August inflation accelerated monthly as annual core inflation slowed

August 2026 headline Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) rose 0.4% after July’s 0.1%; core, excluding food and energy, rose 0.3% after 0.2%. Both monthly rates are seasonally adjusted to filter recurring seasonal movements, clarifying short-term changes. Annual core slowed to 2.4% from 2.5%; annual headline stayed 3.4%, both unadjusted. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the figures September 11, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. ET.13

Monthly acceleration compares August’s rise from July with July’s rise from June. The annual comparison moves from July versus the preceding July to August versus the preceding August: both endpoint and year-earlier baseline change. Faster monthly growth therefore need not enlarge the annual increase. These adjusted monthly rates cannot directly explain the unadjusted annual slowdown. Core prices remained higher than a year earlier; these figures establish neither the slowdown’s historical cause nor a future trend.1

Monthly gasoline prices rose 3.9%, accounting for over one third of the headline increase. Shelter rose 0.3%; medical care and motor vehicle insurance declined.1

Headline covers all consumer goods and services. BLS explains that analysts watch core because food and energy prices are volatile. Its FAQ describes the aim as focusing on what users perceive as underlying inflation. The distinction makes core an analytical selection, not a uniquely correct account of inflation. Expenses excluded from that measure remain part of household budgets and the headline index.32

BLS measures a representative basket, weighting price changes by each item’s importance in the relevant population’s spending. Categories taking a larger share of that spending have more influence on the result: the index does not simply give every category equal weight. Your spending mix can differ from those weights, so the national average need not match your experience. That helps explain why differing category movements can produce a national reading that feels unfamiliar to an individual consumer.2

The coverage distinction also matters for inflation-linked payments. According to BLS, Social Security and federal retirement benefits use all-items CPI-W, covering urban wage earners and clerical workers. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities, or TIPS, use all-items CPI-U. These measures cover different populations, but both retain food and energy; core is not their inflation benchmark.3

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