The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington was up 1.0 percent for the two months ending in February, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today. Regional Commissioner Alexandra Hall Bovee noted that the all items less food and energy index rose 1.1 percent, as the energy and food indexes increased for the same period. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect the impact of seasonal influences.)

The Philadelphia area all items CPI-U advanced 3.5 percent for the 12 months ending in February. The index for all items less food and energy also rose 3.5 percent. The energy index increased 7.1 percent, and the food index was up 1.9 percent.

Food

From December to February, the food index was up 0.4 percent. The index for food at home rose 0.6 percent, with higher prices in fruits and vegetables (4.0 percent) and nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials (3.7 percent). The food away from home index was unchanged.

The food index rose 1.9 percent over the year. The food away from home index increased 2.6 percent. In comparison, the food at home index advanced 1.2 percent. Four of the six major food group subindexes rose over the year, led by nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials (9.9 percent).

Energy

The energy index increased 1.6 percent over the two-month pricing period ending in February. Gasoline prices declined 1.0 percent.

The energy index increased 7.1 percent from February 2025 to February 2026. Over the year, the gasoline index declined 4.4 percent.

All items less food and energy

The index for all items less food and energy rose 1.1 percent from December to February. Among the index's components, prices were higher for medical care (2.0 percent), shelter (0.3 percent), and public transportation. In contrast, prices were lower for new and used motor vehicles (-0.5 percent).

The index for all items less food and energy advanced 3.5 percent over the year. The shelter index (3.7 percent) was the largest contributor to the increase, due in part to the increases in the owners' equivalent rent of primary residences (4.0 percent) and rent of primary residence (4.1 percent) indexes. Other price increases included household furnishings and operations (7.4 percent), and medical care (3.1 percent).

The Consumer Price Index for April 2026 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. (ET).

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 Philadelphia is published bi-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. Each local index has a much smaller sample size than the national or regional indexes and is, therefore, subject to substantially more sampling and other measurement error. As a result, local-area indexes are more volatile than the national or regional indexes. In addition, local indexes are not adjusted for seasonal influences. NOTE: Area indexes do not measure differences in the level of prices between cities; they only measure the average change in prices for each area since the base period.

The Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD, Core Based Statistical Area includes Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia Counties in Pennsylvania; Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, and Salem Counties in New Jersey; New Castle County in Delaware; and Cecil County in Maryland.

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

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Table 1. Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD, CPI-U by expenditure category for February 2026, not seasonally adjusted (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Expenditure category	Indexes				Percent change from:
	Historical data	Dec. 2025	Jan. 2026	Feb. 2026	Feb. 2025	Dec. 2025	Jan. 2026
All items		328.861	-	332.301	3.5	1.0	-
All items (1967=100)		950.060	-	960.000	-	-	-
Food and beverages		313.223	-	314.613	1.9	0.4	-
Food		316.486	-	317.731	1.9	0.4	-
Food at home		316.672	320.740	318.624	1.2	0.6	-0.7
Cereals and bakery products		411.674	411.177	410.774	1.4	-0.2	-0.1
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs		371.141	368.078	360.971	-1.8	-2.7	-1.9
Dairy and related products		245.632	246.383	237.864	-2.7	-3.2	-3.5
Fruits and vegetables		292.174	302.628	303.846	0.3	4.0	0.4
Nonalcoholic beverages and beverage materials(1)		235.830	249.411	244.490	9.9	3.7	-2.0
Other food at home		299.901	301.216	304.368	1.8	1.5	1.0
Food away from home		306.843	-	306.915	2.6	0.0	-
Alcoholic beverages		264.337	-	267.212	1.5	1.1	-
Housing		359.371	-	362.196	4.8	0.8	-
Shelter		442.864	443.623	444.381	3.7	0.3	0.2
Rent of primary residence		417.061	419.710	421.585	4.1	1.1	0.4
Owners' equiv. rent of residences(2)		457.301	459.673	459.770	4.0	0.5	0.0
Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence(2)		457.301	459.673	459.770	4.0	0.5	0.0
Household furnishings and operations		149.476	-	154.156	7.4	3.1	-
Apparel		115.522	-	117.545	2.9	1.8	-
Transportation		283.384	-	287.254	2.4	1.4	-
Private transportation		293.862	-	293.583	1.3	-0.1	-
New and used motor vehicles(3)		134.205	-	133.493	0.1	-0.5	-
New vehicles(1)		239.870	-	240.876	0.9	0.4	-
Used cars and trucks(1)		347.960	-	331.739	-3.6	-4.7	-
Motor fuel		279.419	270.357	276.748	-4.3	-1.0	2.4
Gasoline (all types)		275.750	266.806	273.102	-4.4	-1.0	2.4
Unleaded regular(4)		268.924	259.774	266.357	-4.8	-1.0	2.5
Unleaded midgrade(4)(5)		296.496	288.442	293.545	-3.1	-1.0	1.8
Unleaded premium(4)		299.148	291.856	296.195	-2.1	-1.0	1.5
Medical care		613.005	-	625.404	3.1	2.0	-
Recreation(3)		139.254	-	142.339	3.3	2.2	-
Education and communication(3)		140.256	-	141.411	0.2	0.8	-
Tuition, other school fees, and childcare(1)		1,261.717	-	1,261.717	5.5	0.0	-
Other goods and services		733.019	-	744.865	3.6	1.6	-
Footnotes (1) Index is on a December 1977=100 base. (2) Index is on a December 1982=100 base. (3) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base. (4) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample. (5) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.
- Data not available. NOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.

Table 2. Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD, CPI-U by special aggregate index for February 2026, not seasonally adjusted (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Special aggregate index	Indexes				Percent change from:
	Historical data	Dec. 2025	Jan. 2026	Feb. 2026	Feb. 2025	Dec. 2025	Jan. 2026
All items		328.861	-	332.301	3.5	1.0	-
Food		316.486	-	317.731	1.9	0.4	-
Energy		275.893	273.996	280.254	7.1	1.6	2.3
All items less food and energy		344.656	-	348.429	3.5	1.1	-
All items less energy		337.675	-	341.090	3.3	1.0	-
All items less medical care		316.723	-	319.789	3.6	1.0	-
All items less shelter		289.188	-	293.531	3.4	1.5	-
Commodities		224.130	-	226.624	1.4	1.1	-
Commodities less food		180.330	-	183.064	0.9	1.5	-
Commodities less food & beverages		176.825	-	179.540	0.9	1.5	-
Durables		126.776	-	128.813	1.9	1.6	-
Nondurables		268.025	-	270.469	1.2	0.9	-
Nondurables less food & beverages		220.319	-	223.561	-0.1	1.5	-
Nondurables less food		223.208	-	226.425	0.1	1.4	-
Services		431.399	-	435.782	4.4	1.0	-
Services less rent of shelter(1)		427.426	-	435.512	5.4	1.9	-
Services less medical care services		416.248	-	420.080	4.5	0.9	-
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.