Cost of Living by Year: What the Averages Hide (2026)
The headline inflation rate is 3.3%. This page compares it with food, shelter, healthcare, auto insurance, energy, prescription-drug, and wage-growth series from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
What Do the National Cost-of-Living Measures Show in 2026?
Looking for the 2026 Social Security COLA? It is 2.8% and is based on CPI-W. It is distinct from the CPI-U measure and category-level household costs analyzed on this page.
The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers rose 3.3% year-over-year as of 2026-07, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The headline CPI is a national index with component weights; it is not a household-specific budget or cost-of-living estimate.
Auto insurance is running at 6.6% and healthcare at 1.7%. The all-food index, including food at home and away from home, is rising at 2.9%; the separate Food-at-Home cumulative change since January 2020 is 32%. Shelter has eased to 3.2% and has slipped below CPI. These series use different categories and, for the cumulative food measure, a different comparison window.
The aggregate wage-CPI spread is +0.5 percentage points in 2026-07 — that wage-growth measure is above headline inflation. As of 2026-07, the displayed categories above headline CPI are auto insurance. Neither comparison supplies household budget weights, so it cannot establish an effective inflation rate for an income group or individual household. See our cost of living glossary entry for definitions. The American Distress Index currently reads 43.8 (Typical). On average, its inputs sit higher than in 44% of their own quarterly histories.
Key Statistics at a Glance
The American Distress Index currently reads 43.8 (Typical). On average, its inputs sit higher than in 44% of their own quarterly histories. Cost of living is context for the index rather than a direct input. The aggregate personal saving rate is 2.7%, and 37% of adults in the latest SHED said they would use another method or could not pay a $400 expense. That SHED complement is not an inability rate. These separate measures do not identify the same households or establish that price changes caused later missed payments.
How Do the Displayed CPI Categories Compare?
CPI has fallen from its June 2022 peak of 9.0% to 3.3%. The stored energy series reached 41% in 2022; as of 2026-07, its year-over-year rate is 14.4%. The chart places that series beside the other displayed categories without assigning a household-specific weight to any of them.
Auto insurance stands out: at 6.6%, it is running +3.3 percentage points above the overall rate. Healthcare currently runs at 1.7% YoY (running 1.6 percentage points below overall consumer prices), and shelter is 3.2%. These price series describe observed index changes; they do not identify why a category changed or how much any particular household spent on it.
CPI Year-over-Year by Category (Monthly, 2018–Present)
Bureau of Labor Statistics seasonally adjusted CPI-U series. All values year-over-year percent change; overall CPI uses CPIAUCSL.
Full data: CPI Inflation · Shelter CPI · Auto Insurance CPI
Category Comparison — Current Rates and Trends
| Category | YoY Rate | vs. CPI (percentage points) | Trend | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auto Insurance | 6.6% | +3.3 | Down vs. June 2026 | +3.3 percentage points above CPI |
| Healthcare / Medical Care | 1.7% | -1.6 | Down vs. June 2026 | −1.6 percentage points vs CPI |
| All food (home and away) CPI | 2.9% | -0.4 | Down vs. June 2026 | Food at home: +32% cumulative since Jan 2020 |
| Shelter | 3.2% | -0.1 | Down vs. June 2026 | Now below CPI |
| Overall CPI | 3.3% | — | Down vs. June 2026 | Headline rate |
| Prescription Drugs | -3.1% | -6.4 | Down vs. June 2026 | Prescription-drug CPI |
| Energy | 14.4% | +11.1 | Down vs. June 2026 | Stored-series peak was 41% in 2022 |
All CPI categories tracked: Food CPI · Medical CPI · Energy CPI · Rx Drug CPI
How Much Have Food-at-Home Prices Changed Since 2020?
The cumulative Food-at-Home CPI increase since January 2020 is 31.9%. The separate all-food CPI series—which includes food at home and food away from home—has a 2.9% year-over-year rate. A year-over-year rate measures recent change, while a cumulative index change measures the price-level movement from its starting month. That index-wide change does not imply one exact dollar bill for every household because starting costs and purchase mixes differ. Prices have not fallen. They have simply stopped rising as fast.
Food-at-home prices can be compared with shelter, healthcare, income, and household financial measures, but the aggregate series do not establish one fixed sequence into hardship withdrawals or SNAP participation. Those outcomes have distinct populations, eligibility rules, and causes.
Cumulative Grocery Price Change Since January 2020
Computed from seasonally adjusted BLS Food-at-Home CPI (CUSR0000SAF11). Rebased so January 2020 is the zero baseline.
Full data: Grocery Price Statistics
How Does Auto Insurance Inflation Compare With Overall CPI?
Auto insurance is 6.6% year-over-year. Its difference from overall CPI peaked at 9.6 percentage points in June 2023 and is now +3.3 percentage points. The CPI series and computed spread do not identify the causes of those price changes or describe an individual policyholder's premium.
Healthcare CPI moved through a cycle: it ran well above headline through the 2022 surge, moderated through 2023-2024, and as of 2026-07 sits at 1.7% YoY. The medical CPI premium — the gap between healthcare and overall inflation — currently running 1.6 percentage points below overall consumer prices (−1.6 percentage points). This spread can be compared with the auto-insurance spread, but neither series establishes a household-specific effective rate or a causal connection to delinquency. For separately sourced medical-debt measures, see our medical debt and healthcare cost statistics.
Inflation Premium Over CPI: Auto Insurance vs. Healthcare (Monthly, percentage points, 2018–Present)
Computed from seasonally adjusted BLS CPI-U series (configured auto category, medical care CUSR0000SAM, all items CPIAUCSL). Zero line = equal to overall CPI.
Full data: The Coverage Tax (auto insurance premium) · Healthcare CPI Premium
How Does the Aggregate Wage Measure Compare With CPI?
The wage-CPI spread is +0.5 percentage points in 2026-07, meaning the stored Atlanta Fed wage-growth measure is above the CPI rate. The spread reached -2.9 percentage points in March 2022 when CPI was 8.6% and the implied wage-growth rate was 5.7%. A monthly spread does not measure cumulative purchasing power or an individual worker's pay.
The source is an aggregate median wage-growth tracker, and the CPI comparator is a national price index. Differences by occupation, income, or household spending pattern require their own sources and weights; this series alone cannot supply them. If you are behind on your mortgage, a HUD-approved counselor can help you explore loss-mitigation options.
Wage Growth vs. CPI Spread (Monthly, percentage points, 2015–Present)
Atlanta Fed Wage Growth Tracker minus seasonally adjusted BLS CPI-U (CPIAUCSL) YoY. Positive = wages ahead; negative = wages behind.
Full data: Wage-CPI Spread · The K-Shape (lower-income wage gap)
National Category Indexes Are Not Household Budgets
CPI is a national index across goods and services with national component weights. The category rates on this page can show which indexes are above or below the headline rate, but they cannot calculate an effective inflation rate for a family without that family's spending weights and matching price measures.
The aggregate personal saving rate, SHED emergency-expense responses, and hardship withdrawals measure different populations and outcomes. They provide financial-distress context, but the displayed price indexes do not establish that price changes caused those outcomes.
Read more: Savings Rate Statistics →Data Sources and Methodology
CPI measurement basis: Every CPI reading and historical comparison on this page uses its source-owned basis unless explicitly identified otherwise: Year-over-year percent change computed from the seasonally adjusted CPI-U all-items index (CPIAUCSL); seasonally adjusted values may be revised when BLS updates seasonal factors; Year-over-year percent change computed from the seasonally adjusted BLS Food CPI (CUSR0000SAF1); seasonally adjusted values may be revised; Cumulative percent change since January 2020 computed from the seasonally adjusted BLS Food-at-Home CPI (CUSR0000SAF11); seasonally adjusted values may be revised; Year-over-year percent change computed from the seasonally adjusted BLS Medical Care CPI (CUSR0000SAM); seasonally adjusted values may be revised; Percentage-point difference between year-over-year changes in the seasonally adjusted Medical Care CPI (CUSR0000SAM) and seasonally adjusted all-items CPI-U (CPIAUCSL); seasonally adjusted values may be revised; Year-over-year percent change computed from the seasonally adjusted BLS Shelter CPI (CUSR0000SAH1); seasonally adjusted values may be revised; Year-over-year percent change computed from the seasonally adjusted BLS Energy CPI (CUSR0000SA0E); seasonally adjusted values may be revised; Year-over-year percent change computed from the seasonally adjusted BLS Prescription Drug CPI (CUSR0000SEMF01); seasonally adjusted values may be revised.
Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI
All price data comes from the BLS Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), published monthly with a one-month lag. This page uses seasonally adjusted series: All Items (CPIAUCSL), all food at home and away from home (CUSR0000SAF1), Food at Home for the cumulative grocery measure (CUSR0000SAF11), Shelter (CUSR0000SAH1), Medical Care (CUSR0000SAM), the configured auto category, Energy (CUSR0000SA0E), and Prescription Drugs (CUSR0000SEMF01). All values are year-over-year percent change unless noted.
Atlanta Fed Wage Growth Tracker
The Wage Growth Tracker measures the median percent change in hourly earnings for continuously employed individuals. The spread against CPI provides a measure of real wage change. Published monthly by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
Computed Premium Indicators
The healthcare CPI premium and auto insurance premium are computed as the category YoY rate minus the overall CPI YoY rate. These spreads isolate the excess inflation in each category above the general price level. Grocery cumulative is rebased so January 2020 is the zero baseline.
American Distress Index
Cost-of-living data is context for the ADI rather than a direct input. The index reads the downstream ledger — delinquency, defaults, debt burden, labor, and the savings buffer. Current ADI: 43.8.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the current U.S. inflation rate?
The seasonally adjusted Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U, series CPIAUCSL) rose 3.3% year-over-year in 2026-07, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This measures the average change in prices paid by urban consumers for a fixed basket of goods and services. The rate has fallen from a peak of 9.0% in June 2022. The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System's 2% longer-run inflation objective is defined using PCE inflation rather than CPI.
Which cost-of-living categories are rising fastest in 2026?
Among the categories shown here, auto insurance is 6.6% year-over-year, running +3.3 percentage points above headline CPI. Healthcare is 1.7%, with the medical-to-CPI premium at −1.6 percentage points; shelter is 3.2%. These are national category indexes, not an effective inflation rate for a particular income group or household. For grocery-specific data, see our grocery price statistics.
Which categories have the highest inflation right now?
Auto insurance is 6.6% YoY, running +3.3 percentage points above overall CPI. Healthcare is 1.7% YoY, with the medical-to-CPI premium at −1.6 percentage points. Shelter inflation is 3.2%. The all-food index, including food at home and away from home, is 2.9% YoY. The energy index rose 14.4% year-over-year. The ordering applies only to the categories and latest periods displayed here.
Are wages keeping up with inflation?
The stored Atlanta Fed Wage Growth Tracker minus CPI spread stood at +0.5 percentage points in 2026-07, meaning that wage-growth measure was above headline CPI growth. The spread reached -2.9 percentage points in 2022 03. It is an aggregate comparison and does not establish any individual worker's wage change or household-specific cost basket.
How does cost of living connect to the American Distress Index?
Cost of living is context for the index rather than a direct input. The ADI separately tracks measures including delinquency, debt, labor conditions, and the aggregate personal saving rate. This page does not infer that a change in one price category caused a later missed payment or saving-rate movement. The ADI currently reads 43.8 (Typical). On average, its inputs sit higher than in 44% of their own quarterly histories.