, chip, base storage from 16GB to 256GB), so this tracks what the cheapest standard new iPhone costs, not one fixed phone.
Government CPI only: CPI headline and core, CPI rent, CPI used cars, CPI food away from home and CPI admissions are index numbers, not prices, so they appear only in the Government CPI section.
Inclusion rule: every item must have actual-dollar monthly prices going back at least 10 years (to Oct 2016 or earlier), from a source we can re-check the same way every time. Items that don't meet this are left out.
Items: 10 grocery staples (BLS average retail prices via FRED: Grade A large eggs $/dozen, whole milk $/gallon, white bread, ground beef, whole chicken, boneless chicken breast, bananas, ground coffee, cheddar cheese and potatoes, all $/lb); electricity ($/kWh), piped utility gas ($/therm) and heating oil (fuel oil #2, $/gal), all BLS average prices; regular gasoline and diesel ($/gal, EIA weekly, averaged by month); typical US rent ($/mo, Zillow ZORI, from Jan 2015); and Netflix Standard without ads (monthly price built from Netflix's dated US price changes since 2011, checked against Netflix's plans page); Spotify Premium Individual (US monthly price built from Spotify's dated US price changes since the Jul 2011 launch, checked against spotify.com/us/premium); USPS Forever stamp, Amazon Prime (annual), Costco Gold Star membership, the Medicare Part B premium, Microsoft 365 Personal (annual), NYC water + sewer, Planet Fitness Classic, PlayStation Plus 12-month, public college tuition and the KFF employer-plan averages for the family premium, the single-coverage deductible, the primary care visit copay and the generic prescription copay (monthly prices built from official dated price changes); car insurance (NAIC average annual expenditure per insured vehicle, one value per year); and the base iPhone (US unlocked starting price, monthly price built from Apple's launch prices since Sep 2014); and the US Big Mac price (The Economist's Big Mac Index source data, readings each January and July; each month uses the latest reading).
Each month, every item's price change from the previous month is combined with a weighted geometric mean and chained into an index (Jan 2019 = 100). Data gaps: BLS published no average prices for Oct 2025, so every BLS item (including utility gas and heating oil) is missing that month. Ground coffee is also missing Jun 2018–Sep 2019 (except Sep 2018), potatoes Mar–Apr 2020 and Nov 2025, and whole chicken May 2020. A gap of 3 months or less, closed by a newer price, is filled in with the last price for the index calculation only. Longer gaps drop the item from the index until it returns. Download files leave every gap blank. Full details are in AUDIT.md.
Weights (sum to 100%): rent 35.2%, groceries 14.0% (10 BLS staples), Electricity, US city avg 7.0%, Regular gasoline (EIA) 7.0%, Employer health insurance, family coverage (avg annual premium) 5.9%, Car insurance (avg annual expenditure per insured vehicle, NAIC) 4.5%, Utility (piped) gas, US city avg 3.5%, Medicare Part B standard premium (monthly) 3.5%, College tuition & fees, public 4-year in-state (1 year) 2.3%, McDonald's Big Mac (US average, The Economist) 2.3%, iPhone, base model (US unlocked starting price) 1.2%, Diesel (EIA) 1.2%, Heating oil (fuel oil #2), US city avg 1.2%, Doctor visit copay, primary care (avg, employer plans) 1.2%, Generic prescription copay, first tier (avg, employer plans) 1.2%, Health plan deductible, single coverage (avg, employer plans) 1.2%, Amazon Prime membership (US, annual) 1.2%, Netflix Standard (no ads), US 1.2%, NYC water + sewer, per 748 gallons (100 cu ft) 1.2%, Beer (malt beverages), per 16 oz 0.7%, Costco Gold Star membership (US, annual) 0.6%, Microsoft 365 Personal (US, annual) 0.6%, Planet Fitness Classic membership (new members) 0.6%, USPS Forever stamp (First-Class, 1 oz) 0.6%, Spotify Premium Individual (US, monthly) 0.6%, PlayStation Plus 12-month (Essential), US 0.4%.
Spotify: $9.99 from the Jul 2011 US launch until the first increase, $10.99 (Jul 24, 2023), $11.99 (Jun 3, 2024) and $12.99 (Jan 15, 2026), per Spotify Newsroom, The Verge, TechCrunch, BBC and Reuters. Each month uses the new-subscriber list price; existing subscribers paid the higher price about a month later.
Services & memberships: each is a monthly price built from officially dated price changes, using the month each change took effect. USPS Forever stamp: 47¢ (Apr 10, 2016), 49¢ (Jan 22, 2017), 50¢ (Jan 21, 2018), 55¢ (Jan 27, 2019), 58¢ (Aug 29, 2021), 60¢ (Jul 10, 2022), 63¢ (Jan 22, 2023), 66¢ (Jul 9, 2023), 68¢ (Jan 21, 2024), 73¢ (Jul 14, 2024), 78¢ (Jul 13, 2025), 82¢ (Jul 12, 2026), per the USPS Historian. Amazon Prime annual: $99 (from 2014), $119 (May 11, 2018), $139 (Feb 18, 2022), using the price for new members. Costco Gold Star: $55, $60 (Jun 1, 2017), $65 (Sep 1, 2024). Medicare Part B standard premium (changes each Jan 1): $121.80 (2016), $134.00 (2017 and 2018), $135.50 (2019), $144.60 (2020), $148.50 (2021), $170.10 (2022), $164.90 (2023), $174.70 (2024), $185.00 (2025), $202.90 (2026), per CMS and the Federal Register. In 2016–17 most enrollees were "held harmless" at lower premiums; we use the standard rate. Microsoft 365 Personal annual: $69.99 (from 2013), $99.99 (Jan 16, 2025, when Copilot was added; a no-AI 'Classic' plan kept $69.99 for existing subscribers). NYC water + sewer per 100 cubic feet (each Jul 1, per the NYC Water Board): $9.58 (2014), $9.87 (2015–2017), $10.10 (2018), $10.33 (2019–2020), $10.61 (2021), $11.12 (2022), $11.63 (2023), $12.61 (2024), $13.07 (2025), $13.86 (2026). Planet Fitness Classic (new members): $10 (since 1998), $15 (Jun 28, 2024). PlayStation Plus 12-month: $49.99 (2010), $59.99 (Sep 22, 2017), $79.99 (Sep 6, 2023). Employer health insurance, family coverage (KFF Employer Health Benefits Survey average annual premium, worker + employer shares; dated Jan 1 of each survey year): $17,545 (2015), $18,142 (2016), $18,764 (2017), $19,616 (2018), $20,576 (2019), $21,342 (2020), $22,221 (2021), $22,463 (2022), $23,968 (2023), $25,572 (2024), $26,993 (2025), $28,303 (2026). KFF publishes each new survey in October. From the same KFF survey (each Jan 1): primary care doctor visit copay $24 (2015), $24, $25, $25, $25, $26 (2020), $25, $27, $26, $26, $27 (2025), $27 (2026); generic (first-tier) prescription copay $11 (2015–2020), $12 (2021), $11 (2022–2023), $12 (2024–2026), rounded to whole dollars by KFF; single-coverage deductible $1,318 (2015), $1,478, $1,505, $1,573, $1,655, $1,644 (2020), $1,669, $1,763, $1,735, $1,787, $1,886 (2025), $1,955 (2026).
Car insurance: NAIC Auto Insurance Database average expenditure per insured vehicle, US (liability + collision + comprehensive written premium divided by insured car-years), dated Jan 1 of each data year: $896.66 (2015), $945.22 (2016), $1,008.35 (2017), $1,058.10 (2018), $1,075.08 (2019), $1,047.76 (2020), $1,060.85 (2021), $1,124.57 (2022), $1,281.92 (2023), $1,431.63 (2024). NAIC publishes about 20 months after each year ends and revises prior years in every edition, so the latest available year is 2024 (2024 Average Premium Supplement, Sept 2026); 2025 is expected around fall 2027. Each year uses the newest NAIC edition that contains it: 2015 from the 2018/2019 report, 2016 from 2019/2020, 2017 from 2020/2021, 2018 from 2021/2022, 2019–2023 from 2022/2023. Because of the lag, this item stays flat at the 2024 level until NAIC publishes the next year.
Rent note: Zillow ZORI is a dollar figure (typical asking rent, $/month), so we count it as a real price. It is smoothed and adjusted for the mix of homes listed, so it isn't one specific apartment.
iPhone: the starting US price of the standard (non-Pro, non-Plus) iPhone in its base storage, at the full unlocked price (no contract, no carrier discount), from each launch month: $649 iPhone 6 16GB (Sep 2014), $649 iPhone 6s 16GB (Sep 2015), $649 iPhone 7 32GB (Sep 2016), $699 iPhone 8 64GB (Sep 2017), $749 iPhone XR 64GB (Sep 2018), $699 iPhone 11 64GB (Sep 2019), $829 iPhone 12 64GB (Oct 2020), $829 iPhone 13 128GB (Sep 2021), $799 iPhone 14 128GB (Sep 2022), $799 iPhone 15 128GB (Sep 2023), $799 iPhone 16 128GB (Sep 2024), $799 iPhone 17 256GB (Sep 2025), $899 iPhone 17 256GB (Sep 9, 2026: Apple raised the price $100 on the day it announced iPhone 18 Pro, citing memory-chip costs, per MacRumors, The Verge and GSMArena. A base iPhone 18 hasn't launched yet). Most prices come from Apple Newsroom. Apple's 2014–15 releases quoted only 2-year-contract prices ($199), so the off-contract prices come from press reports. In 2020–21, Apple's headline $799 required carrier activation, and the unlocked price was $829. The spec changes every year (model, chip, base storage from 16GB to 256GB), so this tracks what the cheapest standard new iPhone costs, not one fixed phone.
Government CPI only: CPI headline and core, CPI rent, CPI used cars, CPI food away from home and CPI admissions are index numbers, not prices, so they appear only in the Government CPI section.