The UK inflation rate

Most people notice inflation at the till or the petrol pump. The inflation rate puts a number on how fast prices are rising. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes it every month. This page explains what the number measures, what the latest figures show, and how you can use them.

What the rate measures

ONS describes consumer price inflation as the rate at which the prices of goods and services bought by households rise or fall. It helps to picture a very large shopping basket. The basket holds everything from bread to a gym membership to a holiday in Spain. ONS tracks the cost of that basket over time.

The annual rate compares prices in the latest month with the same month a year earlier. The Bank of England gives a simple example. If inflation is 2%, a basket that cost £100 a year ago costs £102 today.

The latest figures

ONS published its latest figures on 21 October 2026. Consumer prices (CPI) rose by 3.5% in the 12 months to September 2026, up from 3.1% in August. The wider measure, CPIH, rose by 3.6%, up from 3.3%.

Transport made the largest upward contribution, mostly from motor fuels. The average price of petrol was 169.5 pence a litre in September 2026. Food and soft drink prices rose by 1.3% over the year. ONS says that rate was last lower in September 2021. The next figures are due on 18 November 2026.

Three measures and what each is for

CPI is produced to international standards, so the UK can be compared with other countries. The government's inflation target uses it. It is also used to uprate working-age benefits and tax credits.

CPIH adds the costs of owning and living in your own home, along with Council Tax. ONS calls it the most comprehensive measure. Those housing costs make up about 18% of CPIH.

The Retail Prices Index (RPI) is older. It no longer meets the standard for accredited official statistics. ONS still publishes it because many long-term contracts are tied to it. RPI rose by 3.9% in the 12 months to September 2026.

How the prices are gathered

Around the middle of each month, price collectors record about 100,000 prices in around 150 places across the UK. ONS collects many other prices centrally, such as water bills and air fares. The basket holds about 760 representative items. ONS reviews it every year so that it keeps up with what people buy.

Since the February 2026 figures, ONS has used checkout data from supermarkets for about half of the grocery market. That gives it around 300 million price points a month.

The 2% target

The government sets a target of 2% a year for inflation. The Bank of England is responsible for keeping inflation at that rate. Its main tool is interest rates. The Bank says CPI inflation averaged 2% between 1997 and 2021. It reached a peak of 11% in 2022 and has fallen since.

Working out your own rate

The official rate is an average, and no household is exactly average. ONS has a personal inflation calculator. You enter what you spend on different things, and it estimates the rate for your own spending.

The ONS shopping prices tool shows how the average prices of everyday items have changed. The Bank of England's inflation calculator shows what goods costing a given sum in one year would have cost in another.

When you read about inflation, it is worth checking which measure is meant and which month it covers. CPI, CPIH and RPI can differ by a few tenths of a percentage point in the same month.