Chicago inflation calculator: CPI-U since 1914

Chicago against the rest of the country

Ranked on each metro's latest 12-month change, Chicago comes 18th of 23, counting from the fastest. The Midwest region, which includes Chicago, posted +4.2 %, so the city index runs below its own region by 1.3 percentage points. The Midwest page shows the regional series, and the Detroit page a Midwest metro priced in even months.

Fuel and transportation set the gap

Energy rose +15.1 % in Chicago over 12 months while the national energy index rose +20.4 %. A gap of 5.4 percentage points matters: in the September 2026 release, gasoline alone accounted for over half of the national monthly increase, and it stood +34.2 % over 12 months for the U.S. Transportation in Chicago, which includes motor fuel, rose +3.0 %, less than the national +7.9 %.

Smaller groups tell a mixed story. Education and communication climbed +6.8 % against +2.3 % nationally. Shelter, the heaviest item, was +3.5 %, faster than the +3.2 % national pace. Other goods and services were -0.3 %, and core prices (all items less food and energy) +2.2 %. Each group has its own small sample, so a single month can move it sharply; the all-items index is the steadier read.

Twelve months a year since 1914

The BLS FAQ says all items are priced monthly in the three largest publication areas, and Chicago is one of them, with New York and Los Angeles. You can pick any month for a Chicago amount and get its own index. The series begins in December 1914, with reference base 1982-84=100, and the latest level is 313.415. That level against the national 336.94 says how far prices moved since the early 1980s in each place, not which place costs more.

The monthly rhythm also means Chicago took the full hit of the 2025 lapse in appropriations. No October 2025 index exists, the November 2025 index came out on December 18, 2025 without a one-month change, and the 2025 annual average was computed from 11 values. The October 2026 Chicago index, due November 10, 2026, will not carry a 12-month change.

Chicago's record years

The fastest year in the series is 1917, at 18.3 %. The fastest from 1946 on is 1947, at 16.3 %. At the other end, 1932 saw annual prices fall 12.2 %. More recently, Chicago posted 3.1 % in 2025 on the annual average (2.6 % nationally), and 2.2 % from December 2024 to December 2025.