Fuel and travel costs are pushing prices up again
Thursday 5 November 2026
Inflation has risen to 3.1%, meaning everyday spending is getting more expensive just as household budgets are already under pressure.
Consumer Prices Index (CPI)
A UK measure of how prices change for a wide range of things people buy.
Key term
What it means
CPI follows the prices of a changing selection of goods and services bought by households. A broad mix is used so that one price, such as petrol, does not stand for everyone's spending. The usual headline is the percentage change over the previous 12 months. CPI includes rent, but it does not include the costs of living in a home you own in the same way that CPIH does.
Example
If the CPI price measure goes from 200 to 210 in a year, it has risen by 5%. Your own shopping and bills may rise by a different amount.
Why it matters
CPI is widely quoted in news about inflation and is used for the Bank of England's inflation target. You need to know which price measure a headline uses before comparing figures.
Also known as
CPI
Related terms
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Base effects
The effect an unusually high or low starting figure can have on a percentage change reported later.
Read more -
Consumer Prices Index including housing costs (CPIH)
A UK measure of price changes like CPI, with an added measure of the cost of living in a home you own and Council Tax.
Read more -
Core inflation
A measure of inflation that leaves out certain prices, usually food, energy, alcohol and tobacco in UK figures.
Read more -
Inflation
A general rise in prices over time.
Read more -
Retail Prices Index (RPI)
An older UK measure of consumer price changes that is still used for some payments and contracts.
Read more
Keep in the loop
News
Highlights from about the UK economy, the UK government and the UK public sector.
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Wednesday 4 November 2026
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Wednesday 4 November 2026
A higher energy price cap means many households will be paying more to heat and power their homes during the colder months.
Guides and insights
Analysis
Clear, accessible analysis of the economic issues shaping everyday life
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Comparing the cost of everyday life across generations, from bread and beer to buying a home.
Food & prices
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How farming, energy, transport and supermarket competition shape the price on the shelf.
Prices & inflation
Inflation is falling. What happens next?
What slower price rises mean for wages, purchasing power and economic recovery.
Shared prosperity
What would shared prosperity look like?
Beyond GDP: how we could measure economic success through security, opportunity and living standards.
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