Consumer price index

Consumer price index by country 2024 relative to 2010 in %
A graph of the US CPI from 1913 (in blue), and its percentage annual change (in red)
Annual percent change from a year earlier)
  CPI
  Core CPI
CPI 1914-2022
Annual change in CPI 1914–2022
  M2 money supply increases Year/Year

A consumer price index (CPI) is a statistical estimate of the level of prices of goods and services bought for consumption purposes by households. It is calculated as the weighted average price of a market basket of consumer goods and services.

Changes in CPI track changes in prices over time. The items in the basket are updated periodically to reflect changes in consumer spending habits. The prices of the goods and services in the basket are collected (often monthly) from a sample of retail and service establishments. When a sampled item is replaced by one of a different quality, compilers may adjust its price so that the index reflects price change rather than the quality difference.

Changes in the CPI can be used to track inflation over time and to compare inflation rates between different countries. While the CPI is not a perfect measure of inflation or the cost of living, it is a useful tool for tracking these economic indicators. It is one of several price indices calculated by many national statistical agencies.

This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.