Transmission of material in this release is embargoed until USDL-11-0890

8:30 a.m. (EDT) Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Technical information: (202) 691-7000 • Reed.Steve@bls.gov • www.bls.gov/cpi 

Media Contact: (202) 691-5902 • PressOffice@bls.gov 

(NOTE: This release was reissued on Thursday, August 18, 2011, to correct errors in the April-May 

2011 data. Corrections have been made to Table 7 for the following indexes: all items, energy, housing, 

fuels and utilities, and services. There were no changes made to the text of the release.) 

CONSUMER PRICE INDEX – MAY 2011 

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.2 percent in May on a 

seasonally adjusted basis, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, 

the all items index increased 3.6 percent before seasonal adjustment. 

The index for all items less food and energy increased 0.3 percent in May, its largest increase since July 

2008. The indexes for apparel, shelter, new vehicles, and recreation all contributed to the acceleration, 

rising more in May than in April. These increases more than offset declines in the indexes for airline 

fare, tobacco, and personal care.

The food index rose in May as well. The food at home index repeated its April increase of 0.5 percent as 

four of the six major grocery store food group indexes increased, with the index for meats, poultry, fish, 

and eggs rising the most. In contrast, the energy index, which had been rising sharply, declined in May.

The gasoline index decreased for the first time since last June, although the index for household energy 

increased.

The upward trend among the 12 month increases of major indexes continued in May. The 12 month 

change in the all items index, which was 1.1 percent as recently as November, reached 3.6 percent in 

May. The energy index has increased 21.5 percent over the last 12 months, the food index has risen 3.5 

percent and the index for all items less food and energy has increased 1.5 percent. All of these figures 

have been rising in recent months. 

-0.2

-0.1

0.0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

May'10 Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May'11

Chart 1. One-month percent change in CPI for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), seasonally adjusted, May 2010 - May 2011

Percent change

 -0.1

 -0.2

 0.3

 0.2 0.2 0.2

 0.1

 0.4 0.4

 0.5 0.5

 0.4

 0.2
- 2 -

Chart 2. 12-month percent change in CPI for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), not seasonally adjusted, May 2010 - May 2011

Percent change

All items All items less food and energy

0

1

2

3

4

May'10 Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May'11
- 3 -

Consumer Price Index Data for May 2011 

Food

The food index rose 0.4 percent in May, the same increase as in April. The food at home index increased 

0.5 percent and has risen 3.7 percent since December. Among major grocery store food groups, the 

index for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs rose 1.5 percent and the cereals and bakery products index 

increased 1.0 percent. The dairy and related products index and the index for other food at home posted 

smaller increases, while the index for nonalcoholic beverages was unchanged. The only group to decline 

was the fruits and vegetables index, which declined 1.3 percent as a sharp decline in the index for 

tomatoes caused the fresh vegetables index to fall for the second straight month after sharp increases 

early in the year. The food at home index has risen 4.4 percent over the last 12 months with all major 

grocery store food groups posting increases. The index for food away from home rose 0.2 percent in 

May after rising 0.3 percent in each of the previous two months. 

Energy

The energy index declined 1.0 percent in May ending a series of ten consecutive advances. After a series 

of several sharp increases, the gasoline index declined 2.0 percent in May. (Before seasonal adjustment, 

gasoline prices rose 3.6 percent in May.) Despite the May decline, the gasoline index has increased 23.7 

percent over the past six months. The index for household energy increased in May, rising 0.5 percent 

after a 0.7 percent increase in April. The index for electricity rose 0.8 percent, more than offsetting a 0.8 

percent decline in the fuel oil index and a 0.3 percent decrease in the index for natural gas. The 

household energy index has risen 2.9 percent over the last 12 months, with the fuel oil index up 36.0 

percent and the electricity index up 1.8 percent but the index for natural gas down 1.2 percent. 

All items less food and energy 

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.3 percent in May after increasing 0.1 percent in 

March and 0.2 percent in April. The shelter index rose 0.2 percent in May after increasing 0.1 percent in 

each of the seven previous months. Both rent and owners’ equivalent rent rose 0.1 percent; the 

acceleration in shelter was due to the index for lodging away from home, which rose 2.9 percent in May 

after being unchanged in April. The apparel index increased in May, rising 1.2 percent after a 0.2 

percent increase in April. The index for new vehicles rose 1.1 percent in May after increasing 0.7 

percent in April; the index for used cars and trucks also rose 1.1 percent. The index for recreation, which 

was unchanged in April, rose 0.3 percent in May. The medical care index rose 0.2 percent, with the 

index for medical care commodities unchanged and the index for medical care services up 0.3 percent. 

The index for household furnishings and operations advanced 0.2 percent, the same increase as in April. 

In contrast to these increases, the index for airline fares fell 1.3 percent in May, and the indexes for 

tobacco and for personal care both declined 0.2 percent. 

The index for all items less food and energy increased 1.5 percent over the last 12 months, with virtually 

all of its major component indexes rising at a faster rate over the past six months than they did from May 

to November of 2010.
- 4 -

Not seasonally adjusted CPI measures 

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 3.6 percent over the last 12 

months to an index level of 225.964 (1982-84=100). For the month, the index increased 0.5 percent prior 

to seasonal adjustment. 

The Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) increased 4.1 

percent over the last 12 months to an index level of 222.954 (1982-84=100). For the month, the index 

rose 0.5 percent prior to seasonal adjustment. 

The Chained Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (C-CPI-U) increased 3.3 percent over the 

last 12 months. For the month, the index increased 0.4 percent on a not seasonally adjusted basis. Please 

note that the indexes for the post-2009 period are subject to revision. 

The Consumer Price Index for June 2011 is scheduled to be released on Friday, July 15, 2011, at 

8:30 a.m. (EDT).
- 5 -

Facilities for Sensory Impaired

Information from this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. 

Voice phone: 202-691-5200, Federal Relay Services: 1-800-877-8339.

Brief Explanation of the CPI 

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measure of the average change in prices over time of goods and 

services purchased by households. The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes CPIs for two population 

groups: (1) the CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), which covers households 

of wage earners and clerical workers that comprise approximately 32 percent of the total population and 

(2) the CPI for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) and the Chained CPI for All Urban Consumers (C-CPIU), which cover approximately 87 percent of the total population and include in addition to wage 

earners and clerical worker households, groups such as professional, managerial, and technical workers, 

the self-employed, short-term workers, the unemployed, and retirees and others not in the labor force. 

The CPIs are based on prices of food, clothing, shelter, and fuels, transportation fares, charges for 

doctors’ and dentists’ services, drugs, and other goods and services that people buy for day-to-day 

living. Prices are collected each month in 87 urban areas across the country from about 4,000 housing 

units and approximately 26,000 retail establishments-department stores, supermarkets, hospitals, filling 

stations, and other types of stores and service establishments. All taxes directly associated with the 

purchase and use of items are included in the index. Prices of fuels and a few other items are obtained 

every month in all 87 locations. Prices of most other commodities and services are collected every 

month in the three largest geographic areas and every other month in other areas. Prices of most goods 

and services are obtained by personal visits or telephone calls of the Bureau’s trained representatives. 

In calculating the index, price changes for the various items in each location are averaged together with 

weights, which represent their importance in the spending of the appropriate population group. Local 

data are then combined to obtain a U.S. city average. For the CPI-U and CPI-W separate indexes are 

also published by size of city, by region of the country, for cross-classifications of regions and 

population-size classes, and for 27 local areas. Area indexes do not measure differences in the level of 

prices among cities; they only measure the average change in prices for each area since the base period.

For the C-CPI-U data are issued only at the national level. It is important to note that the CPI-U and 

CPI-W are considered final when released, but the C-CPI-U is issued in preliminary form and subject to 

two annual revisions. 

The index measures price change from a designed reference date. For the CPI-U and the CPI-W the 

reference base is 1982-84 equals 100. The reference base for the C-CPI-U is December 1999 equals 

100. An increase of 16.5 percent from the reference base, for example, is shown as 116.500. This 

change can also be expressed in dollars as follows: the price of a base period market basket of goods 

and services in the CPI has risen from $10 in 1982-84 to $11.65.

For further details visit the CPI home page on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/cpi/ or contact our CPI 

Information and Analysis Section on (202) 691-7000. 
- 6 -

Note on Sampling Error in the Consumer Price Index 

The CPI is a statistical estimate that is subject to sampling error because it is based upon a sample of 

retail prices and not the complete universe of all prices. BLS calculates and publishes estimates of the 

1-month, 2-month, 6-month and 12-month percent change standard errors annually, for the CPI-U.

These standard error estimates can be used to construct confidence intervals for hypothesis testing. For 

example, the estimated standard error of the 1 month percent change is 0.03 percent for the U.S. All 

Items Consumer Price Index. This means that if we repeatedly sample from the universe of all retail 

prices using the same methodology, and estimate a percentage change for each sample, then 95% of 

these estimates would be within 0.06 percent of the 1 month percentage change based on all retail prices.

For example, for a 1-month change of 0.2 percent in the All Items CPI for All Urban Consumers, we are 

95 percent confident that the actual percent change based on all retail prices would fall between 0.14 and 

0.26 percent. For the latest data, including information on how to use the estimates of standard error, 

see “Variance Estimates for Price Changes in the Consumer Price Index, January-December 2010”. 

These data are available on the CPI home page (http://www.bls.gov/cpi), or by using the following link 

http://www.bls.gov/cpi/cpivar2010.pdf

Calculating Index Changes 

Movements of the indexes from one month to another are usually expressed as percent changes rather 

than changes in index points, because index point changes are affected by the level of the index in 

relation to its base period while percent changes are not. The example below illustrates the computation 

of index point and percent changes. 

 Percent changes for 3-month and 6-month periods are expressed as annual rates and are computed 

according to the standard formula for compound growth rates. These data indicate what the percent 

change would be if the current rate were maintained for a 12-month period. 

Index Point Change

CPI 202.416 

Less previous index 201.800 

Equals index point change .616 

Percent Change

Index point difference .616 

Divided by the previous index 201.800 

Equals 0.003 

Results multiplied by one hundred 0.003x100 

Equals percent change 0.3
- 7 -

Regions Defined 

The states in the four regions shown in Tables 3 and 6 are listed below. 

The Northeast--Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, 

and Vermont. 

The Midwest--Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, 

and Wisconsin. 

The South--Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, 

Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia. 

The West--Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, 

Washington, and Wyoming. 

A Note on Seasonally Adjusted and Unadjusted Data 

Because price data are used for different purposes by different groups, the Bureau of Labor Statistics 

publishes seasonally adjusted as well as unadjusted changes each month. 

For analyzing general price trends in the economy, seasonally adjusted changes are usually preferred 

since they eliminate the effect of changes that normally occur at the same time and in about the same 

magnitude every year--such as price movements resulting from changing climatic conditions, production 

cycles, model changeovers, holidays, and sales. 

The unadjusted data are of primary interest to consumers concerned about the prices they actually pay.

Unadjusted data also are used extensively for escalation purposes. Many collective bargaining contract 

agreements and pension plans, for example, tie compensation changes to the Consumer Price Index 

before adjustment for seasonal variation. 

Seasonal factors used in computing the seasonally adjusted indexes are derived by the X-12-ARIMA 

Seasonal Adjustment Method. Seasonally adjusted indexes and seasonal factors are computed annually. 

Each year, the last 5 years of seasonally adjusted data are revised. Data from January 2006 through 

December 2010 were replaced in January 2011. Exceptions to the usual revision schedule were: the 

updated seasonal data at the end of 1977 replaced data from 1967 through 1977; and, in January 2002, 

dependently seasonally adjusted series were revised for January 1987-December 2001 as a result of a 

change in the aggregation weights for dependently adjusted series. For further information, please see 

“Aggregation of Dependently Adjusted Seasonally Adjusted Series,” in the October 2001 issue of the 

CPI Detailed Report. 

Effective with the publication of data from January 2006 through December 2010 in January 2011, the 

Video and audio series and the Information technology, hardware and services series were changed from 

independently adjusted to dependently adjusted. This resulted in an increase in the number of seasonal 

components used in deriving seasonal movement of the All items and 54 other lower level aggregations, 

from 73 for the publication of January 1998 through December 2005 data to 82 for the publication of 

seasonally adjusted data for January 2006 and later. Each year the seasonal status of every series is 

reevaluated based upon certain statistical criteria. If any of the 82 components change their seasonal 

adjustment status from seasonally adjusted to not seasonally adjusted, not seasonally adjusted data will 

be used in the aggregation of the dependent series for the last 5 years, but the seasonally adjusted 
- 8 -

indexes before that period will not be changed. Note: 37 of the 82 components are not seasonally 

adjusted for 2011. 

Seasonally adjusted data, including the all items index levels, are subject to revision for up to five years 

after their original release. For this reason, BLS advises against the use of these data in escalation 

agreements. 

Effective with the calculation of the seasonal factors for 1990, the Bureau of Labor Statistics has used an 

enhanced seasonal adjustment procedure called Intervention Analysis Seasonal Adjustment for some 

CPI series. Intervention Analysis Seasonal Adjustment allows for better estimates of seasonally 

adjusted data. Extreme values and/or sharp movements which might distort the seasonal pattern are 

estimated and removed from the data prior to calculation of seasonal factors. Beginning with the 

calculation of seasonal factors for 1996, X-12-ARIMA software was used for Intervention Analysis 

Seasonal Adjustment. 

For the seasonal factors introduced in January 2011, BLS adjusted 29 series using Intervention Analysis 

Seasonal Adjustment, including selected food and beverage items, motor fuels, electricity and vehicles.

For example, this procedure was used for the Motor fuel series to offset the effects of events such as 

damage to oil refineries from Hurricane Katrina. 

For a complete list of Intervention Analysis Seasonal Adjustment series and explanations, please refer to 

the article “Intervention Analysis Seasonal Adjustment”, located on our website at 

http://www.bls.gov/cpi/cpisapage.htm.

For additional information on seasonal adjustment in the CPI, please write to the Bureau of Labor 

Statistics, Division of Consumer Prices and Price Indexes, Washington, DC 20212 or contact David 

Levin at (202) 691-6968, or by e-mail at Levin.David@bls.gov. If you have general questions about the 

CPI, please call our information staff at (202) 691-7000.
Table 1. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): U.S. city average, by expenditure category and commodity and

service group

(1982-84=100, unless otherwise noted)

CPI-U

Relative

importance,

December

2010

Unadjusted

indexes

Unadjusted

percent change to

May 2011 from—

Seasonally adjusted

percent change from—

Apr.

2011

May

2011

May

2010

Apr.

2011

Feb. to

Mar.

Mar. to

Apr.

Apr. to

May

Expenditure category

All items ........................................................................................ 100.000 224.906 225.964 3.6 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.2 

All items (1967=100) .................................................................... -

 673.717 676.887 - ----

Food and beverages .................................................................. 14.792 226.248 227.082 3.4 .4 .7 .4 .4 

Food ......................................................................................... 13.742 226.150 226.976 3.5 .4 .8 .4 .4 

Food at home ......................................................................... 7.816 224.233 225.356 4.4 .5 1.1 .5 .5 

Cereals and bakery products ............................................... 1.090 255.956 259.140 3.1 1.2 .5 .1 1.0 

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs .............................................. 1.813 220.747 223.227 8.5 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.5 

Dairy and related products 1 ................................................ .839 209.707 211.327 6.9 .8 1.3 1.7 .8 

Fruits and vegetables ........................................................... 1.152 286.501 284.174 2.3 -.8 1.9 -1.1 -1.3 

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials ................ .926 166.086 165.862 3.0 -.1 .8 1.2 .0 

Other food at home .............................................................. 1.996 195.239 196.161 2.5 .5 1.0 .3 .4 

Sugar and sweets 1 ............................................................ .297 203.783 205.285 1.6 .7 .7 -.8 .7 

Fats and oils ....................................................................... .232 213.818 216.370 8.5 1.2 2.8 .8 .4 

Other foods ........................................................................ 1.466 207.892 208.518 1.7 .3 .8 .5 .4 

Other miscellaneous foods 1 2 ......................................... .432 123.769 123.343 2.3 -.3 1.0 .9 -.3 

Food away from home 1 ......................................................... 5.926 230.082 230.501 2.2 .2 .3 .3 .2 

Other food away from home 1 2 ........................................... .329 162.218 162.483 2.5 .2 .0 .2 .2 

Alcoholic beverages ................................................................. 1.051 226.053 226.989 2.0 .4 .0 .3 .4 

Housing ...................................................................................... 41.460 217.901 218.484 1.2 .3 .1 .2 .2 

Shelter ...................................................................................... 31.955 250.447 250.745 1.1 .1 .1 .1 .2 

Rent of primary residence 3 ................................................... 5.925 252.221 252.393 1.4 .1 .1 .1 .1 

Lodging away from home 2 .................................................... .776 136.597 139.094 2.2 1.8 .8 .0 2.9 

Owners’ equivalent rent of residences 3 4 .............................. 24.905 258.400 258.587 .9 .1 .1 .1 .1 

Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence 3 4 ................ 23.310 258.387 258.574 .9 .1 .1 .1 .1 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ................................... .349 126.574 126.780 1.4 .2 -.5 .6 .2 

Fuels and utilities ..................................................................... 5.096 217.254 219.956 3.4 1.2 .6 .6 .4 

Household energy .................................................................. 4.000 190.622 193.498 2.9 1.5 .6 .7 .5 

Fuel oil and other fuels 1 ...................................................... .309 348.657 347.002 27.3 -.5 4.6 2.0 -.5 

Energy services 3 ................................................................. 3.691 190.459 193.698 1.1 1.7 .2 .6 .6 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 ................... 1.095 178.033 178.521 5.1 .3 .5 .4 .3 

Household furnishings and operations ..................................... 4.409 124.893 125.141 -.7 .2 -.1 .2 .2 

Household operations 1 2 ....................................................... .772 151.338 151.730 .8 .3 -.5 .5 .3 

Apparel ....................................................................................... 3.601 122.226 122.271 1.0 .0 -.5 .2 1.2 

Men’s and boys’ apparel .......................................................... .882 113.487 114.976 1.0 1.3 -.7 .0 1.5 

Women’s and girls’ apparel ...................................................... 1.520 110.144 109.237 .5 -.8 -.9 .3 1.3 

Infants’ and toddlers’ apparel ................................................... .192 112.323 111.199 -2.8 -1.0 .1 .3 .6 

Footwear .................................................................................. .700 128.581 129.618 .7 .8 -.2 -.6 1.5

Transportation ............................................................................ 17.308 216.867 220.270 13.1 1.6 2.2 1.4 -.3 

Private transportation ............................................................... 16.082 212.210 215.829 13.6 1.7 2.3 1.5 -.2

New and used motor vehicles 2 ............................................. 6.333 98.972 99.915 3.1 1.0 .8 .8 1.0 

New vehicles ........................................................................ 3.513 141.462 142.494 3.4 .7 .7 .7 1.1 

Used cars and trucks ........................................................... 2.055 145.968 148.361 4.1 1.6 .8 1.2 1.1 

Motor fuel ............................................................................... 5.079 326.024 337.359 36.8 3.5 5.6 3.2 -2.0 

Gasoline (all types) .............................................................. 4.865 325.282 336.999 36.9 3.6 5.6 3.3 -2.0 

Motor vehicle parts and equipment 1 ..................................... .408 141.590 143.328 5.3 1.2 -.2 .6 1.2 

Motor vehicle maintenance and repair 1 ................................ 1.172 251.458 252.376 2.0 .4 .0 .3 .4 

Public transportation ................................................................ 1.227 272.187 271.417 7.2 -.3 1.3 .2 -.5 

Medical care ............................................................................... 6.627 398.813 399.375 3.0 .1 .2 .4 .2

Medical care commodities 1 ..................................................... 1.633 324.241 324.399 3.0 .0 .5 .5 .0 

Medical care services ............................................................... 4.994 421.716 422.438 3.0 .2 .1 .3 .3 

Professional services ............................................................. 2.830 334.978 335.132 2.4 .0 .2 .1 .0 

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 1. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): U.S. city average, by expenditure category and commodity and

service group-Continued

(1982-84=100, unless otherwise noted)

CPI-U

Relative

importance,

December

2010

Unadjusted

indexes

Unadjusted

percent change to

May 2011 from—

Seasonally adjusted

percent change from—

Apr.

2011

May

2011

May

2010

Apr.

2011

Feb. to

Mar.

Mar. to

Apr.

Apr. to

May

Expenditure category

Hospital and related services ................................................. 1.703 637.188 639.456 5.6 0.4 0.2 0.6 0.7 

Recreation 2 ............................................................................... 6.293 113.368 113.659 .0 .3 .0 .0 .3 

Video and audio 2 .................................................................... 1.816 98.918 98.707 -.9 -.2 .1 .0 .0 

Education and communication 2 ................................................ 6.421 130.643 130.600 1.0 .0 .1 .1 .1 

Education 2 .............................................................................. 3.107 204.316 204.668 3.9 .2 .3 .3 .4 

Educational books and supplies ............................................. .204 522.440 523.640 4.2 .2 .6 .3 .5 

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare ................................ 2.903 587.151 588.138 3.9 .2 .3 .3 .4 

Communication 2 ..................................................................... 3.313 83.655 83.466 -1.6 -.2 -.1 -.1 -.2 

Information and information processing 2 .............................. 3.138 80.281 80.081 -1.9 -.2 -.1 -.1 -.2 

Telephone services 1 2 ......................................................... 2.334 101.191 101.159 -1.2 .0 -.1 -.1 .0 

Information technology, hardware and services 5 ................ .804 9.176 9.096 -4.0 -.9 -.3 -.3 -.6 

Personal computers and peripheral equipment 6 ............... .228 72.010 70.898 -7.5 -1.5 -1.6 -.2 -.6 

Other goods and services .......................................................... 3.497 386.226 385.476 1.5 -.2 -.1 .1 -.2 

Tobacco and smoking products 1 ............................................ .906 827.287 825.690 3.4 -.2 .1 -.4 -.2 

Personal care ........................................................................... 2.591 208.485 208.080 .9 -.2 -.2 .3 -.2

Personal care products 1 ....................................................... .671 161.418 159.478 -.5 -1.2 -.2 .3 -1.2 

Personal care services 1 ........................................................ .638 230.380 230.505 .2 .1 -.1 .2 .1 

Miscellaneous personal services ........................................... 1.055 361.062 361.786 2.3 .2 .1 .4 .1 

Commodity and service group

Commodities ................................................................................ 40.012 185.311 186.804 6.5 .8 1.2 .8 .1 

Food and beverages .................................................................. 14.792 226.248 227.082 3.4 .4 .7 .4 .4 

Commodities less food and beverages ...................................... 25.219 162.578 164.286 8.4 1.1 1.4 1.0 -.1 

Nondurables less food and beverages ..................................... 15.474 214.256 217.037 12.9 1.3 1.8 1.1 .1 

Apparel ................................................................................... 3.601 122.226 122.271 1.0 .0 -.5 .2 1.2

Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel .................... 11.873 276.504 281.064 16.7 1.6 2.9 1.5 -.5 

Durables ................................................................................... 9.745 112.242 112.941 1.3 .6 .4 .6 .6

Services ....................................................................................... 59.988 264.256 264.883 1.6 .2 .2 .2 .2 

Rent of shelter 4 ......................................................................... 31.607 260.963 261.272 1.1 .1 .0 .1 .2 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ....................................... .349 126.574 126.780 1.4 .2 -.5 .6 .2 

Energy services 3 ....................................................................... 3.691 190.459 193.698 1.1 1.7 .2 .6 .6 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 ....................... 1.095 178.033 178.521 5.1 .3 .5 .4 .3 

Household operations 1 2 ........................................................... .772 151.338 151.730 .8 .3 -.5 .5 .3 

Transportation services .............................................................. 6.140 267.587 267.832 3.3 .1 .5 .2 .1 

Medical care services ................................................................. 4.994 421.716 422.438 3.0 .2 .1 .3 .3 

Other services ............................................................................ 11.340 312.593 313.205 1.4 .2 .1 .1 .3

Special indexes

All items less food ........................................................................ 86.258 224.731 225.826 3.6 .5 .5 .4 .1

All items less shelter .................................................................... 68.045 217.475 218.847 4.7 .6 .8 .6 .2

All items less medical care ........................................................... 93.373 216.346 217.414 3.6 .5 .6 .4 .2 

Commodities less food ................................................................. 26.270 164.964 166.657 8.1 1.0 1.4 1.0 -.1

Nondurables less food ................................................................. 16.525 215.090 217.771 12.2 1.2 1.7 1.1 .1

Nondurables less food and apparel ............................................. 12.923 270.729 274.948 15.5 1.6 2.7 1.5 -.4 

Nondurables ................................................................................. 30.266 221.504 223.413 8.2 .9 1.4 .9 .2 

Services less rent of shelter 4 ...................................................... 28.382 288.612 289.676 2.2 .4 .2 .3 .3 

Services less medical care services ............................................ 54.994 252.100 252.713 1.5 .2 .1 .2 .2 

Energy .......................................................................................... 9.079 253.495 260.376 21.5 2.7 3.5 2.2 -1.0 

All items less energy .................................................................... 90.921 223.798 224.275 1.8 .2 .2 .2 .3

All items less food and energy ................................................... 77.179 224.118 224.534 1.5 .2 .1 .2 .3 

Commodities less food and energy commodities ..................... 20.882 145.214 145.657 1.2 .3 .1 .4 .5 

Energy commodities ............................................................... 5.388 329.419 340.183 36.2 3.3 5.5 3.1 -1.9 

Services less energy services .................................................. 56.297 271.775 272.158 1.6 .1 .2 .1 .2 

Purchasing power of the consumer dollar (1982-84=$1.00) ........ -

 $ .445 $ .443 - ----

Purchasing power of the consumer dollar (1967=$1.00) ............. - $ .148 $ .148 - ----

1 Not seasonally adjusted. 2 Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. 3 This index series was calculated using a Laspeyres estimator. All other

item stratum index series were calculated using a geometric means estimator. 4 Indexes on a December 1982=100 base.

5 Indexes on a December 1988=100 base. 6 Indexes on a December 2007=100 base. - Data not available.

NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.
Table 2. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Seasonally adjusted U.S. city average, by expenditure category

and commodity and service group

(1982-84=100, unless otherwise noted)

CPI-U

Seasonally adjusted indexes Seasonally adjusted annual rate percent

change for

3 months ended— 6 months

ended—

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

Apr.

2011

May

2011

Aug.

2010

Nov.

2010

Feb.

2011

May

2011 Nov.

2010

May

2011

Expenditure category

All items .............................................................................. 222.270 223.490 224.433 224.804 1.4 2.2 5.6 4.6 1.8 5.1 

Food and beverages ......................................................... 223.779 225.345 226.330 227.137 .4 2.3 4.7 6.1 1.4 5.4

Food ................................................................................ 223.544 225.228 226.231 227.024 .3 2.4 4.9 6.4 1.4 5.6 

Food at home ................................................................ 220.800 223.219 224.373 225.440 -.6 2.8 7.2 8.7 1.1 7.9 

Cereals and bakery products ...................................... 254.037 255.395 255.751 258.365 -2.1 2.9 5.0 7.0 .3 6.0 

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs ..................................... 216.444 218.803 221.181 224.390 3.8 7.7 7.4 15.5 5.8 11.4 

Dairy and related products 1 ....................................... 203.510 206.161 209.707 211.327 2.0 5.3 4.5 16.3 3.6 10.2 

Fruits and vegetables .................................................. 284.574 289.890 286.716 283.011 -9.1 .1 22.9 -2.2 -4.6 9.7

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials ....... 162.958 164.340 166.375 166.304 .3 1.2 2.3 8.5 .7 5.4 

Other food at home ..................................................... 192.706 194.602 195.207 196.037 -.2 -.2 3.3 7.1 -.2 5.2 

Sugar and sweets 1 .................................................. 204.168 205.505 203.783 205.285 -3.5 .5 7.3 2.2 -1.5 4.7 

Fats and oils .............................................................. 208.833 214.596 216.297 217.141 1.1 5.6 10.9 16.9 3.3 13.9 

Other foods ............................................................... 204.936 206.493 207.448 208.214 .3 -1.3 1.4 6.6 -.5 3.9

Other miscellaneous foods 1 2 ................................ 121.438 122.665 123.769 123.343 4.0 -3.8 2.7 6.4 .0 4.6 

Food away from home 1 ............................................... 228.606 229.282 230.082 230.501 1.5 1.9 1.9 3.4 1.7 2.6 

Other food away from home 1 2 .................................. 161.836 161.886 162.218 162.483 2.5 2.2 3.7 1.6 2.4 2.6 

Alcoholic beverages ........................................................ 225.415 225.409 226.141 227.134 2.1 1.3 1.7 3.1 1.7 2.4

Housing ............................................................................. 217.561 217.852 218.192 218.637 .3 .4 2.0 2.0 .3 2.0 

Shelter ............................................................................. 249.867 250.102 250.278 250.707 .7 .9 1.4 1.4 .8 1.4 

Rent of primary residence 3 .......................................... 251.607 251.930 252.102 252.403 .6 1.7 2.0 1.3 1.1 1.6 

Lodging away from home 2 ........................................... 132.915 133.920 133.885 137.705 2.9 -7.8 -.2 15.2 -2.6 7.2 

Owners’ equivalent rent of residences 3 4 .................... 258.016 258.204 258.377 258.623 .6 .9 1.3 .9 .8 1.1 

Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence 3 4 ....... 258.003 258.196 258.364 258.610 .6 .9 1.3 .9 .8 1.1 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ......................... 126.529 125.863 126.574 126.780 4.6 3.3 -3.0 .8 4.0 -1.1 

Fuels and utilities ............................................................ 218.231 219.480 220.834 221.800 -.4 -.5 8.0 6.7 -.5 7.3 

Household energy ......................................................... 192.096 193.211 194.539 195.475 -1.6 -2.0 8.4 7.2 -1.8 7.8 

Fuel oil and other fuels 1 ............................................. 326.919 341.884 348.657 347.002 -13.1 40.1 69.9 26.9 10.4 46.8 

Energy services 3 ........................................................ 193.224 193.654 194.751 195.864 -.7 -4.6 4.3 5.6 -2.7 5.0 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 .......... 176.725 177.684 178.316 178.806 4.4 4.9 6.5 4.8 4.6 5.6 

Household furnishings and operations ............................ 124.493 124.375 124.661 124.859 -1.9 -2.1 .1 1.2 -2.0 .6 

Household operations 1 2 ............................................. 151.358 150.541 151.338 151.730 .1 -1.2 3.2 1.0 -.5 2.1 

Apparel .............................................................................. 119.384 118.770 118.951 120.342 2.8 -2.6 .8 3.2 .1 2.0 

Men’s and boys’ apparel ................................................. 111.408 110.648 110.613 112.243 5.3 -3.5 -.8 3.0 .8 1.1

Women’s and girls’ apparel ............................................. 106.622 105.708 105.993 107.363 2.1 -4.0 1.3 2.8 -1.0 2.0

Infants’ and toddlers’ apparel .......................................... 109.634 109.796 110.154 110.858 4.1 -7.1 -11.7 4.5 -1.7 -3.9 

Footwear ......................................................................... 127.691 127.476 126.702 128.540 .7 -1.7 1.1 2.7 -.5 1.9 

Transportation ................................................................... 207.433 212.001 215.016 214.457 4.4 9.6 22.7 14.2 7.0 18.4 

Private transportation ...................................................... 202.446 207.045 210.173 209.664 5.4 9.5 22.7 15.0 7.4 18.8 

New and used motor vehicles 2 .................................... 97.490 98.249 99.051 99.997 2.9 -1.7 1.0 10.7 .6 5.7 

New vehicles ............................................................... 139.065 140.078 141.092 142.637 1.3 -.6 2.8 10.7 .3 6.7

Used cars and trucks .................................................. 143.847 144.958 146.704 148.264 8.6 -3.4 -.9 12.9 2.4 5.8

Motor fuel ...................................................................... 291.093 307.358 317.215 310.990 11.3 33.2 81.2 30.3 21.7 53.6 

Gasoline (all types) ..................................................... 290.027 306.128 316.333 310.161 11.9 34.3 79.0 30.8 22.6 53.0 

Motor vehicle parts and equipment 1 ............................ 140.912 140.686 141.590 143.328 4.5 3.3 6.3 7.0 3.9 6.7 

Motor vehicle maintenance and repair 1 ....................... 250.851 250.820 251.458 252.376 1.8 2.4 1.6 2.5 2.1 2.0 

Public transportation ....................................................... 269.625 273.100 273.781 272.417 -7.1 11.5 22.2 4.2 1.8 12.8 

Medical care ...................................................................... 395.615 396.364 397.793 398.739 1.9 3.7 3.1 3.2 2.8 3.2 

Medical care commodities 1 ............................................ 321.186 322.691 324.241 324.399 -.1 2.5 5.7 4.1 1.2 4.9 

Medical care services ..................................................... 418.529 418.937 420.282 421.544 2.6 4.2 2.3 2.9 3.4 2.6

Professional services .................................................... 333.483 333.993 334.196 334.323 3.8 2.8 2.2 1.0 3.3 1.6

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 2. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Seasonally adjusted U.S. city average, by expenditure category

and commodity and service group-Continued

(1982-84=100, unless otherwise noted)

CPI-U

Seasonally adjusted indexes Seasonally adjusted annual rate percent

change for

3 months ended— 6 months

ended—

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

Apr.

2011

May

2011

Aug.

2010

Nov.

2010

Feb.

2011

May

2011 Nov.

2010

May

2011

Expenditure category

Hospital and related services ........................................ 628.137 629.315 633.287 637.925 3.5 8.2 4.5 6.4 5.8 5.5 

Recreation 2 ...................................................................... 113.242 113.228 113.183 113.512 -.5 -1.4 .9 1.0 -1.0 .9 

Video and audio 2 ........................................................... 98.395 98.466 98.437 98.424 -2.4 -.4 -.7 .1 -1.4 -.3 

Education and communication 2 ....................................... 130.759 130.898 131.012 131.168 1.4 .7 .8 1.3 1.1 1.0 

Education 2 ..................................................................... 204.456 205.133 205.707 206.559 3.3 2.9 5.4 4.2 3.1 4.8 

Educational books and supplies ................................... 519.288 522.344 523.912 526.573 -1.9 6.2 7.1 5.7 2.1 6.4 

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare ...................... 587.834 589.674 591.314 593.725 3.6 2.7 5.3 4.1 3.1 4.7 

Communication 2 ............................................................ 83.746 83.656 83.576 83.441 -.2 -1.3 -3.4 -1.4 -.7 -2.4 

Information and information processing 2 ..................... 80.383 80.290 80.201 80.056 -.2 -1.4 -4.4 -1.6 -.8 -3.0 

Telephone services 1 2 ............................................... 101.316 101.258 101.191 101.159 .6 -.8 -3.9 -.6 -.1 -2.3 

Information technology, hardware and services 5 ....... 9.189 9.163 9.140 9.084 -2.6 -3.0 -5.8 -4.5 -2.8 -5.2 

Personal computers and peripheral equipment 6 ..... 72.289 71.142 71.002 70.586 -.2 -4.1 -16.0 -9.1 -2.2 -12.6 

Other goods and services ................................................. 385.532 385.215 385.600 384.959 5.5 -.6 1.9 -.6 2.4 .6

Tobacco and smoking products 1 ................................... 829.535 830.693 827.287 825.690 12.8 -.9 4.3 -1.8 5.8 1.2 

Personal care .................................................................. 207.783 207.451 208.030 207.704 3.1 -.5 1.0 -.2 1.3 .4 

Personal care products 1 .............................................. 161.325 160.981 161.418 159.478 2.5 -2.3 2.3 -4.5 .1 -1.1 

Personal care services 1 ............................................... 230.177 230.034 230.380 230.505 .6 -1.3 1.0 .6 -.3 .8 

Miscellaneous personal services .................................. 358.894 359.233 360.622 361.046 3.0 2.0 1.9 2.4 2.5 2.2 

Commodity and service group

Commodities ....................................................................... 180.549 182.627 184.090 184.226 1.9 3.8 11.2 8.4 2.8 9.8 

Food and beverages ......................................................... 223.779 225.345 226.330 227.137 .4 2.3 4.7 6.1 1.4 5.4

Commodities less food and beverages ............................. 157.054 159.267 160.874 160.735 2.8 4.6 15.2 9.7 3.7 12.4 

Nondurables less food and beverages ........................... 204.142 207.789 210.177 210.446 4.6 9.7 25.4 12.9 7.1 19.0 

Apparel .......................................................................... 119.384 118.770 118.951 120.342 2.8 -2.6 .8 3.2 .1 2.0 

Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel .......... 260.797 268.329 272.442 271.195 5.4 13.6 32.3 16.9 9.5 24.4 

Durables .......................................................................... 111.024 111.490 112.128 112.843 1.5 -4.0 1.3 6.7 -1.2 4.0 

Services .............................................................................. 263.745 264.161 264.561 265.147 1.0 1.1 2.1 2.1 1.0 2.1 

Rent of shelter 4 ................................................................ 260.509 260.389 260.645 261.102 .1 2.4 .8 .9 1.3 .9 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ............................. 126.529 125.863 126.574 126.780 4.6 3.3 -3.0 .8 4.0 -1.1 

Energy services 3 .............................................................. 193.224 193.654 194.751 195.864 -.7 -4.6 4.3 5.6 -2.7 5.0 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 .............. 176.725 177.684 178.316 178.806 4.4 4.9 6.5 4.8 4.6 5.6 

Household operations 1 2 ................................................. 151.358 150.541 151.338 151.730 .1 -1.2 3.2 1.0 -.5 2.1 

Transportation services ..................................................... 266.061 267.523 268.096 268.408 .1 4.4 5.1 3.6 2.2 4.4

Medical care services ....................................................... 418.529 418.937 420.282 421.544 2.6 4.2 2.3 2.9 3.4 2.6 

Other services ................................................................... 312.190 312.626 312.898 313.707 1.9 .4 1.4 2.0 1.2 1.7 

Special indexes

All items less food ............................................................... 222.091 223.237 224.171 224.475 1.6 2.1 5.8 4.4 1.8 5.1 

All items less shelter ........................................................... 213.995 215.619 216.878 217.230 1.7 2.8 7.7 6.2 2.2 6.9 

All items less medical care .................................................. 213.755 214.982 215.899 216.244 1.3 2.1 5.8 4.7 1.7 5.3 

Commodities less food ........................................................ 159.553 161.713 163.303 163.195 2.8 4.5 14.7 9.4 3.6 12.0 

Nondurables less food ........................................................ 205.455 208.940 211.335 211.633 4.0 9.8 23.4 12.6 6.8 17.9 

Nondurables less food and apparel .................................... 256.414 263.245 267.120 266.147 5.0 12.6 29.6 16.1 8.7 22.6

Nondurables ........................................................................ 214.660 217.689 219.744 220.165 1.8 6.6 14.3 10.7 4.2 12.5 

Services less rent of shelter 4 ............................................. 288.270 288.851 289.660 290.391 1.1 1.5 3.1 3.0 1.3 3.0 

Services less medical care services ................................... 251.810 252.011 252.413 253.004 .4 1.9 1.7 1.9 1.1 1.8 

Energy ................................................................................. 237.620 245.941 251.319 248.837 5.0 15.8 45.1 20.3 10.3 32.1 

All items less energy ........................................................... 222.483 222.992 223.494 224.157 1.0 .9 2.2 3.0 1.0 2.6 

All items less food and energy .......................................... 223.029 223.331 223.745 224.387 1.2 .7 1.8 2.5 .9 2.1 

Commodities less food and energy commodities ........... 143.793 143.917 144.423 145.183 1.4 -1.5 1.2 3.9 -.1 2.5 

Energy commodities ..................................................... 294.905 311.218 320.989 314.950 9.7 33.6 80.6 30.1 21.1 53.3

Services less energy services ......................................... 270.955 271.371 271.707 272.244 1.1 1.5 2.0 1.9 1.3 1.9 

1 Not seasonally adjusted. 2 Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. 3 This index series was calculated using a Laspeyres estimator. All other

item stratum index series were calculated using a geometric means

estimator.

4 Indexes on a December 1982=100 base. 5 Indexes on a December 1988=100 base. 6 Indexes on a December 2007=100 base.

NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.
Table 3. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Selected areas, all items index 

(1982-84=100, unless otherwise noted)

CPI-U

All items 

Pricing

schedule 1

Indexes Percent change to

May2011 from—

Percent change to

Apr.2011 from—

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

Apr.

2011

May

2011

May

2010

Mar.

2011

Apr.

2011

Apr.

2010

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

U.S. city average ............................................ M 221.309 223.467 224.906 225.964 3.6 1.1 0.5 3.2 1.6 0.6 

Region and area size2

Northeast urban .............................................. M 237.110 239.074 240.267 241.566 3.2 1.0 .5 2.8 1.3 .5 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 238.798 240.599 241.626 242.976 2.9 1.0 .6 2.6 1.2 .4 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 141.547 143.001 143.987 144.697 3.8 1.2 .5 3.5 1.7 .7 

Midwest urban ................................................ M 211.090 212.954 214.535 215.899 3.8 1.4 .6 3.3 1.6 .7 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 211.503 213.449 214.878 216.376 3.8 1.4 .7 3.2 1.6 .7 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 135.665 136.834 138.005 138.827 3.8 1.5 .6 3.4 1.7 .9 

Size D - Nonmetropolitan (less than

50,000) ............................................... M 208.156 209.713 211.314 212.210 4.0 1.2 .4 3.4 1.5 .8 

South urban .................................................... M 214.735 217.214 218.820 219.820 4.0 1.2 .5 3.4 1.9 .7 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 216.145 218.391 219.944 220.982 3.7 1.2 .5 3.2 1.8 .7 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 136.625 138.211 139.177 139.833 4.0 1.2 .5 3.4 1.9 .7 

Size D - Nonmetropolitan (less than

50,000) ............................................... M 218.772 222.275 224.716 225.416 5.2 1.4 .3 4.7 2.7 1.1 

West urban ..................................................... M 224.431 226.558 227.837 228.516 3.2 .9 .3 3.0 1.5 .6 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 228.444 230.707 231.808 232.393 3.0 .7 .3 3.0 1.5 .5 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 135.826 137.200 138.174 138.598 3.5 1.0 .3 3.0 1.7 .7 

Size classes

A 4 .............................................................. M 201.974 203.833 204.963 205.944 3.3 1.0 .5 3.0 1.5 .6 

B/C 3 ........................................................... M 136.960 138.404 139.413 140.062 3.8 1.2 .5 3.3 1.8 .7 

D ................................................................. M 214.862 216.988 218.920 219.873 4.3 1.3 .4 3.8 1.9 .9 

Selected local areas5

Chicago-Gary-Kenosha, IL-IN-WI ................... M 216.192 217.880 218.762 220.094 3.3 1.0 .6 2.7 1.2 .4 

Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County, CA ... M 229.729 232.241 233.319 233.367 3.1 .5 .0 3.3 1.6 .5 

New York-Northern N.J.-Long Island,

NY-NJ-CT-PA ......................................... M 243.832 245.617 246.489 248.073 2.9 1.0 .6 2.5 1.1 .4 

Boston-Brockton-Nashua, MA-NH-ME-CT ..... 1 -

 242.787 - 244.574 2.7 .7 ----

Cleveland-Akron, OH ...................................... 1 - 209.372 - 212.175 4.0 1.3 ----

Dallas-Fort Worth, TX ..................................... 1 - 206.967 - 208.794 3.3 .9 ----

Washington-Baltimore, DC-MD-VA-WV 6 ...... 1 - 146.044 - 147.554 3.9 1.0 ----

Atlanta, GA ..................................................... 2 205.744 - 209.215 ---- 2.5 1.7 -

Detroit-Ann Arbor-Flint, MI .............................. 2 206.816 - 211.673 ---- 3.1 2.3 -

Houston-Galveston-Brazoria, TX .................... 2 197.224 - 201.624 ---- 3.9 2.2 -

Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL ............................. 2 227.451 - 231.503 ---- 4.0 1.8 -

Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic City,

PA-NJ-DE-MD ........................................ 2 230.878 - 233.143 ---- 2.5 1.0 -

San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, CA ........... 2 229.981 - 234.121 ---- 2.8 1.8 -

Seattle-Tacoma-Bremerton, WA .................... 2 229.482 - 231.314 ---- 2.1 .8 -

1 Foods, fuels, and several other items priced every month in all areas;

 most other goods and services priced as indicated:

 M - Every month.

 1 - January, March, May, July, September, and November.

 2 - February, April, June, August, October, and December. 2 Regions defined as the four Census regions. See technical notes. 3 Indexes on a December 1996=100 base. 4 Indexes on a December 1986=100 base. 5 In addition, the following metropolitan areas are published semiannually

and appear in Tables 34 and 39 of the January and July issues of the CPI

Detailed Report: Anchorage, AK; Cincinnati-Hamilton, OH-KY-IN;

Denver-Boulder-Greeley, CO; Honolulu, HI; Kansas City, MO-KS;

Milwaukee-Racine, WI; Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN-WI; Phoenix-Mesa, AZ;

Pittsburgh, PA; Portland-Salem, OR-WA; St. Louis, MO-IL; San Diego, CA;

Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL. 6 Indexes on a November 1996=100 base. - Data not available.

NOTE: Local area indexes are byproducts of the national CPI program. 

Each local index has a smaller sample size than the national index and is,

therefore, subject to substantially more sampling and other measurement

error. As a result, local area indexes show greater volatility than the national

index, although their long-term trends are similar. Therefore, the Bureau of

Labor Statistics strongly urges users to consider adopting the national

average CPI for use in their escalator clauses. 

NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.
Table 4. Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W): U.S. city average, by expenditure category

and commodity and service group

(1982-84=100, unless otherwise noted)

CPI-W

Relative

importance,

December

2010

Unadjusted

indexes

Unadjusted

percent change to

May 2011 from—

Seasonally adjusted

percent change from—

Apr.

2011

May

2011

May

2010

Apr.

2011

Feb. to

Mar.

Mar. to

Apr.

Apr. to

May

Expenditure category

All items ........................................................................................ 100.000 221.743 222.954 4.1 0.5 0.6 0.5 0.1 

All items (1967=100) .................................................................... -

 660.503 664.113 - ----

Food and beverages .................................................................. 16.401 225.667 226.473 3.5 .4 .7 .5 .4 

Food ......................................................................................... 15.315 225.439 226.257 3.6 .4 .8 .5 .4 

Food at home ......................................................................... 8.906 223.245 224.386 4.6 .5 1.1 .5 .5 

Cereals and bakery products ............................................... 1.236 256.912 259.862 3.2 1.1 .6 .2 .9 

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs .............................................. 2.227 220.753 223.356 8.8 1.2 1.2 1.1 1.5 

Dairy and related products 1 ................................................ .917 208.951 210.488 7.1 .7 1.4 1.8 .7 

Fruits and vegetables ........................................................... 1.219 284.147 281.424 2.3 -1.0 2.0 -1.3 -1.4 

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials ................ 1.091 165.553 165.160 2.8 -.2 .9 1.2 -.1 

Other food at home .............................................................. 2.217 194.281 195.396 2.5 .6 .9 .3 .6 

Sugar and sweets 1 ............................................................ .324 202.613 204.161 1.6 .8 .5 -.9 .8 

Fats and oils ....................................................................... .258 214.363 216.820 8.4 1.1 2.6 .7 .3 

Other foods ........................................................................ 1.635 207.711 208.632 1.8 .4 .7 .4 .6 

Other miscellaneous foods 1 2 ......................................... .463 123.797 123.673 2.3 -.1 1.0 .8 -.1 

Food away from home 1 ......................................................... 6.409 230.174 230.521 2.2 .2 .3 .4 .2 

Other food away from home 1 2 ........................................... .326 163.275 163.498 2.9 .1 .1 .3 .1 

Alcoholic beverages ................................................................. 1.086 227.552 228.197 2.1 .3 .2 .4 .4 

Housing ...................................................................................... 39.228 214.523 215.135 1.2 .3 .1 .2 .2 

Shelter ...................................................................................... 29.811 244.420 244.618 1.1 .1 .1 .1 .1 

Rent of primary residence 3 ................................................... 8.396 250.579 250.704 1.4 .0 .1 .1 .1 

Lodging away from home 2 .................................................... .436 138.699 140.814 2.7 1.5 .8 .4 2.7 

Owners’ equivalent rent of residences 3 4 .............................. 20.672 234.133 234.272 .9 .1 .1 .1 .1 

Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence 3 4 ................ 19.942 234.127 234.266 .9 .1 .1 .1 .1 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ................................... .306 127.654 127.859 1.4 .2 -.9 .6 .2 

Fuels and utilities ..................................................................... 5.633 215.338 218.216 3.2 1.3 .5 .6 .5 

Household energy .................................................................. 4.476 188.078 191.103 2.8 1.6 .5 .7 .5 

Fuel oil and other fuels 1 ...................................................... .301 347.371 345.830 25.9 -.4 4.4 1.7 -.4 

Energy services 3 ................................................................. 4.175 189.281 192.646 1.3 1.8 .2 .6 .6 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 ................... 1.157 178.392 178.896 5.0 .3 .5 .4 .3 

Household furnishings and operations ..................................... 3.784 120.873 121.238 -.6 .3 .0 .2 .3 

Household operations 1 2 ....................................................... .364 153.923 154.378 .8 .3 -.5 .6 .3 

Apparel ....................................................................................... 3.668 121.140 121.312 .9 .1 -.6 .3 1.2 

Men’s and boys’ apparel .......................................................... .921 113.477 115.079 1.1 1.4 -1.2 .2 1.6 

Women’s and girls’ apparel ...................................................... 1.502 109.589 108.704 .8 -.8 -1.0 .8 1.1 

Infants’ and toddlers’ apparel ................................................... .280 115.274 114.150 -3.2 -1.0 .1 .3 .8 

Footwear .................................................................................. .750 128.602 129.810 .9 .9 .0 -.4 1.6

Transportation ............................................................................ 19.418 218.352 222.153 14.5 1.7 2.4 1.6 -.3 

Private transportation ............................................................... 18.631 215.044 218.946 14.8 1.8 2.5 1.6 -.3

New and used motor vehicles 2 ............................................. 6.914 98.172 99.236 3.4 1.1 .8 .9 1.0 

New vehicles ........................................................................ 3.320 142.475 143.476 3.4 .7 .8 .7 1.1 

Used cars and trucks ........................................................... 3.003 146.907 149.304 4.1 1.6 .8 1.2 1.1 

Motor fuel ............................................................................... 6.470 327.663 338.832 36.8 3.4 5.6 3.2 -2.0 

Gasoline (all types) .............................................................. 6.193 327.095 338.656 37.0 3.5 5.6 3.3 -2.0 

Motor vehicle parts and equipment 1 ..................................... .479 141.505 143.257 5.2 1.2 .0 .6 1.2 

Motor vehicle maintenance and repair 1 ................................ 1.184 253.990 255.042 2.1 .4 -.1 .2 .4 

Public transportation ................................................................ .787 268.501 268.226 7.2 -.1 1.1 .3 -.3 

Medical care ............................................................................... 5.355 400.683 401.316 3.2 .2 .2 .4 .3

Medical care commodities 1 ..................................................... 1.318 315.798 316.099 3.1 .1 .5 .5 .1 

Medical care services ............................................................... 4.038 425.450 426.210 3.2 .2 .1 .3 .3 

Professional services ............................................................. 2.220 338.558 338.828 2.6 .1 .1 .1 .0 

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 4. Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W): U.S. city average, by expenditure category

and commodity and service group-Continued

(1982-84=100, unless otherwise noted)

CPI-W

Relative

importance,

December

2010

Unadjusted

indexes

Unadjusted

percent change to

May 2011 from—

Seasonally adjusted

percent change from—

Apr.

2011

May

2011

May

2010

Apr.

2011

Feb. to

Mar.

Mar. to

Apr.

Apr. to

May

Expenditure category

Hospital and related services ................................................. 1.414 640.223 642.422 6.1 0.3 0.2 0.5 0.8 

Recreation 2 ............................................................................... 5.862 109.933 110.219 .0 .3 .1 .0 .3 

Video and audio 2 .................................................................... 1.959 99.523 99.331 -.6 -.2 .1 -.1 .0 

Education and communication 2 ................................................ 6.118 124.993 124.934 .4 .0 .1 .0 .1 

Education 2 .............................................................................. 2.380 201.611 202.023 4.0 .2 .3 .3 .5 

Educational books and supplies ............................................. .199 526.990 528.326 4.6 .3 .4 .3 .5 

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare ................................ 2.181 566.469 567.600 3.9 .2 .3 .3 .5 

Communication 2 ..................................................................... 3.738 86.057 85.877 -1.8 -.2 -.1 -.1 -.2 

Information and information processing 2 .............................. 3.605 83.719 83.534 -2.0 -.2 -.1 -.1 -.2 

Telephone services 1 2 ......................................................... 2.823 100.643 100.610 -1.5 .0 -.1 -.1 .0 

Information technology, hardware and services 5 ................ .782 9.710 9.623 -4.0 -.9 -.2 -.3 -.6 

Personal computers and peripheral equipment 6 ............... .208 71.220 70.071 -8.7 -1.6 -1.8 -.5 -.6 

Other goods and services .......................................................... 3.950 415.578 414.594 1.9 -.2 -.1 .0 -.2 

Tobacco and smoking products 1 ............................................ 1.450 832.003 830.137 3.4 -.2 .1 -.4 -.2 

Personal care ........................................................................... 2.500 206.422 205.919 1.0 -.2 -.2 .2 -.2

Personal care products 1 ....................................................... .717 162.088 160.083 -.1 -1.2 -.2 .3 -1.2 

Personal care services 1 ........................................................ .572 230.597 230.709 .2 .0 -.1 .1 .0 

Miscellaneous personal services ........................................... 1.027 362.774 363.466 2.5 .2 .0 .4 .2 

Commodity and service group

Commodities ................................................................................ 43.898 189.816 191.543 7.4 .9 1.3 .9 .0 

Food and beverages .................................................................. 16.401 225.667 226.473 3.5 .4 .7 .5 .4 

Commodities less food and beverages ...................................... 27.497 169.461 171.531 9.7 1.2 1.6 1.1 -.2 

Nondurables less food and beverages ..................................... 17.244 226.985 230.306 14.5 1.5 2.1 1.3 .0 

Apparel ................................................................................... 3.668 121.140 121.312 .9 .1 -.6 .3 1.2

Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel .................... 13.576 297.497 302.815 18.4 1.8 3.4 1.5 -.5 

Durables ................................................................................... 10.253 113.678 114.560 1.8 .8 .5 .6 .8

Services ....................................................................................... 56.102 259.419 260.062 1.6 .2 .1 .2 .2 

Rent of shelter 4 ......................................................................... 29.504 235.544 235.734 1.1 .1 .0 .1 .1 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ....................................... .306 127.654 127.859 1.4 .2 -.9 .6 .2 

Energy services 3 ....................................................................... 4.175 189.281 192.646 1.3 1.8 .2 .6 .6 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 ....................... 1.157 178.392 178.896 5.0 .3 .5 .4 .3 

Household operations 1 2 ........................................................... .364 153.923 154.378 .8 .3 -.5 .6 .3 

Transportation services .............................................................. 5.994 267.258 267.729 3.3 .2 .4 .3 .2 

Medical care services ................................................................. 4.038 425.450 426.210 3.2 .2 .1 .3 .3 

Other services ............................................................................ 10.563 298.262 298.779 1.1 .2 .1 .1 .2

Special indexes

All items less food ........................................................................ 84.685 220.894 222.174 4.2 .6 .6 .5 .1

All items less shelter .................................................................... 70.189 215.853 217.445 5.4 .7 .9 .7 .1

All items less medical care ........................................................... 94.645 214.442 215.660 4.2 .6 .7 .5 .1 

Commodities less food ................................................................. 28.583 171.564 173.603 9.4 1.2 1.6 1.1 -.1

Nondurables less food ................................................................. 18.329 227.290 230.472 13.8 1.4 2.0 1.3 .0

Nondurables less food and apparel ............................................. 14.662 290.247 295.146 17.1 1.7 3.2 1.4 -.4 

Nondurables ................................................................................. 33.644 227.661 229.820 9.1 .9 1.6 1.0 .2 

Services less rent of shelter 4 ...................................................... 26.598 254.540 255.643 2.1 .4 .2 .3 .3 

Services less medical care services ............................................ 52.065 247.899 248.528 1.4 .3 .1 .2 .2 

Energy .......................................................................................... 10.946 256.400 263.494 22.5 2.8 3.7 2.3 -1.1 

All items less energy .................................................................... 89.054 218.537 219.041 1.9 .2 .2 .3 .3

All items less food and energy ................................................... 73.739 217.525 217.966 1.5 .2 .1 .2 .3 

Commodities less food and energy commodities ..................... 21.812 147.472 148.045 1.4 .4 .1 .4 .6 

Energy commodities ............................................................... 6.771 330.157 340.895 36.3 3.3 5.6 3.1 -1.9 

Services less energy services .................................................. 51.927 267.077 267.410 1.6 .1 .1 .1 .2 

Purchasing power of the consumer dollar (1982-84=$1.00) ........ -

 $ .451 $ .449 - ----

Purchasing power of the consumer dollar (1967=$1.00) ............. - $ .151 $ .151 - ----

1 Not seasonally adjusted. 2 Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. 3 This index series was calculated using a Laspeyres estimator. All other

item stratum index series were calculated using a geometric means estimator. 4 Indexes on a December 1984=100 base

5 Indexes on a December 1988=100 base. 6 Indexes on a December 2007=100 base. - Data not available.

NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.
Table 5. Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W): Seasonally adjusted U.S. city average, by

expenditure category and commodity and service group

(1982-84=100, unless otherwise noted)

CPI-W

Seasonally adjusted indexes Seasonally adjusted annual rate percent

change for

3 months ended— 6 months

ended—

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

Apr.

2011

May

2011

Aug.

2010

Nov.

2010

Feb.

2011

May

2011 Nov.

2010

May

2011

Expenditure category

All items .............................................................................. 218.702 220.122 221.212 221.529 1.6 2.5 6.6 5.3 2.0 5.9 

Food and beverages ......................................................... 223.029 224.691 225.708 226.540 .6 2.4 4.6 6.4 1.5 5.5

Food ................................................................................ 222.716 224.464 225.485 226.319 .5 2.5 4.9 6.6 1.5 5.8 

Food at home ................................................................ 219.728 222.200 223.322 224.492 -.3 2.8 7.3 9.0 1.3 8.1 

Cereals and bakery products ...................................... 254.751 256.158 256.620 259.020 -2.1 2.9 5.1 6.9 .4 6.0 

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs ..................................... 216.300 218.838 221.143 224.521 4.3 7.7 7.6 16.1 6.0 11.8 

Dairy and related products 1 ....................................... 202.335 205.163 208.951 210.488 2.4 5.0 4.6 17.1 3.7 10.7 

Fruits and vegetables .................................................. 282.396 288.166 284.305 280.367 -9.1 .0 24.2 -2.8 -4.7 9.9

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials ....... 162.352 163.753 165.778 165.582 .2 1.4 1.6 8.2 .8 4.8 

Other food at home ..................................................... 191.912 193.640 194.133 195.230 .1 -.6 3.6 7.1 -.3 5.3 

Sugar and sweets 1 .................................................. 203.373 204.408 202.613 204.161 -4.1 1.4 7.9 1.6 -1.4 4.7 

Fats and oils .............................................................. 209.238 214.678 216.271 216.992 1.9 5.2 11.2 15.7 3.5 13.4 

Other foods ............................................................... 204.938 206.374 207.193 208.363 .7 -1.9 1.6 6.9 -.6 4.2

Other miscellaneous foods 1 2 ................................ 121.605 122.850 123.797 123.673 3.1 -3.5 3.0 7.0 -.2 4.9 

Food away from home 1 ............................................... 228.596 229.293 230.174 230.521 1.5 2.1 1.7 3.4 1.8 2.6 

Other food away from home 1 2 .................................. 162.728 162.850 163.275 163.498 2.5 4.0 3.3 1.9 3.2 2.6 

Alcoholic beverages ........................................................ 226.181 226.591 227.525 228.327 2.5 1.1 .9 3.8 1.8 2.4

Housing ............................................................................. 214.274 214.579 214.943 215.372 .1 .6 2.2 2.1 .3 2.1 

Shelter ............................................................................. 243.891 244.098 244.287 244.622 .5 1.1 1.5 1.2 .8 1.4 

Rent of primary residence 3 .......................................... 249.881 250.220 250.444 250.687 .3 1.7 2.1 1.3 1.0 1.7 

Lodging away from home 2 ........................................... 134.483 135.526 136.073 139.738 2.2 -5.8 -.7 16.6 -1.9 7.6 

Owners’ equivalent rent of residences 3 4 .................... 233.818 233.967 234.102 234.326 .5 1.0 1.4 .9 .8 1.1 

Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence 3 4 ....... 233.819 233.963 234.097 234.320 .5 1.0 1.4 .9 .8 1.1 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ......................... 128.035 126.914 127.654 127.859 4.8 3.3 -1.6 -.5 4.0 -1.1 

Fuels and utilities ............................................................ 216.540 217.690 219.052 220.111 -.1 -.9 7.3 6.8 -.5 7.0 

Household energy ......................................................... 189.762 190.781 192.083 193.096 -1.1 -2.2 7.6 7.2 -1.7 7.4 

Fuel oil and other fuels 1 ............................................. 326.950 341.440 347.371 345.830 -13.4 39.7 66.1 25.2 10.0 44.2 

Energy services 3 ........................................................ 192.035 192.493 193.645 194.818 -.3 -4.5 4.3 5.9 -2.4 5.1 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 .......... 177.057 177.954 178.669 179.223 4.0 4.8 6.1 5.0 4.4 5.5 

Household furnishings and operations ............................ 120.458 120.458 120.697 121.006 -2.4 -1.7 -.2 1.8 -2.1 .8 

Household operations 1 2 ............................................. 153.703 152.965 153.923 154.378 1.0 -2.0 2.4 1.8 -.5 2.1 

Apparel .............................................................................. 118.404 117.667 118.059 119.528 .8 -1.9 .9 3.9 -.6 2.4 

Men’s and boys’ apparel ................................................. 111.786 110.496 110.770 112.512 4.0 -2.9 .8 2.6 .5 1.7 

Women’s and girls’ apparel ............................................. 106.045 104.954 105.750 106.951 -.7 -1.2 1.5 3.5 -.9 2.5

Infants’ and toddlers’ apparel .......................................... 112.572 112.693 112.979 113.863 .7 -5.7 -11.6 4.7 -2.5 -3.8

Footwear ......................................................................... 127.194 127.212 126.695 128.720 .0 -3.6 2.5 4.9 -1.8 3.7 

Transportation ................................................................... 207.843 212.833 216.214 215.500 5.5 10.1 25.2 15.6 7.8 20.3 

Private transportation ...................................................... 204.353 209.373 212.808 212.103 6.0 10.2 25.3 16.1 8.1 20.6 

New and used motor vehicles 2 .................................... 96.700 97.462 98.310 99.292 3.9 -2.0 .9 11.2 .9 5.9 

New vehicles ............................................................... 140.067 141.132 142.121 143.630 1.2 -.9 3.0 10.6 .1 6.7

Used cars and trucks .................................................. 144.792 145.911 147.635 149.198 8.6 -3.2 -.9 12.7 2.5 5.7

Motor fuel ...................................................................... 292.327 308.827 318.736 312.340 11.1 32.5 82.5 30.3 21.3 54.2 

Gasoline (all types) ..................................................... 291.392 307.739 318.025 311.697 11.8 32.2 82.1 30.9 21.5 54.4 

Motor vehicle parts and equipment 1 ............................ 140.763 140.693 141.505 143.257 4.3 3.1 6.2 7.3 3.7 6.7 

Motor vehicle maintenance and repair 1 ....................... 253.524 253.391 253.990 255.042 2.0 2.5 1.5 2.4 2.2 1.9 

Public transportation ....................................................... 266.108 268.996 269.886 269.065 -5.4 9.4 22.2 4.5 1.7 13.0 

Medical care ...................................................................... 397.444 398.099 399.544 400.682 2.1 3.8 3.4 3.3 3.0 3.3 

Medical care commodities 1 ............................................ 312.764 314.190 315.798 316.099 .1 2.4 5.9 4.3 1.2 5.1 

Medical care services ..................................................... 422.224 422.517 423.843 425.316 2.8 4.3 2.6 3.0 3.6 2.8

Professional services .................................................... 337.029 337.449 337.866 337.966 3.8 2.8 2.5 1.1 3.3 1.8

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 5. Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W): Seasonally adjusted U.S. city average, by

expenditure category and commodity and service group-Continued

(1982-84=100, unless otherwise noted)

CPI-W

Seasonally adjusted indexes Seasonally adjusted annual rate percent

change for

3 months ended— 6 months

ended—

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

Apr.

2011

May

2011

Aug.

2010

Nov.

2010

Feb.

2011

May

2011 Nov.

2010

May

2011

Expenditure category

Hospital and related services ........................................ 630.894 632.454 635.892 641.005 4.2 8.6 5.0 6.6 6.4 5.8 

Recreation 2 ...................................................................... 109.742 109.798 109.747 110.076 -.8 -2.1 1.9 1.2 -1.5 1.5

Video and audio 2 ........................................................... 99.020 99.167 99.080 99.080 -2.1 -.4 -.3 .2 -1.3 .0 

Education and communication 2 ....................................... 125.081 125.167 125.225 125.340 1.2 .1 -.6 .8 .7 .1 

Education 2 ..................................................................... 201.628 202.290 202.814 203.768 3.2 2.9 5.4 4.3 3.1 4.8 

Educational books and supplies ................................... 524.817 526.817 528.629 531.355 -1.2 5.8 9.1 5.1 2.2 7.1 

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare ...................... 566.738 568.569 569.997 572.656 3.7 2.6 5.0 4.2 3.2 4.6 

Communication 2 ............................................................ 86.152 86.067 85.989 85.857 -.1 -1.6 -4.2 -1.4 -.8 -2.8 

Information and information processing 2 ..................... 83.822 83.735 83.651 83.513 -.1 -1.6 -4.9 -1.5 -.8 -3.2 

Telephone services 1 2 ............................................... 100.768 100.701 100.643 100.610 .5 -1.0 -4.7 -.6 -.2 -2.7 

Information technology, hardware and services 5 ....... 9.722 9.699 9.674 9.612 -2.2 -3.7 -5.8 -4.4 -2.9 -5.1 

Personal computers and peripheral equipment 6 ..... 71.808 70.542 70.196 69.761 -.8 -5.7 -16.6 -10.9 -3.3 -13.8 

Other goods and services ................................................. 415.238 414.916 414.900 414.012 6.8 -.7 2.7 -1.2 3.0 .8

Tobacco and smoking products 1 ................................... 834.343 835.368 832.003 830.137 12.8 -.9 4.3 -2.0 5.7 1.1 

Personal care .................................................................. 205.822 205.424 205.891 205.463 3.5 -.5 1.8 -.7 1.5 .6 

Personal care products 1 .............................................. 161.974 161.667 162.088 160.083 2.7 -1.4 2.9 -4.6 .6 -.9 

Personal care services 1 ............................................... 230.418 230.252 230.597 230.709 .6 -1.3 1.0 .5 -.4 .7 

Miscellaneous personal services .................................. 360.922 360.899 362.235 363.012 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.3 2.5 2.5 

Commodity and service group

Commodities ....................................................................... 184.454 186.856 188.512 188.580 2.3 4.3 12.7 9.3 3.3 11.0 

Food and beverages ......................................................... 223.029 224.691 225.708 226.540 .6 2.4 4.6 6.4 1.5 5.5

Commodities less food and beverages ............................. 163.087 165.737 167.620 167.363 3.3 5.5 17.8 10.9 4.4 14.3 

Nondurables less food and beverages ........................... 215.122 219.564 222.388 222.447 4.7 12.1 28.1 14.3 8.3 21.0 

Apparel .......................................................................... 118.404 117.667 118.059 119.528 .8 -1.9 .9 3.9 -.6 2.4 

Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel .......... 278.583 287.991 292.312 290.849 6.4 15.2 34.7 18.8 10.7 26.5 

Durables .......................................................................... 112.365 112.981 113.705 114.560 2.2 -4.3 1.5 8.0 -1.1 4.7 

Services .............................................................................. 258.975 259.346 259.786 260.366 1.0 1.1 2.1 2.2 1.0 2.1 

Rent of shelter 4 ................................................................ 235.112 235.189 235.375 235.649 .3 1.8 1.3 .9 1.1 1.1 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ............................. 128.035 126.914 127.654 127.859 4.8 3.3 -1.6 -.5 4.0 -1.1 

Energy services 3 .............................................................. 192.035 192.493 193.645 194.818 -.3 -4.5 4.3 5.9 -2.4 5.1 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 .............. 177.057 177.954 178.669 179.223 4.0 4.8 6.1 5.0 4.4 5.5 

Household operations 1 2 ................................................. 153.703 152.965 153.923 154.378 1.0 -2.0 2.4 1.8 -.5 2.1 

Transportation services ..................................................... 265.678 266.766 267.612 268.275 1.4 3.9 4.1 4.0 2.6 4.0 

Medical care services ....................................................... 422.224 422.517 423.843 425.316 2.8 4.3 2.6 3.0 3.6 2.8 

Other services ................................................................... 297.790 298.163 298.388 299.096 1.7 .1 .9 1.8 .9 1.3 

Special indexes

All items less food ............................................................... 217.800 219.161 220.262 220.488 1.8 2.5 6.9 5.0 2.1 6.0 

All items less shelter ........................................................... 211.871 213.745 215.173 215.486 2.1 3.0 8.8 7.0 2.6 7.9 

All items less medical care .................................................. 211.434 212.864 213.934 214.223 1.6 2.4 6.8 5.4 2.0 6.1 

Commodities less food ........................................................ 165.304 167.903 169.766 169.536 3.3 5.3 17.1 10.6 4.3 13.8 

Nondurables less food ........................................................ 215.973 220.224 223.009 223.118 4.5 11.4 26.3 13.9 7.9 20.0 

Nondurables less food and apparel .................................... 272.891 281.517 285.598 284.399 6.0 14.1 31.9 18.0 10.0 24.7

Nondurables ........................................................................ 219.926 223.418 225.644 226.125 2.0 7.2 16.0 11.8 4.6 13.9 

Services less rent of shelter 4 ............................................. 254.399 254.803 255.550 256.332 1.2 1.2 2.9 3.1 1.2 3.0 

Services less medical care services ................................... 247.660 247.897 248.319 248.874 .6 1.4 1.9 2.0 1.0 1.9 

Energy ................................................................................. 239.431 248.232 253.853 251.126 5.6 16.4 47.6 21.0 10.8 33.7 

All items less energy ........................................................... 217.170 217.702 218.248 218.935 1.1 .9 2.3 3.3 1.0 2.8 

All items less food and energy .......................................... 216.431 216.717 217.167 217.826 1.3 .6 1.7 2.6 .9 2.2 

Commodities less food and energy commodities ........... 146.034 146.215 146.774 147.607 1.7 -1.6 1.3 4.4 .1 2.9 

Energy commodities ..................................................... 295.209 311.719 321.527 315.284 9.9 32.8 81.7 30.1 20.8 53.8

Services less energy services ......................................... 266.270 266.630 266.988 267.500 1.1 1.5 1.9 1.9 1.3 1.9 

1 Not seasonally adjusted. 2 Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. 3 This index series was calculated using a Laspeyres estimator. All other

item stratum index series were calculated using a geometric means

estimator.

4 Indexes on a December 1984=100 base 5 Indexes on a December 1988=100 base. 6 Indexes on a December 2007=100 base.

NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.
Table 6. Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W): Selected areas, all items index 

(1982-84=100, unless otherwise noted)

CPI-W

All items 

Pricing

schedule 1

Indexes Percent change to

May2011 from—

Percent change to

Apr.2011 from—

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

Apr.

2011

May

2011

May

2010

Mar.

2011

Apr.

2011

Apr.

2010

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

U.S. city average ............................................ M 217.535 220.024 221.743 222.954 4.1 1.3 0.5 3.6 1.9 0.8 

Region and area size2

Northeast urban .............................................. M 235.109 237.377 238.756 240.209 3.7 1.2 .6 3.3 1.6 .6 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 235.230 237.239 238.390 239.852 3.5 1.1 .6 3.0 1.3 .5 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 142.691 144.395 145.520 146.390 4.2 1.4 .6 3.8 2.0 .8 

Midwest urban ................................................ M 206.981 209.094 210.991 212.572 4.4 1.7 .7 3.7 1.9 .9 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 206.516 208.740 210.508 212.272 4.4 1.7 .8 3.7 1.9 .8 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 135.841 137.189 138.552 139.532 4.3 1.7 .7 3.8 2.0 1.0 

Size D - Nonmetropolitan (less than

50,000) ............................................... M 206.306 208.108 209.987 211.052 4.5 1.4 .5 3.8 1.8 .9 

South urban .................................................... M 212.416 215.272 217.234 218.437 4.6 1.5 .6 3.9 2.3 .9 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 214.129 216.680 218.615 219.971 4.2 1.5 .6 3.6 2.1 .9 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 135.919 137.789 138.962 139.744 4.6 1.4 .6 3.9 2.2 .9 

Size D - Nonmetropolitan (less than

50,000) ............................................... M 219.352 223.059 225.869 226.539 5.5 1.6 .3 5.1 3.0 1.3 

West urban ..................................................... M 219.368 221.830 223.268 223.944 3.7 1.0 .3 3.4 1.8 .6 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 221.848 224.576 225.833 226.399 3.6 .8 .3 3.5 1.8 .6 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 135.845 137.331 138.362 138.816 3.8 1.1 .3 3.3 1.9 .8 

Size classes

A 4 .............................................................. M 201.033 203.220 204.607 205.758 3.9 1.2 .6 3.4 1.8 .7 

B/C 3 ........................................................... M 136.808 138.471 139.645 140.412 4.3 1.4 .5 3.8 2.1 .8 

D ................................................................. M 213.495 215.928 218.220 219.159 4.8 1.5 .4 4.2 2.2 1.1 

Selected local areas5

Chicago-Gary-Kenosha, IL-IN-WI ................... M 210.106 212.256 213.633 215.358 4.2 1.5 .8 3.5 1.7 .6 

Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County, CA ... M 222.814 225.770 227.051 226.842 3.7 .5 -.1 3.9 1.9 .6 

New York-Northern N.J.-Long Island,

NY-NJ-CT-PA ......................................... M 239.750 241.667 242.697 244.316 3.5 1.1 .7 2.9 1.2 .4 

Boston-Brockton-Nashua, MA-NH-ME-CT ..... 1 -

 244.324 - 246.825 3.3 1.0 ----

Cleveland-Akron, OH ...................................... 1 - 201.146 - 204.105 4.4 1.5 ----

Dallas-Fort Worth, TX ..................................... 1 - 211.227 - 214.038 4.3 1.3 ----

Washington-Baltimore, DC-MD-VA-WV 6 ...... 1 - 146.572 - 148.638 4.6 1.4 ----

Atlanta, GA ..................................................... 2 204.611 - 208.356 ---- 2.6 1.8 -

Detroit-Ann Arbor-Flint, MI .............................. 2 202.849 - 208.217 ---- 3.6 2.6 -

Houston-Galveston-Brazoria, TX .................... 2 195.677 - 200.997 ---- 4.4 2.7 -

Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL ............................. 2 225.346 - 229.675 ---- 4.1 1.9 -

Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic City,

PA-NJ-DE-MD ........................................ 2 231.306 - 233.441 ---- 2.7 .9 -

San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, CA ........... 2 226.638 - 231.600 ---- 3.5 2.2 -

Seattle-Tacoma-Bremerton, WA .................... 2 225.790 - 228.313 ---- 2.7 1.1 -

1 Foods, fuels, and several other items priced every month in all areas;

 most other goods and services priced as indicated:

 M - Every month.

 1 - January, March, May, July, September, and November.

 2 - February, April, June, August, October, and December. 2 Regions defined as the four Census regions. See technical notes. 3 Indexes on a December 1996=100 base. 4 Indexes on a December 1986=100 base. 5 In addition, the following metropolitan areas are published semiannually

and appear in Tables 34 and 39 of the January and July issues of the CPI

Detailed Report: Anchorage, AK; Cincinnati-Hamilton, OH-KY-IN;

Denver-Boulder-Greeley, CO; Honolulu, HI; Kansas City, MO-KS;

Milwaukee-Racine, WI; Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN-WI; Phoenix-Mesa, AZ;

Pittsburgh, PA; Portland-Salem, OR-WA; St. Louis, MO-IL; San Diego, CA;

Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL. 6 Indexes on a November 1996=100 base. - Data not available.

NOTE: Local area indexes are byproducts of the national CPI program. 

Each local index has a smaller sample size than the national index and is,

therefore, subject to substantially more sampling and other measurement

error. As a result, local area indexes show greater volatility than the national

index, although their long-term trends are similar. Therefore, the Bureau of

Labor Statistics strongly urges users to consider adopting the national

average CPI for use in their escalator clauses. 

NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.
Table 7. Chained Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (C-CPI-U): U.S. city average, by expenditure

category and commodity and service group

(December 1999=100, unless otherwise noted)

C-CPI-U Relative

importance,

2007-2008

 Unadjusted

 indexes

 Unadjusted

 percent change to

 May 2011 from—

 Apr.

 2011

 May

 2011

 May

 2010

 Apr.

 2011

Expenditure category

All items ..................................................................................... 100.000 R129.408 R129.943 3.3 0.4 

Food and beverages ................................................................ 14.519 131.682 132.139 3.3 .3 

Food ....................................................................................... 13.493 131.848 132.312 3.4 .4 

Food at home ....................................................................... 7.780 127.631 128.239 4.3 .5 

Food away from home .......................................................... 5.712 137.614 137.864 2.2 .2 

Alcoholic beverages ............................................................... 1.027 130.206 130.585 1.8 .3 

Housing ................................................................................... 42.074 R129.071 R129.406 1.0 .3 

Shelter .................................................................................... 32.119 132.241 132.401 1.0 .1 

Fuels and utilities ................................................................... 5.231 R159.248 R161.135 3.0 1.2 

Household furnishings and operations ................................... 4.724 92.568 92.735 -1.1 .2 

Apparel ..................................................................................... 3.772 91.583 91.536 .5 -.1 

Transportation .......................................................................... 17.199 145.823 147.954 12.8 1.5 

Private transportation ............................................................. 16.013 146.817 149.155 13.3 1.6 

Public transportation ............................................................... 1.186 133.188 132.800 7.1 -.3 

Medical care ............................................................................. 6.294 154.243 154.437 2.8 .1 

Medical care commodities ...................................................... 1.570 136.565 136.610 2.8 .0 

Medical care services ............................................................. 4.723 160.719 160.971 2.8 .2 

Recreation ................................................................................ 6.625 102.570 102.724 -.9 .2 

Education and communication ................................................. 6.288 112.667 112.573 .6 -.1 

Education ............................................................................... 2.804 188.494 188.805 3.8 .2 

Communication ...................................................................... 3.484 71.688 71.485 -2.0 -.3 

Other goods and services ........................................................ 3.229 142.309 142.007 2.5 -.2 

Commodity and service group

Services ..................................................................................... 59.383 R137.017 R137.336 1.5 .2 

Commodities .............................................................................. 40.617 120.357 121.173 5.9 .7 

Durables ................................................................................... 10.376 81.185 81.572 .6 .5 

Nondurables ............................................................................... 30.241 140.911 141.964 7.8 .7 

All items less food and energy ................................................. 76.901 121.368 121.566 1.3 .2 

Energy ....................................................................................... 9.606 R214.257 R219.671 20.3 2.5 

R Revised.

Indexes for 2011 are initial estimates. Indexes for 2010 are interim adjustments.

NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.