Transmission of material in this release is embargoed until USDL-11-0513

8:30 a.m. (EDT) Friday, April 15, 2011

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

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

CONSUMER PRICE INDEX – MARCH 2011 

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.5 percent in March on a 

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

the all items index increased 2.7 percent before seasonal adjustment. 

Gasoline and food prices continued to rise and together accounted for almost three quarters of the 

seasonally adjusted all items increase in March. The gasoline index posted its ninth consecutive increase 

and has now risen 14.4 percent over the last three months. The household energy index rose as well, 

with advances in the fuel oil and electricity indexes more than offsetting a decline in the index for 

natural gas. The food at home index continued to accelerate in March, rising 1.1 percent as all six major 

grocery store food groups increased.

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.1 percent in March, a smaller increase than in the 

previous two months. The index for shelter rose slightly, as did the index for medical care. Several 

transportation indexes posted significant increases, including new vehicles, used cars and trucks, and 

airline fares. In contrast, the indexes for apparel and for household furnishings and operations both 

declined in March.

The all items index rose 2.7 percent in the last 12 months, the largest increase since December 2009. 

The energy index has now risen 15.5 percent over the last 12 months, with the gasoline index up 27.5 

percent. The food index has risen 2.9 percent with the food at home index up 3.6 percent. The index for 

all items less food and energy has increased 1.2 percent with the shelter index up 0.9 percent.

-0.2

-0.1

0.0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

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

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

Percent change

 0.0 0.0

 -0.1

 -0.2

 0.3

 0.2 0.2 0.2

 0.1

 0.4 0.4

 0.5 0.5
- 2 -

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

Percent change

All items All items less food and energy

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

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

Consumer Price Index Data for March 2011 

Food

The food index rose 0.8 percent in March after rising 0.6 percent in February. The food at home index 

increased 1.1 percent in March and has risen 2.7 percent over the past three months. All six major 

grocery store food groups increased in March, with increases ranging from 0.5 percent for cereals and 

bakery products to 1.9 percent for fruits and vegetables. Within the fruits and vegetables component, the 

fresh vegetables index rose 4.7 percent in March after a 6.7 percent increase in February, as indexes for 

potatoes, lettuce, and tomatoes all posted significant increases. The index for dairy and related products 

increased 1.3 percent, while the index for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs rose 1.1 percent. The index for 

nonalcoholic beverages increased 0.8 percent as the coffee index climbed 3.5 percent. Over the past 12 

months, the index for food at home has risen 3.6 percent with the index for meats, poultry, fish and eggs 

up 7.9 percent. The index for food away from home increased 0.3 percent in March, its largest increase 

since September, and has risen 1.9 percent over the past 12 months.

Energy

The energy index rose 3.5 percent in March after increasing 3.4 percent in February. It has increased for 

nine months in a row, rising 23.7 percent since June 2010. The gasoline index rose 5.6 percent in March 

after a 4.7 percent increase in February. (Before seasonal adjustment, gasoline prices rose 11.7 percent 

in March.) The index for household energy advanced 0.6 percent in March after a 1.3 percent increase in 

February. The fuel oil index rose 6.2 percent and has increased 37.2 percent in the last six months. The 

index for electricity increased 0.7 percent in March, while the index for natural gas declined 1.4 percent. 

The household energy index has risen 1.2 percent over the last 12 months, with the fuel oil index up 34.0 

percent and the electricity index up 1.0 percent but the index for natural gas down 5.5 percent. 

All items less food and energy 

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.1 percent in March after increasing 0.2 percent in 

each of the previous two months. The shelter index increased 0.1 percent for the sixth month in a row, 

with rent and owners’ equivalent rent both increasing 0.1 percent in March, as they did in February.

Several transportation indexes increased in March; the new vehicles index rose 0.7 percent after a 1.0 

percent increase in February, and the index for used cars and trucks rose 0.8 percent. The airline fares 

index also continued to rise, increasing 1.9 percent. The medical care index increased 0.2 percent in 

March after a 0.4 percent increase in February, with the medical care commodities index rising 0.5 

percent and the index for medical care services advancing 0.1 percent. The recreation index was 

unchanged in March after a 0.3 percent increase in February, while several indexes posted declines in 

March. The apparel index fell 0.5 percent after a 0.9 percent decrease in February. The index for 

household furnishings and operations turned down in March, falling 0.1 percent after rising by that 

amount in February. Similarly, the index for personal care fell 0.2 percent in March after rising in each 

of the previous two months. 

The index for all items less food and energy increased 1.2 percent over the last 12 months. This change 

is above the low of 0.6 percent in October, but is still below the 1.9 percent average over the last 10 

years. The indexes for shelter, new vehicles, used cars and trucks, airline fares, and medical care are 

among those that have increased over the past year; the indexes for apparel, household furnishings and 

operations, and recreation have declined.
- 4 -

Not seasonally adjusted CPI measures 

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 2.7 percent over the last 12 

months to an index level of 223.467 (1982-84=100). For the month, the index increased 1.0 percent prior 

to seasonal adjustment. 

The Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) increased 3.0 

percent over the last 12 months to an index level of 220.024 (1982-84=100). For the month, the index 

rose 1.1 percent prior to seasonal adjustment. 

The Chained Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (C-CPI-U) increased 2.5 percent over the 

last 12 months. For the month, the index increased 0.9 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 April 2011 is scheduled to be released on Friday, May 13, 2011, at 

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

Corrections to CPI data for January and February 2011 

Incorrect prices were used in the calculation of the intracity transportation index, affecting the data for 

January and February 2011. The January and February news releases have been reissued with corrected 

data. The corrections affect indexes in Table 7 of the release and are noted in the footnotes of that table 

in this release. 

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 
- 6 -

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. 

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. 
- 7 -

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

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. 
- 8 -

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 

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

Mar. 2011 from—

Seasonally adjusted

percent change from—

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

Mar.

2010

Feb.

2011

Dec. to

Jan.

Jan. to

Feb.

Feb. to

Mar.

Expenditure category

All items ........................................................................................ 100.000 221.309 223.467 2.7 1.0 0.4 0.5 0.5 

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

 662.943 669.409 - ----

Food and beverages .................................................................. 14.792 224.039 225.479 2.8 .6 .5 .5 .7 

Food ......................................................................................... 13.742 223.799 225.350 2.9 .7 .5 .6 .8 

Food at home ......................................................................... 7.816 221.241 223.430 3.6 1.0 .7 .8 1.1 

Cereals and bakery products ............................................... 1.090 254.238 255.482 1.8 .5 .8 .0 .5 

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs .............................................. 1.813 216.175 218.808 7.9 1.2 .9 1.2 1.1 

Dairy and related products 1 ................................................ .839 203.510 206.161 3.7 1.3 .1 .6 1.3 

Fruits and vegetables ........................................................... 1.152 286.766 290.279 3.5 1.2 1.3 2.2 1.9 

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials ................ .926 163.734 165.038 1.5 .8 1.5 .2 .8 

Other food at home .............................................................. 1.996 193.055 194.747 2.0 .9 .2 .6 1.0 

Sugar and sweets 1 ............................................................ .297 204.168 205.505 2.8 .7 -.2 .8 .7 

Fats and oils ....................................................................... .232 210.508 214.352 7.9 1.8 2.1 .9 2.8 

Other foods ........................................................................ 1.466 205.174 206.743 .9 .8 -.1 .5 .8 

Other miscellaneous foods 1 2 ......................................... .432 121.438 122.665 .3 1.0 -1.2 .4 1.0 

Food away from home 1 ......................................................... 5.926 228.606 229.282 1.9 .3 .2 .2 .3 

Other food away from home 1 2 ........................................... .329 161.836 161.886 2.0 .0 .0 .7 .0 

Alcoholic beverages ................................................................. 1.051 225.749 225.693 1.4 .0 .2 .2 .0 

Housing ...................................................................................... 41.460 217.259 217.707 .8 .2 .1 .3 .1 

Shelter ...................................................................................... 31.955 249.886 250.310 .9 .2 .1 .1 .1 

Rent of primary residence 3 ................................................... 5.925 251.829 252.145 1.2 .1 .2 .1 .1 

Lodging away from home 2 .................................................... .776 131.572 136.486 2.6 3.7 -1.0 .0 .8 

Owners’ equivalent rent of residences 3 4 .............................. 24.905 258.073 258.263 .8 .1 .1 .1 .1 

Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence 3 4 ................ 23.310 258.060 258.253 .8 .1 .1 .1 .1 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ................................... .349 126.529 125.863 1.2 -.5 .0 .3 -.5 

Fuels and utilities ..................................................................... 5.096 215.587 216.672 2.1 .5 -.1 1.2 .6

Household energy .................................................................. 4.000 189.006 190.071 1.2 .6 -.2 1.3 .6 

Fuel oil and other fuels 1 ...................................................... .309 326.919 341.884 23.9 4.6 5.4 4.1 4.6 

Energy services 3 ................................................................. 3.691 189.837 190.213 -.6 .2 -.6 1.1 .2 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 ................... 1.095 177.194 177.694 5.4 .3 .3 .8 .5 

Household furnishings and operations ..................................... 4.409 124.576 124.735 -1.6 .1 .1 .1 -.1 

Household operations 1 2 ....................................................... .772 151.358 150.541 .4 -.5 .4 .1 -.5 

Apparel ....................................................................................... 3.601 118.369 121.286 -.6 2.5 1.0 -.9 -.5 

Men’s and boys’ apparel .......................................................... .882 110.962 112.337 -.7 1.2 1.0 -.9 -.7 

Women’s and girls’ apparel ...................................................... 1.520 105.076 109.544 -2.0 4.3 1.5 -1.2 -.9 

Infants’ and toddlers’ apparel ................................................... .192 110.101 111.547 -3.8 1.3 -1.9 -1.6 .1 

Footwear .................................................................................. .700 126.830 128.518 .0 1.3 .8 -.4 -.2

Transportation ............................................................................ 17.308 203.037 211.014 9.8 3.9 1.3 1.9 2.2 

Private transportation ............................................................... 16.082 198.073 206.165 9.8 4.1 1.3 1.9 2.3

New and used motor vehicles 2 ............................................. 6.333 97.633 98.275 1.3 .7 -.2 .5 .8 

New vehicles ........................................................................ 3.513 140.158 140.860 1.6 .5 -.1 1.0 .7 

Used cars and trucks ........................................................... 2.055 142.937 144.072 2.3 .8 -.3 .1 .8 

Motor fuel ............................................................................... 5.079 271.843 303.565 27.7 11.7 3.9 4.8 5.6 

Gasoline (all types) .............................................................. 4.865 270.822 302.574 27.5 11.7 3.5 4.7 5.6 

Motor vehicle parts and equipment 1 ..................................... .408 140.912 140.686 3.8 -.2 .9 .3 -.2 

Motor vehicle maintenance and repair 1 ................................ 1.172 250.851 250.820 1.7 .0 .2 .0 .0 

Public transportation ................................................................ 1.227 265.327 270.366 10.5 1.9 1.7 1.9 1.3

Medical care ............................................................................... 6.627 397.065 397.726 2.7 .2 .1 .4 .2

Medical care commodities 1 ..................................................... 1.633 321.186 322.691 2.8 .5 .5 .7 .5 

Medical care services ............................................................... 4.994 420.567 420.852 2.7 .1 -.1 .4 .1 

Professional services ............................................................. 2.830 334.296 334.671 2.6 .1 .0 .5 .2 

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

Mar. 2011 from—

Seasonally adjusted

percent change from—

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

Mar.

2010

Feb.

2011

Dec. to

Jan.

Jan. to

Feb.

Feb. to

Mar.

Expenditure category

Hospital and related services ................................................. 1.703 633.413 634.387 5.1 0.2 -0.1 0.5 0.2 

Recreation 2 ............................................................................... 6.293 113.183 113.261 -.1 .1 .2 .3 .0 

Video and audio 2 .................................................................... 1.816 98.268 98.719 -1.2 .5 .0 .5 .1 

Education and communication 2 ................................................ 6.421 130.692 130.682 1.1 .0 .2 .2 .1 

Education 2 .............................................................................. 3.107 204.153 204.251 4.0 .0 .6 .4 .3 

Educational books and supplies ............................................. .204 520.778 522.903 4.1 .4 1.2 -.2 .6 

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare ................................ 2.903 586.782 586.914 3.9 .0 .5 .4 .3 

Communication 2 ..................................................................... 3.313 83.779 83.730 -1.4 -.1 -.2 .0 -.1 

Information and information processing 2 .............................. 3.138 80.417 80.364 -1.7 -.1 -.4 .0 -.1 

Telephone services 1 2 ......................................................... 2.334 101.316 101.258 -1.0 -.1 -.3 -.1 -.1 

Information technology, hardware and services 5 ................ .804 9.204 9.196 -3.7 -.1 -.8 .2 -.3 

Personal computers and peripheral equipment 6 ............... .228 72.709 72.073 -8.1 -.9 -1.7 -.5 -1.6 

Other goods and services .......................................................... 3.497 385.397 385.637 1.8 .1 .1 .1 -.1 

Tobacco and smoking products 1 ............................................ .906 829.535 830.693 5.5 .1 .0 .2 .1 

Personal care ........................................................................... 2.591 207.685 207.758 .6 .0 .1 .1 -.2 

Personal care products 1 ....................................................... .671 161.325 160.981 -.9 -.2 .2 .3 -.2 

Personal care services 1 ........................................................ .638 230.177 230.034 .7 -.1 -.1 .1 -.1 

Miscellaneous personal services ........................................... 1.055 358.521 359.096 2.0 .2 .1 .2 .1 

Commodity and service group

Commodities ................................................................................ 40.012 178.874 182.728 4.5 2.2 .9 1.0 1.2 

Food and beverages .................................................................. 14.792 224.039 225.479 2.8 .6 .5 .5 .7 

Commodities less food and beverages ...................................... 25.219 154.657 159.351 5.6 3.0 1.1 1.2 1.4 

Nondurables less food and beverages ..................................... 15.474 198.885 208.134 9.2 4.7 1.8 1.6 1.8 

Apparel ................................................................................... 3.601 118.369 121.286 -.6 2.5 1.0 -.9 -.5 

Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel .................... 11.873 253.570 266.993 12.3 5.3 2.0 2.1 2.9 

Durables ................................................................................... 9.745 111.237 111.707 .0 .4 -.1 .4 .4

Services ....................................................................................... 59.988 263.480 263.956 1.4 .2 .1 .3 .2 

Rent of shelter 4 ......................................................................... 31.607 260.373 260.834 .9 .2 -.1 .0 .0 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ....................................... .349 126.529 125.863 1.2 -.5 .0 .3 -.5 

Energy services 3 ....................................................................... 3.691 189.837 190.213 -.6 .2 -.6 1.1 .2 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 ....................... 1.095 177.194 177.694 5.4 .3 .3 .8 .5 

Household operations 1 2 ........................................................... .772 151.358 150.541 .4 -.5 .4 .1 -.5 

Transportation services .............................................................. 6.140 265.354 266.754 3.7 .5 .6 .5 .5 

Medical care services ................................................................. 4.994 420.567 420.852 2.7 .1 -.1 .4 .1 

Other services ............................................................................ 11.340 311.975 312.310 1.6 .1 .2 .2 .1

Special indexes

All items less food ........................................................................ 86.258 220.937 223.192 2.7 1.0 .4 .5 .5 

All items less shelter .................................................................... 68.045 212.633 215.505 3.5 1.4 .5 .7 .8

All items less medical care ........................................................... 93.373 212.709 214.907 2.7 1.0 .4 .6 .6 

Commodities less food ................................................................. 26.270 157.221 161.804 5.4 2.9 1.1 1.2 1.4

Nondurables less food ................................................................. 16.525 200.543 209.282 8.7 4.4 1.6 1.5 1.7

Nondurables less food and apparel ............................................. 12.923 249.895 262.068 11.4 4.9 1.9 2.0 2.7 

Nondurables ................................................................................. 30.266 212.056 217.791 6.0 2.7 1.1 1.1 1.4 

Services less rent of shelter 4 ...................................................... 28.382 287.547 288.077 2.0 .2 .1 .4 .2 

Services less medical care services ............................................ 54.994 251.354 251.834 1.3 .2 .0 .2 .1 

Energy .......................................................................................... 9.079 226.860 242.516 15.5 6.9 2.1 3.4 3.5 

All items less energy .................................................................... 90.921 222.506 223.315 1.4 .4 .2 .3 .2

All items less food and energy ................................................... 77.179 223.011 223.690 1.2 .3 .2 .2 .1 

Commodities less food and energy commodities ..................... 20.882 143.712 144.632 .2 .6 .2 .2 .1 

Energy commodities ............................................................... 5.388 276.485 307.589 27.5 11.2 4.0 4.8 5.5 

Services less energy services .................................................. 56.297 270.982 271.468 1.6 .2 .1 .2 .2 

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

 $ .452 $ .447 - ----

Purchasing power of the consumer dollar (1967=$1.00) ............. - $ .151 $ .149 - ----

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—

Dec.

2010

Jan.

2011

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

June

2010

Sep.

2010

Dec.

2010

Mar.

2011 Sep.

2010

Mar.

2011

Expenditure category

All items .............................................................................. 220.186 221.062 222.270 223.490 -1.4 2.9 3.3 6.1 0.8 4.7 

Food and beverages ......................................................... 221.524 222.602 223.779 225.345 .8 1.8 1.5 7.1 1.3 4.3

Food ................................................................................ 221.190 222.314 223.544 225.228 .8 1.8 1.6 7.5 1.3 4.5 

Food at home ................................................................ 217.375 218.983 220.800 223.219 .3 1.4 2.0 11.2 .8 6.5

Cereals and bakery products ...................................... 251.870 253.956 254.037 255.395 -2.0 1.8 1.9 5.7 -.1 3.8 

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs ..................................... 211.984 213.942 216.444 218.803 11.9 3.7 2.9 13.5 7.7 8.1 

Dairy and related products 1 ....................................... 202.056 202.349 203.510 206.161 -1.7 2.2 6.2 8.4 .2 7.3 

Fruits and vegetables .................................................. 275.074 278.517 284.574 289.890 -9.5 -2.7 5.4 23.3 -6.1 14.0

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials ....... 160.310 162.636 162.958 164.340 -2.4 1.4 -3.1 10.4 -.5 3.5 

Other food at home ..................................................... 191.289 191.580 192.706 194.602 -.2 1.2 -.1 7.1 .5 3.4 

Sugar and sweets 1 .................................................. 203.098 202.648 204.168 205.505 -.4 5.6 1.2 4.8 2.6 3.0 

Fats and oils .............................................................. 202.623 206.878 208.833 214.596 2.3 2.0 3.4 25.8 2.2 14.1 

Other foods ............................................................... 204.090 203.922 204.936 206.493 -.5 .3 -.9 4.8 -.1 1.9

Other miscellaneous foods 1 2 ................................ 122.419 120.930 121.438 122.665 -2.5 1.8 1.0 .8 -.3 .9 

Food away from home 1 ............................................... 227.722 228.181 228.606 229.282 1.4 2.3 1.1 2.8 1.9 2.0 

Other food away from home 1 2 .................................. 160.681 160.643 161.836 161.886 1.6 2.0 1.5 3.0 1.8 2.3 

Alcoholic beverages ........................................................ 224.494 224.951 225.415 225.409 1.1 2.2 .8 1.6 1.6 1.2

Housing ............................................................................. 216.850 216.983 217.561 217.852 -.3 .4 1.1 1.9 .1 1.5 

Shelter ............................................................................. 249.321 249.523 249.867 250.102 .8 .4 1.2 1.3 .6 1.2 

Rent of primary residence 3 .......................................... 250.844 251.249 251.607 251.930 .3 .8 2.0 1.7 .6 1.9 

Lodging away from home 2 ........................................... 134.258 132.892 132.915 133.920 20.6 -4.7 -2.8 -1.0 7.2 -1.9 

Owners’ equivalent rent of residences 3 4 .................... 257.402 257.659 258.016 258.204 .2 .5 1.1 1.3 .4 1.2 

Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence 3 4 ....... 257.394 257.648 258.003 258.196 .2 .5 1.1 1.3 .4 1.2 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ......................... 126.194 126.192 126.529 125.863 2.8 4.3 -1.4 -1.0 3.6 -1.2 

Fuels and utilities ............................................................ 215.738 215.607 218.231 219.480 -4.1 2.3 3.2 7.1 -1.0 5.2 

Household energy ......................................................... 189.867 189.553 192.096 193.211 -6.4 1.6 2.7 7.2 -2.5 5.0

Fuel oil and other fuels 1 ............................................. 298.037 314.130 326.919 341.884 -14.4 .4 58.0 73.2 -7.3 65.4 

Energy services 3 ........................................................ 192.310 191.114 193.224 193.654 -5.8 1.7 -.6 2.8 -2.1 1.1 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 .......... 174.824 175.400 176.725 177.684 5.1 4.8 5.1 6.7 5.0 5.9 

Household furnishings and operations ............................ 124.307 124.382 124.493 124.375 -3.2 -1.8 -1.5 .2 -2.5 -.6 

Household operations 1 2 ............................................. 150.648 151.189 151.358 150.541 1.5 -.6 .8 -.3 .5 .3 

Apparel .............................................................................. 119.208 120.456 119.384 118.770 .8 -1.4 -.4 -1.5 -.3 -.9 

Men’s and boys’ apparel ................................................. 111.304 112.414 111.408 110.648 6.9 -3.6 -3.3 -2.3 1.5 -2.8

Women’s and girls’ apparel ............................................. 106.330 107.957 106.622 105.708 -3.7 -2.1 .4 -2.3 -2.9 -1.0

Infants’ and toddlers’ apparel .......................................... 113.587 111.436 109.634 109.796 1.5 -1.6 -1.6 -12.7 -.1 -7.3 

Footwear ......................................................................... 127.149 128.166 127.691 127.476 2.2 .1 -3.3 1.0 1.2 -1.2 

Transportation ................................................................... 200.956 203.622 207.433 212.001 -10.3 14.0 15.1 23.9 1.1 19.4 

Private transportation ...................................................... 196.183 198.730 202.446 207.045 -11.6 15.3 15.1 24.1 1.0 19.5 

New and used motor vehicles 2 .................................... 97.173 97.000 97.490 98.249 .7 1.8 -1.8 4.5 1.2 1.3 

New vehicles ............................................................... 137.923 137.752 139.065 140.078 .3 1.7 -1.7 6.4 1.0 2.3

Used cars and trucks .................................................. 144.058 143.664 143.847 144.958 4.9 4.3 -2.3 2.5 4.6 .1 

Motor fuel ...................................................................... 267.320 277.665 291.093 307.358 -37.0 54.0 57.0 74.8 -1.5 65.6 

Gasoline (all types) ..................................................... 267.635 277.129 290.027 306.128 -37.9 55.6 59.5 71.2 -1.7 65.2 

Motor vehicle parts and equipment 1 ............................ 139.223 140.487 140.912 140.686 3.5 3.3 4.2 4.3 3.4 4.2 

Motor vehicle maintenance and repair 1 ....................... 250.134 250.726 250.851 250.820 1.6 2.6 1.5 1.1 2.1 1.3 

Public transportation ....................................................... 260.181 264.616 269.625 273.100 8.3 -1.7 15.2 21.4 3.2 18.2 

Medical care ...................................................................... 393.537 393.843 395.615 396.364 2.4 3.2 2.3 2.9 2.8 2.6 

Medical care commodities 1 ............................................ 317.199 318.929 321.186 322.691 1.1 1.2 1.8 7.1 1.1 4.4 

Medical care services ..................................................... 417.315 417.004 418.529 418.937 2.9 3.9 2.5 1.6 3.4 2.0

Professional services .................................................... 332.107 331.974 333.483 333.993 2.5 3.7 1.9 2.3 3.1 2.1

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—

Dec.

2010

Jan.

2011

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

June

2010

Sep.

2010

Dec.

2010

Mar.

2011 Sep.

2010

Mar.

2011

Expenditure category

Hospital and related services ........................................ 625.757 624.854 628.137 629.315 5.9 6.5 5.7 2.3 6.2 4.0 

Recreation 2 ...................................................................... 112.727 112.939 113.242 113.228 1.0 -1.9 -1.2 1.8 -.4 .3 

Video and audio 2 ........................................................... 97.871 97.904 98.395 98.466 -1.3 -3.1 -2.8 2.5 -2.2 -.2 

Education and communication 2 ....................................... 130.328 130.548 130.759 130.898 1.7 1.1 .0 1.8 1.4 .9 

Education 2 ..................................................................... 202.558 203.738 204.456 205.133 4.5 2.2 4.0 5.2 3.4 4.6 

Educational books and supplies ................................... 514.054 520.236 519.288 522.344 5.2 -1.6 6.5 6.6 1.7 6.6 

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare ...................... 582.411 585.549 587.834 589.674 4.4 2.5 3.8 5.1 3.5 4.4 

Communication 2 ............................................................ 83.943 83.760 83.746 83.656 -.8 .2 -3.6 -1.4 -.3 -2.5 

Information and information processing 2 ..................... 80.761 80.399 80.383 80.290 -.9 .2 -3.8 -2.3 -.3 -3.1 

Telephone services 1 2 ............................................... 101.739 101.412 101.316 101.258 .0 1.3 -3.4 -1.9 .7 -2.7 

Information technology, hardware and services 5 ....... 9.246 9.171 9.189 9.163 -3.4 -2.9 -4.9 -3.5 -3.2 -4.2 

Personal computers and peripheral equipment 6 ..... 73.943 72.662 72.289 71.142 -6.5 .9 -11.6 -14.3 -2.9 -13.0 

Other goods and services ................................................. 384.680 385.031 385.532 385.215 2.6 3.3 .8 .6 2.9 .7 

Tobacco and smoking products 1 ................................... 827.680 828.079 829.535 830.693 9.9 9.0 1.9 1.5 9.5 1.7 

Personal care .................................................................. 207.326 207.547 207.783 207.451 .2 1.3 .4 .2 .8 .3

Personal care products 1 .............................................. 160.656 160.920 161.325 160.981 -5.6 2.3 -.8 .8 -1.7 .0 

Personal care services 1 ............................................... 230.159 229.933 230.177 230.034 3.2 .2 -.3 -.2 1.7 -.3 

Miscellaneous personal services .................................. 357.711 358.181 358.894 359.233 1.3 2.4 2.6 1.7 1.9 2.2 

Commodity and service group

Commodities ....................................................................... 177.291 178.833 180.549 182.627 -5.2 5.7 6.0 12.6 .1 9.3 

Food and beverages ......................................................... 221.524 222.602 223.779 225.345 .8 1.8 1.5 7.1 1.3 4.3

Commodities less food and beverages ............................. 153.502 155.178 157.054 159.267 -8.6 8.1 8.8 15.9 -.6 12.3 

Nondurables less food and beverages ........................... 197.199 200.839 204.142 207.789 -13.4 14.1 16.5 23.3 -.6 19.8 

Apparel .......................................................................... 119.208 120.456 119.384 118.770 .8 -1.4 -.4 -1.5 -.3 -.9 

Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel .......... 250.350 255.448 260.797 268.329 -17.7 19.8 22.3 32.0 -.7 27.1 

Durables .......................................................................... 110.632 110.557 111.024 111.490 -.3 .3 -3.0 3.1 .0 .0 

Services .............................................................................. 262.782 263.034 263.745 264.161 1.2 1.1 1.4 2.1 1.1 1.8 

Rent of shelter 4 ................................................................ 260.617 260.471 260.509 260.389 .5 .9 2.6 -.3 .7 1.1 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ............................. 126.194 126.192 126.529 125.863 2.8 4.3 -1.4 -1.0 3.6 -1.2 

Energy services 3 .............................................................. 192.310 191.114 193.224 193.654 -5.8 1.7 -.6 2.8 -2.1 1.1 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 .............. 174.824 175.400 176.725 177.684 5.1 4.8 5.1 6.7 5.0 5.9 

Household operations 1 2 ................................................. 150.648 151.189 151.358 150.541 1.5 -.6 .8 -.3 .5 .3 

Transportation services ..................................................... 263.379 264.832 266.061 267.523 2.7 1.4 4.2 6.4 2.1 5.3 

Medical care services ....................................................... 417.315 417.004 418.529 418.937 2.9 3.9 2.5 1.6 3.4 2.0 

Other services ................................................................... 311.102 311.610 312.190 312.626 2.8 .9 .7 2.0 1.8 1.3 

Special indexes

All items less food ............................................................... 220.049 220.885 222.091 223.237 -1.7 3.1 3.5 5.9 .7 4.7 

All items less shelter ........................................................... 211.276 212.429 213.995 215.619 -2.4 4.1 4.3 8.5 .8 6.3 

All items less medical care .................................................. 211.688 212.578 213.755 214.982 -1.6 2.9 3.3 6.4 .6 4.8 

Commodities less food ........................................................ 156.060 157.709 159.553 161.713 -8.2 7.9 8.4 15.3 -.5 11.8 

Nondurables less food ........................................................ 199.211 202.374 205.455 208.940 -12.7 13.2 16.6 21.0 -.6 18.8 

Nondurables less food and apparel .................................... 246.849 251.499 256.414 263.245 -16.2 18.1 20.4 29.3 -.5 24.8

Nondurables ........................................................................ 210.033 212.320 214.660 217.689 -7.1 7.6 9.6 15.4 .0 12.4 

Services less rent of shelter 4 ............................................. 286.792 287.061 288.270 288.851 1.7 1.4 2.2 2.9 1.5 2.5 

Services less medical care services ................................... 251.378 251.378 251.810 252.011 1.0 1.0 2.4 1.0 1.0 1.7 

Energy ................................................................................. 225.151 229.915 237.620 245.941 -24.0 26.5 29.8 42.4 -1.9 36.0 

All items less energy ........................................................... 221.434 221.922 222.483 222.992 1.1 .9 .9 2.8 1.0 1.9 

All items less food and energy .......................................... 222.210 222.587 223.029 223.331 1.2 .8 .8 2.0 1.0 1.4 

Commodities less food and energy commodities ........... 143.228 143.571 143.793 143.917 -.2 .2 -1.2 1.9 .0 .3 

Energy commodities ..................................................... 270.712 281.416 294.905 311.218 -35.9 50.2 57.0 74.7 -1.8 65.6 

Services less energy services ......................................... 269.986 270.374 270.955 271.371 1.7 1.0 1.6 2.1 1.3 1.8 

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

Mar.2011 from—

Percent change to

Feb.2011 from—

Dec.

2010

Jan.

2011

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

Mar.

2010

Jan.

2011

Feb.

2011

Feb.

2010

Dec.

2010

Jan.

2011

U.S. city average ............................................ M 219.179 220.223 221.309 223.467 2.7 1.5 1.0 2.1 1.0 0.5 

Region and area size2

Northeast urban .............................................. M 235.141 235.969 237.110 239.074 2.5 1.3 .8 2.0 .8 .5 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 236.828 237.564 238.798 240.599 2.4 1.3 .8 2.0 .8 .5 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 140.351 141.001 141.547 143.001 3.0 1.4 1.0 2.2 .9 .4 

Midwest urban ................................................ M 209.270 210.388 211.090 212.954 2.7 1.2 .9 2.2 .9 .3 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 209.936 210.928 211.503 213.449 2.6 1.2 .9 2.0 .7 .3 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 134.267 135.061 135.665 136.834 2.8 1.3 .9 2.4 1.0 .4 

Size D - Nonmetropolitan (less than

50,000) ............................................... M 206.136 207.551 208.156 209.713 2.7 1.0 .7 2.4 1.0 .3 

South urban .................................................... M 212.488 213.589 214.735 217.214 2.8 1.7 1.2 2.2 1.1 .5 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 213.850 215.127 216.145 218.391 2.7 1.5 1.0 2.2 1.1 .5 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 135.240 135.925 136.625 138.211 2.9 1.7 1.2 2.3 1.0 .5 

Size D - Nonmetropolitan (less than

50,000) ............................................... M 216.189 216.750 218.772 222.275 3.4 2.5 1.6 2.2 1.2 .9 

West urban ..................................................... M 222.081 223.149 224.431 226.558 2.6 1.5 .9 1.9 1.1 .6 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 226.112 227.281 228.444 230.707 2.7 1.5 1.0 2.0 1.0 .5 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 134.328 134.917 135.826 137.200 2.5 1.7 1.0 1.7 1.1 .7 

Size classes

A 4 .............................................................. M 200.123 201.059 201.974 203.833 2.6 1.4 .9 2.0 .9 .5 

B/C 3 ........................................................... M 135.579 136.260 136.960 138.404 2.8 1.6 1.1 2.2 1.0 .5 

D ................................................................. M 212.541 213.417 214.862 216.988 2.8 1.7 1.0 2.3 1.1 .7 

Selected local areas5

Chicago-Gary-Kenosha, IL-IN-WI ................... M 213.778 215.155 216.192 217.880 2.3 1.3 .8 1.8 1.1 .5 

Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County, CA ... M 226.639 228.652 229.729 232.241 3.0 1.6 1.1 2.3 1.4 .5 

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

NY-NJ-CT-PA ......................................... M 241.874 242.639 243.832 245.617 2.3 1.2 .7 2.1 .8 .5 

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

 239.814 - 242.787 2.0 1.2 ----

Cleveland-Akron, OH ...................................... 1 - 207.587 - 209.372 2.8 .9 ----

Dallas-Fort Worth, TX ..................................... 1 - 203.199 - 206.967 2.5 1.9 ----

Washington-Baltimore, DC-MD-VA-WV 6 ...... 1 - 144.327 - 146.044 3.0 1.2 ----

Atlanta, GA ..................................................... 2 202.519 - 205.744 ---- 1.5 1.6 -

Detroit-Ann Arbor-Flint, MI .............................. 2 206.384 - 206.816 ---- 1.7 .2 -

Houston-Galveston-Brazoria, TX .................... 2 194.479 - 197.224 ---- 2.5 1.4 -

Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL ............................. 2 224.907 - 227.451 ---- 2.2 1.1 -

Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic City,

PA-NJ-DE-MD ........................................ 2 228.017 - 230.878 ---- 1.9 1.3 -

San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, CA ........... 2 227.658 - 229.981 ---- 1.7 1.0 -

Seattle-Tacoma-Bremerton, WA .................... 2 226.862 - 229.482 ---- 1.5 1.2 -

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

Mar. 2011 from—

Seasonally adjusted

percent change from—

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

Mar.

2010

Feb.

2011

Dec. to

Jan.

Jan. to

Feb.

Feb. to

Mar.

Expenditure category

All items ........................................................................................ 100.000 217.535 220.024 3.0 1.1 0.5 0.6 0.6 

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

 647.969 655.385 - ----

Food and beverages .................................................................. 16.401 223.273 224.825 2.9 .7 .5 .5 .7 

Food ......................................................................................... 15.315 222.942 224.577 3.0 .7 .5 .6 .8 

Food at home ......................................................................... 8.906 220.110 222.391 3.8 1.0 .8 .9 1.1 

Cereals and bakery products ............................................... 1.236 254.963 256.227 1.9 .5 .7 .1 .6 

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs .............................................. 2.227 216.062 218.848 8.1 1.3 .9 1.2 1.2 

Dairy and related products 1 ................................................ .917 202.335 205.163 3.9 1.4 .1 .6 1.4 

Fruits and vegetables ........................................................... 1.219 284.132 288.168 3.9 1.4 1.2 2.4 2.0 

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials ................ 1.091 163.262 164.583 1.3 .8 1.5 .1 .9 

Other food at home .............................................................. 2.217 192.187 193.787 1.9 .8 .3 .6 .9 

Sugar and sweets 1 ............................................................ .324 203.373 204.408 2.9 .5 -.2 .8 .5 

Fats and oils ....................................................................... .258 210.741 214.457 7.9 1.8 2.1 1.0 2.6 

Other foods ........................................................................ 1.635 205.098 206.624 .8 .7 .1 .5 .7 

Other miscellaneous foods 1 2 ......................................... .463 121.605 122.850 .3 1.0 -.9 .4 1.0 

Food away from home 1 ......................................................... 6.409 228.596 229.293 1.9 .3 .2 .1 .3 

Other food away from home 1 2 ........................................... .326 162.728 162.850 2.4 .1 .0 .7 .1 

Alcoholic beverages ................................................................. 1.086 226.675 227.022 1.6 .2 .1 .2 .2 

Housing ...................................................................................... 39.228 213.931 214.323 .8 .2 .1 .3 .1 

Shelter ...................................................................................... 29.811 243.961 244.270 .9 .1 .1 .2 .1 

Rent of primary residence 3 ................................................... 8.396 250.128 250.445 1.2 .1 .2 .1 .1 

Lodging away from home 2 .................................................... .436 133.181 138.131 2.6 3.7 -1.3 .2 .8 

Owners’ equivalent rent of residences 3 4 .............................. 20.672 233.872 234.018 .8 .1 .1 .2 .1 

Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence 3 4 ................ 19.942 233.870 234.015 .8 .1 .1 .2 .1 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ................................... .306 128.035 126.914 1.2 -.9 .0 .3 -.9 

Fuels and utilities ..................................................................... 5.633 213.775 214.774 1.9 .5 .0 1.0 .5 

Household energy .................................................................. 4.476 186.578 187.561 1.1 .5 .0 1.1 .5 

Fuel oil and other fuels 1 ...................................................... .301 326.950 341.440 22.2 4.4 5.3 3.7 4.4 

Energy services 3 ................................................................. 4.175 188.567 188.985 -.3 .2 -.4 .9 .2 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 ................... 1.157 177.594 178.016 5.2 .2 .3 .7 .5 

Household furnishings and operations ..................................... 3.784 120.518 120.765 -1.7 .2 .1 .0 .0 

Household operations 1 2 ....................................................... .364 153.703 152.965 .6 -.5 .3 .1 -.5 

Apparel ....................................................................................... 3.668 117.507 120.091 -1.0 2.2 1.0 -.7 -.6 

Men’s and boys’ apparel .......................................................... .921 111.528 112.360 -.6 .7 1.3 -.8 -1.2 

Women’s and girls’ apparel ...................................................... 1.502 104.611 108.551 -2.1 3.8 1.5 -1.0 -1.0 

Infants’ and toddlers’ apparel ................................................... .280 112.814 114.446 -4.3 1.4 -2.1 -1.7 .1 

Footwear .................................................................................. .750 126.363 128.077 -.1 1.4 .9 -.2 .0

Transportation ............................................................................ 19.418 202.910 211.774 10.7 4.4 1.4 2.0 2.4 

Private transportation ............................................................... 18.631 199.417 208.361 10.7 4.5 1.4 2.0 2.5

New and used motor vehicles 2 ............................................. 6.914 96.734 97.405 1.6 .7 -.2 .5 .8 

New vehicles ........................................................................ 3.320 141.114 141.899 1.6 .6 -.2 1.0 .8 

Used cars and trucks ........................................................... 3.003 143.868 145.014 2.4 .8 -.3 .1 .8 

Motor fuel ............................................................................... 6.470 273.013 305.066 27.8 11.7 3.9 4.8 5.6 

Gasoline (all types) .............................................................. 6.193 272.117 304.224 27.5 11.8 3.5 4.7 5.6 

Motor vehicle parts and equipment 1 ..................................... .479 140.763 140.693 3.8 .0 .8 .3 .0 

Motor vehicle maintenance and repair 1 ................................ 1.184 253.524 253.391 1.7 -.1 .2 .1 -.1 

Public transportation ................................................................ .787 262.444 266.726 9.8 1.6 1.5 2.0 1.1 

Medical care ............................................................................... 5.355 398.908 399.516 2.9 .2 .1 .5 .2

Medical care commodities 1 ..................................................... 1.318 312.764 314.190 2.8 .5 .5 .7 .5 

Medical care services ............................................................... 4.038 424.289 424.516 2.9 .1 -.1 .4 .1 

Professional services ............................................................. 2.220 337.901 338.225 2.7 .1 .1 .4 .1 

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

Mar. 2011 from—

Seasonally adjusted

percent change from—

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

Mar.

2010

Feb.

2011

Dec. to

Jan.

Jan. to

Feb.

Feb. to

Mar.

Expenditure category

Hospital and related services ................................................. 1.414 636.256 637.216 5.5 0.2 -0.1 0.6 0.2 

Recreation 2 ............................................................................... 5.862 109.693 109.848 -.2 .1 .4 .4 .1 

Video and audio 2 .................................................................... 1.959 98.897 99.398 -1.1 .5 .1 .5 .1 

Education and communication 2 ................................................ 6.118 125.069 125.047 .5 .0 .0 .1 .1 

Education 2 .............................................................................. 2.380 201.500 201.588 3.9 .0 .6 .3 .3 

Educational books and supplies ............................................. .199 526.197 527.623 4.3 .3 1.6 .1 .4 

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare ................................ 2.181 566.205 566.335 3.9 .0 .5 .3 .3 

Communication 2 ..................................................................... 3.738 86.174 86.124 -1.6 -.1 -.4 .0 -.1 

Information and information processing 2 .............................. 3.605 83.844 83.793 -1.8 -.1 -.5 -.1 -.1 

Telephone services 1 2 ......................................................... 2.823 100.768 100.701 -1.3 -.1 -.4 -.1 -.1 

Information technology, hardware and services 5 ................ .782 9.734 9.729 -3.7 -.1 -.8 .2 -.2 

Personal computers and peripheral equipment 6 ............... .208 72.138 71.404 -9.0 -1.0 -1.8 -.5 -1.8 

Other goods and services .......................................................... 3.950 415.088 415.318 2.4 .1 .1 .2 -.1 

Tobacco and smoking products 1 ............................................ 1.450 834.343 835.368 5.4 .1 .0 .2 .1 

Personal care ........................................................................... 2.500 205.705 205.738 .7 .0 .1 .2 -.2 

Personal care products 1 ....................................................... .717 161.974 161.667 -.5 -.2 .2 .3 -.2 

Personal care services 1 ........................................................ .572 230.418 230.252 .8 -.1 -.1 .1 -.1 

Miscellaneous personal services ........................................... 1.027 360.528 360.881 2.0 .1 .2 .2 .0 

Commodity and service group

Commodities ................................................................................ 43.898 182.442 186.832 5.2 2.4 .9 1.1 1.3 

Food and beverages .................................................................. 16.401 223.273 224.825 2.9 .7 .5 .5 .7 

Commodities less food and beverages ...................................... 27.497 160.171 165.647 6.6 3.4 1.2 1.4 1.6 

Nondurables less food and beverages ..................................... 17.244 209.079 219.775 10.4 5.1 1.8 1.8 2.1 

Apparel ................................................................................... 3.668 117.507 120.091 -1.0 2.2 1.0 -.7 -.6 

Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel .................... 13.576 270.459 286.361 13.7 5.9 2.2 2.0 3.4 

Durables ................................................................................... 10.253 112.498 113.063 .4 .5 .0 .5 .5

Services ....................................................................................... 56.102 258.732 259.108 1.4 .1 .1 .3 .1 

Rent of shelter 4 ......................................................................... 29.504 235.090 235.413 .9 .1 .1 .1 .0 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ....................................... .306 128.035 126.914 1.2 -.9 .0 .3 -.9 

Energy services 3 ....................................................................... 4.175 188.567 188.985 -.3 .2 -.4 .9 .2 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 ....................... 1.157 177.594 178.016 5.2 .2 .3 .7 .5 

Household operations 1 2 ........................................................... .364 153.703 152.965 .6 -.5 .3 .1 -.5 

Transportation services .............................................................. 5.994 265.521 266.383 3.4 .3 .4 .5 .4 

Medical care services ................................................................. 4.038 424.289 424.516 2.9 .1 -.1 .4 .1 

Other services ............................................................................ 10.563 297.671 298.010 1.2 .1 .1 .2 .1

Special indexes

All items less food ........................................................................ 84.685 216.389 219.027 3.1 1.2 .4 .6 .6 

All items less shelter .................................................................... 70.189 210.242 213.549 3.9 1.6 .6 .8 .9

All items less medical care ........................................................... 94.645 210.198 212.722 3.1 1.2 .5 .6 .7 

Commodities less food ................................................................. 28.583 162.470 167.826 6.4 3.3 1.2 1.3 1.6

Nondurables less food ................................................................. 18.329 210.278 220.431 9.8 4.8 1.7 1.7 2.0

Nondurables less food and apparel ............................................. 14.662 265.539 280.056 12.8 5.5 2.0 1.9 3.2 

Nondurables ................................................................................. 33.644 216.941 223.402 6.7 3.0 1.2 1.2 1.6 

Services less rent of shelter 4 ...................................................... 26.598 253.664 254.057 1.8 .2 .1 .4 .2 

Services less medical care services ............................................ 52.065 247.244 247.622 1.2 .2 .1 .2 .1 

Energy .......................................................................................... 10.946 228.160 244.773 16.3 7.3 2.3 3.4 3.7 

All items less energy .................................................................... 89.054 217.222 218.011 1.5 .4 .2 .3 .2

All items less food and energy ................................................... 73.739 216.448 217.067 1.2 .3 .2 .2 .1 

Commodities less food and energy commodities ..................... 21.812 145.909 146.835 .4 .6 .2 .2 .1 

Energy commodities ............................................................... 6.771 276.539 308.083 27.5 11.4 4.0 4.8 5.6 

Services less energy services .................................................. 51.927 266.394 266.766 1.5 .1 .1 .2 .1 

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

 $ .460 $ .454 - ----

Purchasing power of the consumer dollar (1967=$1.00) ............. - $ .154 $ .153 - ----

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—

Dec.

2010

Jan.

2011

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

June

2010

Sep.

2010

Dec.

2010

Mar.

2011 Sep.

2010

Mar.

2011

Expenditure category

All items .............................................................................. 216.367 217.344 218.702 220.122 -2.0 3.6 3.8 7.1 0.7 5.4 

Food and beverages ......................................................... 220.782 221.853 223.029 224.691 .8 2.0 1.6 7.3 1.4 4.4

Food ................................................................................ 220.351 221.486 222.716 224.464 .8 1.9 1.7 7.7 1.4 4.6 

Food at home ................................................................ 216.235 217.871 219.728 222.200 .4 1.6 2.0 11.5 1.0 6.7 

Cereals and bakery products ...................................... 252.705 254.540 254.751 256.158 -2.2 2.1 2.2 5.6 -.1 3.9 

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs ..................................... 211.826 213.732 216.300 218.838 11.9 3.9 2.9 13.9 7.9 8.3 

Dairy and related products 1 ....................................... 200.958 201.170 202.335 205.163 -1.4 2.4 6.5 8.6 .4 7.6 

Fruits and vegetables .................................................. 272.546 275.896 282.396 288.166 -10.3 -2.2 6.0 25.0 -6.3 15.1 

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials ....... 159.802 162.150 162.352 163.753 -2.7 1.2 -3.1 10.3 -.8 3.4 

Other food at home ..................................................... 190.252 190.804 191.912 193.640 -.4 1.0 -.3 7.3 .3 3.5 

Sugar and sweets 1 .................................................. 202.206 201.824 203.373 204.408 -.3 4.9 2.5 4.4 2.3 3.4 

Fats and oils .............................................................. 202.870 207.171 209.238 214.678 2.4 2.1 3.3 25.4 2.3 13.8 

Other foods ............................................................... 203.773 203.965 204.938 206.374 -.8 .1 -1.3 5.2 -.4 1.9

Other miscellaneous foods 1 2 ................................ 122.267 121.161 121.605 122.850 -2.3 1.1 .3 1.9 -.6 1.1 

Food away from home 1 ............................................... 227.871 228.279 228.596 229.293 1.4 2.4 1.2 2.5 1.9 1.9 

Other food away from home 1 2 .................................. 161.657 161.635 162.728 162.850 1.5 2.9 2.3 3.0 2.2 2.6 

Alcoholic beverages ........................................................ 225.647 225.786 226.181 226.591 1.5 2.7 .5 1.7 2.1 1.1

Housing ............................................................................. 213.535 213.712 214.274 214.579 -.5 .5 1.3 2.0 .0 1.6 

Shelter ............................................................................. 243.290 243.522 243.891 244.098 .5 .5 1.4 1.3 .5 1.4 

Rent of primary residence 3 .......................................... 249.110 249.556 249.881 250.220 .2 .6 2.1 1.8 .4 1.9 

Lodging away from home 2 ........................................... 135.916 134.166 134.483 135.526 20.8 -6.3 -1.0 -1.1 6.4 -1.1 

Owners’ equivalent rent of residences 3 4 .................... 233.235 233.453 233.818 233.967 .2 .5 1.2 1.3 .4 1.2 

Owners’ equivalent rent of primary residence 3 4 ....... 233.235 233.452 233.819 233.963 .2 .5 1.2 1.3 .4 1.2 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ......................... 127.674 127.690 128.035 126.914 3.1 4.4 -.1 -2.4 3.8 -1.3 

Fuels and utilities ............................................................ 214.276 214.330 216.540 217.690 -3.7 2.3 2.7 6.5 -.7 4.6 

Household energy ......................................................... 187.766 187.675 189.762 190.781 -5.7 1.8 2.2 6.6 -2.1 4.3

Fuel oil and other fuels 1 ............................................. 299.558 315.348 326.950 341.440 -15.7 -.6 57.8 68.8 -8.5 63.2 

Energy services 3 ........................................................ 191.094 190.284 192.035 192.493 -5.1 1.9 -.8 3.0 -1.6 1.1 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 .......... 175.249 175.803 177.057 177.954 5.0 4.5 5.0 6.3 4.7 5.6 

Household furnishings and operations ............................ 120.388 120.479 120.458 120.458 -3.5 -2.2 -1.3 .2 -2.9 -.5 

Household operations 1 2 ............................................. 153.116 153.583 153.703 152.965 3.1 -1.0 .7 -.4 1.0 .1 

Apparel .............................................................................. 118.126 119.268 118.404 117.667 .7 -2.3 -.9 -1.5 -.8 -1.2 

Men’s and boys’ apparel ................................................. 111.303 112.711 111.786 110.496 7.8 -4.4 -2.4 -2.9 1.5 -2.6

Women’s and girls’ apparel ............................................. 105.468 107.067 106.045 104.954 -4.1 -1.8 -.6 -1.9 -2.9 -1.3

Infants’ and toddlers’ apparel .......................................... 116.916 114.477 112.572 112.693 .2 -4.9 1.7 -13.7 -2.4 -6.3

Footwear ......................................................................... 126.296 127.404 127.194 127.212 1.9 -1.3 -3.6 2.9 .3 -.4 

Transportation ................................................................... 200.880 203.697 207.843 212.833 -11.9 16.2 16.7 26.0 1.2 21.3 

Private transportation ...................................................... 197.516 200.277 204.353 209.373 -12.6 17.0 16.8 26.3 1.1 21.5 

New and used motor vehicles 2 .................................... 96.431 96.217 96.700 97.462 1.6 2.1 -1.6 4.3 1.8 1.3 

New vehicles ............................................................... 138.950 138.691 140.067 141.132 .4 1.2 -1.4 6.4 .8 2.4

Used cars and trucks .................................................. 145.000 144.598 144.792 145.911 4.8 4.4 -2.1 2.5 4.6 .2 

Motor fuel ...................................................................... 268.361 278.809 292.327 308.827 -37.2 54.2 57.0 75.4 -1.6 65.9 

Gasoline (all types) ..................................................... 268.977 278.404 291.392 307.739 -38.0 55.6 60.0 71.3 -1.8 65.6 

Motor vehicle parts and equipment 1 ............................ 139.150 140.289 140.763 140.693 3.4 3.0 4.2 4.5 3.2 4.4 

Motor vehicle maintenance and repair 1 ....................... 252.759 253.310 253.524 253.391 1.6 2.9 1.3 1.0 2.3 1.2 

Public transportation ....................................................... 256.908 260.787 266.108 268.996 7.0 -.7 13.8 20.2 3.1 17.0 

Medical care ...................................................................... 395.218 395.575 397.444 398.099 2.6 3.3 2.6 2.9 3.0 2.8 

Medical care commodities 1 ............................................ 308.823 310.488 312.764 314.190 1.2 1.2 2.0 7.1 1.2 4.5 

Medical care services ..................................................... 420.827 420.595 422.224 422.517 3.1 4.0 2.8 1.6 3.6 2.2

Professional services .................................................... 335.472 335.757 337.029 337.449 3.0 3.6 1.9 2.4 3.3 2.2

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—

Dec.

2010

Jan.

2011

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

June

2010

Sep.

2010

Dec.

2010

Mar.

2011 Sep.

2010

Mar.

2011

Expenditure category

Hospital and related services ........................................ 628.241 627.317 630.894 632.454 5.8 6.9 6.5 2.7 6.4 4.6 

Recreation 2 ...................................................................... 108.943 109.345 109.742 109.798 .3 -2.0 -2.2 3.2 -.9 .4 

Video and audio 2 ........................................................... 98.429 98.510 99.020 99.167 -2.0 -2.8 -2.7 3.0 -2.4 .1 

Education and communication 2 ....................................... 124.955 124.959 125.081 125.167 1.2 1.0 -.9 .7 1.1 -.1 

Education 2 ..................................................................... 199.846 200.978 201.628 202.290 4.5 2.1 4.1 5.0 3.3 4.5 

Educational books and supplies ................................... 516.326 524.385 524.817 526.817 4.5 -1.0 5.7 8.4 1.7 7.0 

Tuition, other school fees, and childcare ...................... 562.114 564.783 566.738 568.569 4.5 2.4 4.0 4.7 3.5 4.3 

Communication 2 ............................................................ 86.499 86.192 86.152 86.067 -.7 .3 -4.0 -2.0 -.2 -3.0 

Information and information processing 2 ..................... 84.299 83.864 83.822 83.735 -.8 .3 -4.2 -2.6 -.2 -3.4 

Telephone services 1 2 ............................................... 101.327 100.882 100.768 100.701 -.1 1.2 -3.8 -2.4 .5 -3.1 

Information technology, hardware and services 5 ....... 9.782 9.704 9.722 9.699 -3.1 -2.8 -5.3 -3.4 -3.0 -4.3 

Personal computers and peripheral equipment 6 ..... 73.494 72.178 71.808 70.542 -8.1 .5 -12.6 -15.1 -3.9 -13.9 

Other goods and services ................................................. 414.260 414.533 415.238 414.916 3.3 4.4 1.2 .6 3.9 .9 

Tobacco and smoking products 1 ................................... 832.741 832.904 834.343 835.368 9.9 8.9 1.9 1.3 9.4 1.6 

Personal care .................................................................. 205.285 205.476 205.822 205.424 -.2 2.0 .8 .3 .9 .6 

Personal care products 1 .............................................. 161.217 161.462 161.974 161.667 -6.1 3.1 .2 1.1 -1.6 .7 

Personal care services 1 ............................................... 230.332 230.140 230.418 230.252 3.5 .3 -.5 -.1 1.9 -.3 

Miscellaneous personal services .................................. 359.558 360.275 360.922 360.899 .9 2.8 3.0 1.5 1.8 2.3 

Commodity and service group

Commodities ....................................................................... 180.813 182.495 184.454 186.856 -5.8 6.8 7.0 14.1 .3 10.5 

Food and beverages ......................................................... 220.782 221.853 223.029 224.691 .8 2.0 1.6 7.3 1.4 4.4

Commodities less food and beverages ............................. 158.952 160.848 163.087 165.737 -9.7 9.9 10.3 18.2 -.4 14.2 

Nondurables less food and beverages ........................... 207.594 211.319 215.122 219.564 -14.6 15.3 20.3 25.1 -.7 22.7 

Apparel .......................................................................... 118.126 119.268 118.404 117.667 .7 -2.3 -.9 -1.5 -.8 -1.2 

Nondurables less food, beverages, and apparel .......... 267.257 273.060 278.583 287.991 -19.5 22.8 25.2 34.8 -.6 29.9 

Durables .......................................................................... 111.888 111.840 112.365 112.981 .7 .3 -3.2 4.0 .5 .3 

Services .............................................................................. 258.034 258.262 258.975 259.346 .9 1.1 1.3 2.0 1.0 1.7 

Rent of shelter 4 ................................................................ 234.729 234.950 235.112 235.189 .2 .8 1.9 .8 .5 1.4 

Tenants’ and household insurance 1 2 ............................. 127.674 127.690 128.035 126.914 3.1 4.4 -.1 -2.4 3.8 -1.3 

Energy services 3 .............................................................. 191.094 190.284 192.035 192.493 -5.1 1.9 -.8 3.0 -1.6 1.1 

Water and sewer and trash collection services 2 .............. 175.249 175.803 177.057 177.954 5.0 4.5 5.0 6.3 4.7 5.6 

Household operations 1 2 ................................................. 153.116 153.583 153.703 152.965 3.1 -1.0 .7 -.4 1.0 .1 

Transportation services ..................................................... 263.406 264.463 265.678 266.766 2.7 2.2 3.3 5.2 2.5 4.3 

Medical care services ....................................................... 420.827 420.595 422.224 422.517 3.1 4.0 2.8 1.6 3.6 2.2 

Other services ................................................................... 296.889 297.247 297.790 298.163 2.3 .7 .0 1.7 1.5 .9 

Special indexes

All items less food ............................................................... 215.473 216.422 217.800 219.161 -2.5 3.9 4.2 7.0 .6 5.6 

All items less shelter ........................................................... 208.883 210.141 211.871 213.745 -3.1 4.9 4.8 9.6 .8 7.2 

All items less medical care .................................................. 209.116 210.104 211.434 212.864 -2.3 3.6 3.9 7.4 .6 5.6 

Commodities less food ........................................................ 161.252 163.108 165.304 167.903 -9.2 9.6 9.9 17.5 -.3 13.7 

Nondurables less food ........................................................ 208.830 212.360 215.973 220.224 -13.8 14.7 19.1 23.7 -.6 21.4 

Nondurables less food and apparel .................................... 262.540 267.850 272.891 281.517 -18.0 21.1 23.2 32.2 -.4 27.6

Nondurables ........................................................................ 214.836 217.332 219.926 223.418 -7.9 8.5 10.9 17.0 .0 13.9 

Services less rent of shelter 4 ............................................. 253.116 253.273 254.399 254.803 1.4 1.5 1.8 2.7 1.4 2.2 

Services less medical care services ................................... 246.935 247.082 247.660 247.897 .8 .9 1.7 1.6 .8 1.6 

Energy ................................................................................. 226.396 231.611 239.431 248.232 -24.9 28.3 31.3 44.5 -1.8 37.8 

All items less energy ........................................................... 216.122 216.590 217.170 217.702 1.0 1.1 .8 3.0 1.1 1.9 

All items less food and energy .......................................... 215.648 215.982 216.431 216.717 1.1 .9 .7 2.0 1.0 1.3 

Commodities less food and energy commodities ........... 145.475 145.784 146.034 146.215 .3 .4 -1.3 2.1 .4 .4 

Energy commodities ..................................................... 270.984 281.694 295.209 311.719 -36.4 51.2 57.0 75.1 -1.9 65.8 

Services less energy services ......................................... 265.330 265.675 266.270 266.630 1.4 1.1 1.5 2.0 1.3 1.7 

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

Mar.2011 from—

Percent change to

Feb.2011 from—

Dec.

2010

Jan.

2011

Feb.

2011

Mar.

2011

Mar.

2010

Jan.

2011

Feb.

2011

Feb.

2010

Dec.

2010

Jan.

2011

U.S. city average ............................................ M 215.262 216.400 217.535 220.024 3.0 1.7 1.1 2.3 1.1 0.5 

Region and area size2

Northeast urban .............................................. M 233.082 233.914 235.109 237.377 2.9 1.5 1.0 2.3 .9 .5 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 233.092 233.851 235.230 237.239 2.8 1.4 .9 2.2 .9 .6 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 141.598 142.196 142.691 144.395 3.2 1.5 1.2 2.4 .8 .3 

Midwest urban ................................................ M 205.024 206.258 206.981 209.094 3.0 1.4 1.0 2.4 1.0 .4 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 204.731 205.878 206.516 208.740 3.0 1.4 1.1 2.4 .9 .3 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 134.454 135.277 135.841 137.189 3.0 1.4 1.0 2.5 1.0 .4 

Size D - Nonmetropolitan (less than

50,000) ............................................... M 204.132 205.648 206.306 208.108 3.0 1.2 .9 2.6 1.1 .3 

South urban .................................................... M 209.994 211.216 212.416 215.272 3.2 1.9 1.3 2.5 1.2 .6 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 211.712 213.058 214.129 216.680 2.9 1.7 1.2 2.3 1.1 .5 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 134.405 135.207 135.919 137.789 3.3 1.9 1.4 2.6 1.1 .5 

Size D - Nonmetropolitan (less than

50,000) ............................................... M 216.477 217.200 219.352 223.059 3.6 2.7 1.7 2.4 1.3 1.0 

West urban ..................................................... M 216.847 217.995 219.368 221.830 3.0 1.8 1.1 2.2 1.2 .6 

Size A - More than 1,500,000 ..................... M 219.273 220.564 221.848 224.576 3.2 1.8 1.2 2.3 1.2 .6 

Size B/C - 50,000 to 1,500,000 3 ................ M 134.306 134.900 135.845 137.331 2.7 1.8 1.1 1.9 1.1 .7 

Size classes

A 4 .............................................................. M 198.979 200.022 201.033 203.220 3.0 1.6 1.1 2.3 1.0 .5 

B/C 3 ........................................................... M 135.379 136.112 136.808 138.471 3.1 1.7 1.2 2.4 1.1 .5 

D ................................................................. M 210.959 212.005 213.495 215.928 3.2 1.9 1.1 2.5 1.2 .7 

Selected local areas5

Chicago-Gary-Kenosha, IL-IN-WI ................... M 207.479 209.016 210.106 212.256 2.8 1.6 1.0 2.2 1.3 .5 

Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County, CA ... M 219.619 221.540 222.814 225.770 3.5 1.9 1.3 2.6 1.5 .6 

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

NY-NJ-CT-PA ......................................... M 237.575 238.396 239.750 241.667 2.7 1.4 .8 2.4 .9 .6 

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

 240.540 - 244.324 2.5 1.6 ----

Cleveland-Akron, OH ...................................... 1 - 199.568 - 201.146 3.2 .8 ----

Dallas-Fort Worth, TX ..................................... 1 - 206.954 - 211.227 2.9 2.1 ----

Washington-Baltimore, DC-MD-VA-WV 6 ...... 1 - 144.556 - 146.572 3.4 1.4 ----

Atlanta, GA ..................................................... 2 201.390 - 204.611 ---- 1.6 1.6 -

Detroit-Ann Arbor-Flint, MI .............................. 2 202.280 - 202.849 ---- 2.0 .3 -

Houston-Galveston-Brazoria, TX .................... 2 192.863 - 195.677 ---- 2.8 1.5 -

Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL ............................. 2 222.510 - 225.346 ---- 1.9 1.3 -

Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic City,

PA-NJ-DE-MD ........................................ 2 228.072 - 231.306 ---- 2.1 1.4 -

San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, CA ........... 2 224.152 - 226.638 ---- 2.1 1.1 -

Seattle-Tacoma-Bremerton, WA .................... 2 222.853 - 225.790 ---- 2.1 1.3 -

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

 Mar. 2011 from—

 Feb.

 2011

 Mar.

 2011

 Mar.

 2010

 Feb.

 2011

Expenditure category

All items 1 ................................................................................... 100.000 127.429 128.618 2.5 0.9 

Food and beverages ................................................................ 14.519 130.402 131.225 2.7 .6 

Food ....................................................................................... 13.493 130.479 131.371 2.8 .7 

Food at home ....................................................................... 7.780 125.939 127.156 3.5 1.0 

Food away from home .......................................................... 5.712 136.726 137.136 1.9 .3 

Alcoholic beverages ............................................................... 1.027 130.092 130.010 1.4 -.1 

Housing .................................................................................... 42.074 128.726 128.982 .6 .2 

Shelter .................................................................................... 32.119 131.927 132.169 .9 .2 

Fuels and utilities .................................................................... 5.231 158.474 159.059 1.5 .4 

Household furnishings and operations ................................... 4.724 92.354 92.462 -2.0 .1 

Apparel ..................................................................................... 3.772 88.737 90.915 -1.0 2.5 

Transportation 2 ....................................................................... 17.199 R136.824 142.121 9.9 3.9 

Private transportation ............................................................. 16.013 137.364 142.885 9.9 4.0 

Public transportation 3 ............................................................ 1.186 R129.878 132.342 10.4 1.9 

Medical care ............................................................................. 6.294 153.610 153.840 2.5 .1 

Medical care commodities ...................................................... 1.570 135.298 135.901 2.6 .4 

Medical care services ............................................................. 4.723 160.337 160.419 2.5 .1 

Recreation ................................................................................ 6.625 102.486 102.508 -.9 .0 

Education and communication ................................................. 6.288 112.737 112.691 .6 .0 

Education ............................................................................... 2.804 188.346 188.438 3.8 .0 

Communication ...................................................................... 3.484 71.813 71.732 -1.8 -.1 

Other goods and services ........................................................ 3.229 140.344 140.404 1.5 .0 

Commodity and service group

Services 4 ................................................................................... 59.383 R136.560 136.799 1.3 .2 

Commodities .............................................................................. 40.617 116.442 118.832 4.2 2.1 

Durables ................................................................................... 10.376 80.543 80.840 -.7 .4 

Nondurables ............................................................................... 30.241 135.157 138.722 5.9 2.6 

All items less food and energy 5 ............................................... 76.901 R120.721 121.086 .9 .3 

Energy ........................................................................................ 9.606 193.273 205.843 14.9 6.5 

1 Revised index: Jan. 2011=126.811. 2 Revised index: Jan. 2011=135.346. 3 Revised index: Jan. 2011=127.460. 4 Revised index: Jan. 2011=136.170. 5 Revised index: Jan. 2011=120.281. 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.