BLS - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

04/10/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 04/10/2026 09:41

Consumer Price Index, West Region — March 2026

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26-624-SAN
Friday, April 10, 2026

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Consumer Price Index, West Region - March 2026

Area prices were up 0.9 percent over the past month, up 3.1 percent from a year ago

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the West region advanced 0.9 percent in March, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today. The all items less food and energy index increased 0.3 percent. The food index rose 0.1 percent, and the energy index increased 12.1 percent. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

The West all items CPI-U rose 3.1 percent for the 12 months ending in March. The index for all items less food and energy advanced 2.6 percent over the year. Food prices advanced 2.6 percent. Energy prices rose 11.7 percent.

View Chart Data
Chart 1. Over-the-year percent change in CPI-U, West region, March 2023-March 2026
Month All items All items less food and energy

Mar 2023

5.1 5.5

Apr 2023

4.9 5.4

May 2023

4.5 5.3

Jun 2023

3.5 4.7

Jul 2023

3.5 4.3

Aug 2023

3.9 4.1

Sep 2023

3.9 3.9

Oct 2023

3.3 3.7

Nov 2023

3.3 3.7

Dec 2023

3.6 3.7

Jan 2024

3.3 3.7

Feb 2024

3.2 3.6

Mar 2024

3.6 3.8

Apr 2024

3.7 3.6

May 2024

3.3 3.3

Jun 2024

2.8 3.0

Jul 2024

2.6 3.0

Aug 2024

2.2 2.9

Sep 2024

2.1 3.0

Oct 2024

2.1 3.1

Nov 2024

2.4 3.1

Dec 2024

2.5 2.9

Jan 2025

2.4 2.7

Feb 2025

2.6 2.7

Mar 2025

2.2 2.5

Apr 2025

2.1 2.5

May 2025

2.4 2.8

Jun 2025

2.7 2.9

Jul 2025

3.0 3.2

Aug 2025

3.2 3.4

Sep 2025

3.3 3.3

Oct 2025

- -

Nov 2025

3.0 3.0

Dec 2025

2.9 2.9

Jan 2026

2.7 2.9

Feb 2026

2.7 2.8

Mar 2026

3.1 2.6

Note: The October 2025 data values are not available due to the 2025 lapse in appropriations.

Food

Food prices advanced 0.1 percent for the month of March. Prices for food at home (grocery store purchases) were unchanged, and prices for food away from home (restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases) advanced 0.2 percent for the same period.

Food prices advanced 2.6 percent over the year. Prices for food at home rose 1.7 percent, with higher prices in 4 of the 6 major grocery store food groups. Prices for food away from home advanced 3.8 percent.

Energy

The energy index advanced 12.1 percent over the month. Gasoline prices increased 22.6 percent. Prices for natural gas service fell 2.2 percent, and prices for electricity decreased 1.0 percent for the same period.

Energy prices rose 11.7 percent over the year. Gasoline prices increased 19.1 percent. Prices for electricity advanced 2.1 percent, while prices for natural gas service fell 2.5 percent during the past year.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy advanced 0.3 percent in March. Among the index's components, prices were higher for shelter (+0.5 percent). In contrast, prices were lower for medical care (-0.3 percent) and household furnishings and operations (-0.3 percent).

The index for all items less food and energy advanced 2.6 percent over the year. Components contributing to the increase included medical care (+4.1 percent) and shelter (+2.7 percent). In contrast, prices were lower for used cars and trucks (-2.6 percent) and education and communication (-0.4 percent).

Table A. West region CPI-U 1-month and 12-month percent changes, all items index, not seasonally adjusted
Month 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026
1-month 12-month 1-month 12-month 1-month 12-month 1-month 12-month 1-month 12-month

January

0.9 7.7 0.9 6.3 0.7 3.3 0.6 2.4 0.4 2.7

February

0.8 8.1 0.5 6.0 0.4 3.2 0.6 2.6 0.5 2.7

March

1.3 8.7 0.5 5.1 0.9 3.6 0.5 2.2 0.9 3.1

April

0.7 8.3 0.5 4.9 0.6 3.7 0.5 2.1

May

0.8 8.3 0.4 4.5 0.1 3.3 0.3 2.4

June

1.2 8.8 0.3 3.5 -0.2 2.8 0.1 2.7

July

0.1 8.3 0.1 3.5 -0.1 2.6 0.2 3.0

August

0.0 8.1 0.4 3.9 0.1 2.2 0.3 3.2

September

0.3 8.3 0.4 3.9 0.2 2.1 0.3 3.3

October

0.7 8.1 0.1 3.3 0.1 2.1 - -

November

-0.4 7.1 -0.4 3.3 -0.1 2.4 - 3.0

December

-0.4 6.2 -0.1 3.6 0.0 2.5 -0.2 2.9

Note: The October 2025 data values are not available due to the 2025 lapse in appropriations

The April 2026 Consumer Price Index for the West Region is scheduled to be released on May 12, 2026.


Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measure of the average change in prices over time in a fixed market basket of goods and services. The Consumer Price Index for the West Region is published monthly. The set of components and sub-aggregates published for regional and metropolitan indexes is more limited than at the U.S. city average level; these indexes are byproducts of the national CPI program.

The West region covered in this release is comprised of the following thirteen states: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

Refer to the national CPI news release technical note or the Handbook of Methods for more information.

If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.

Table 1. West region CPI-U by expenditure category for March 2026, not seasonally adjusted (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Expenditure category Indexes Percent change from -
Historical
data 		Jan.
2026 		Feb.
2026 		Mar.
2026 		Mar.
2025 		Jan.
2026 		Feb.
2026

All items

345.152 346.990 350.226 3.1 1.5 0.9

All items (December 1977 = 100)

557.919 560.890 566.120

Food and beverages

359.632 360.472 360.776 2.6 0.3 0.1

Food

362.650 363.578 363.811 2.6 0.3 0.1

Food at home

335.240 335.984 335.986 1.7 0.2 0.0

Cereals and bakery products

347.132 347.300 346.823 2.5 -0.1 -0.1

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs

370.338 364.504 363.454 -3.7 -1.9 -0.3

Dairy and related products

279.707 276.394 277.659 -3.5 -0.7 0.5

Fruits and vegetables

415.609 425.455 427.888 5.5 3.0 0.6

Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials

239.539 242.438 238.898 2.9 -0.3 -1.5

Other food at home

292.909 294.311 295.434 4.2 0.9 0.4

Food away from home

401.585 402.819 403.461 3.8 0.5 0.2

Alcoholic beverages

313.713 313.273 314.620 1.8 0.3 0.4

Housing

388.353 390.761 391.880 2.7 0.9 0.3

Shelter

447.728 450.259 452.320 2.7 1.0 0.5

Rent of primary residence

478.799 479.538 480.018 2.2 0.3 0.1

Owners' equivalent rent of residences(1)

474.217 475.870 476.319 2.7 0.4 0.1

Owners' equivalent rent of primary residence(1)

474.024 475.677 476.131 2.7 0.4 0.1

Fuels and utilities

440.753 442.487 439.631 2.4 -0.3 -0.6

Household energy

378.686 380.109 375.961 1.3 -0.7 -1.1

Energy services

382.553 383.664 378.754 1.1 -1.0 -1.3

Electricity

427.755 429.679 425.255 2.1 -0.6 -1.0

Utility (piped) gas service

294.652 293.758 287.242 -2.5 -2.5 -2.2

Household furnishings and operations

162.253 164.363 163.804 3.5 1.0 -0.3

Apparel

125.639 131.832 132.611 3.3 5.5 0.6

Transportation

281.762 284.921 298.422 5.3 5.9 4.7

Private transportation

279.793 283.240 297.351 4.8 6.3 5.0

New and used motor vehicles(2)

122.374 122.061 122.432 -0.9 0.0 0.3

New vehicles

176.336 176.485 176.514 0.3 0.1 0.0

New cars(3)

175.551 176.001 176.934 1.1 0.8 0.5

Used cars and trucks

172.132 170.240 170.874 -2.6 -0.7 0.4

Motor fuel

303.149 321.413 395.346 19.6 30.4 23.0

Gasoline (all types)

301.156 319.745 391.961 19.1 30.2 22.6

Gasoline, unleaded regular(3)

295.612 314.411 387.455 19.4 31.1 23.2

Gasoline, unleaded midgrade(3)(4)

291.235 308.443 374.309 18.3 28.5 21.4

Gasoline, unleaded premium(3)

303.648 320.306 385.474 17.7 26.9 20.3

Medical care

655.472 656.281 654.237 4.1 -0.2 -0.3

Medical care commodities

481.568 483.709 474.400 0.2 -1.5 -1.9

Medical care services

708.845 709.253 709.395 4.9 0.1 0.0

Professional services

447.877 450.097 450.247 4.9 0.5 0.0

Recreation(2)

137.894 137.310 137.371 3.1 -0.4 0.0

Education and communication(2)

144.336 143.104 143.370 -0.4 -0.7 0.2

Tuition, other school fees, and child care(5)

1,766.027 1,769.084 1,769.644 3.3 0.2 0.0

Other goods and services

587.959 585.858 589.309 3.6 0.2 0.6

Footnotes
(1) Indexes on a December 1982=100 base.
(2) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.
(3) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample.
(4) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.
(5) Indexes on a December 1977=100 base.

- Data not available.
Note: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.

Table 2. West region CPI-U by special aggregate index for March 2026, not seasonally adjusted (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)
Special aggregate index

 Indexes Percent change from -
Historical
data 		Jan.
2026 		Feb.
2026 		Mar.
2026 		Mar.
2025 		Jan.
2026 		Feb.
2026

All items

345.152 346.990 350.226 3.1 1.5 0.9

Food

362.650 363.578 363.811 2.6 0.3 0.1

Energy

341.887 353.487 396.271 11.7 15.9 12.1

All items less food and energy

346.509 347.822 348.774 2.6 0.7 0.3

All items less energy

348.053 349.311 350.162 2.6 0.6 0.2

All items less medical care

330.915 332.793 336.251 3.0 1.6 1.0

All items less shelter

304.552 306.116 309.828 3.4 1.7 1.2

Commodities

229.585 231.632 236.604 3.4 3.1 2.1

Commodities less food

175.497 177.769 183.907 3.8 4.8 3.5

Commodities less food & beverages

170.484 172.786 178.953 3.9 5.0 3.6

Durables

122.014 121.801 121.899 0.1 -0.1 0.1

Nondurables

291.714 295.662 304.616 4.8 4.4 3.0

Nondurables less food & beverages

225.323 231.988 248.538 7.8 10.3 7.1

Nondurables less food

231.666 237.985 253.808 7.4 9.6 6.6

Services

453.478 455.019 456.279 3.0 0.6 0.3

Services less rent of shelter(1)

474.422 474.643 474.817 3.4 0.1 0.0

Services less medical care services

435.484 437.102 438.438 2.8 0.7 0.3

Footnotes
(1) Indexes on a December 1982=100 base.

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

BLS - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics published this content on April 10, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on April 10, 2026 at 15:42 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]