UK inflation rate (CPI)
The 12-month rate of the Consumer Prices Index published by the Office for National Statistics.
CPI annual rate
3.1%
Data for: August 2026
Previous: 2.9% (July 2026)
What it is
The CPI measures the change in prices of a basket of around 700 goods and services bought by UK households. The annual rate compares the index with the same month a year earlier.
Why it matters
The Bank of England’s inflation target of 2% is set on the CPI, so this figure shapes decisions on Bank Rate and therefore mortgage costs. Many benefits and state pension uprating also refer to the September CPI.
Recent history
| Date | CPI annual rate |
|---|---|
| August 2026 | 3.1% |
| July 2026 | 2.9% |
| June 2026 | 2.6% |
| May 2026 | 2.8% |
| April 2026 | 2.8% |
| March 2026 | 3.3% |
| February 2026 | 3.0% |
| January 2026 | 3.0% |
| December 2025 | 3.4% |
| November 2025 | 3.2% |
| October 2025 | 3.6% |
| September 2025 | 3.8% |
| August 2025 | 3.8% |
| July 2025 | 3.8% |
| June 2025 | 3.6% |
| May 2025 | 3.4% |
| April 2025 | 3.5% |
| March 2025 | 2.6% |
| February 2025 | 2.8% |
| January 2025 | 3.0% |
| December 2024 | 2.5% |
| November 2024 | 2.6% |
| October 2024 | 2.3% |
| September 2024 | 1.7% |
How to read
Latest: 3.1%
Where it comes from
Office for National Statistics (ONS), CPI annual rate 00: all items (series D7G7)
Careful
Information, not advice
What to do
Compare with the related indicators
Reading the uk inflation rate (cpi) figure
What the latest uk inflation rate (cpi) reading says
The most recent value on this page is 3.1%, for August 2026. Against the previous reading of 2.9%, that is +0.2% — a move up. Monthly, mid-month for the previous month is how often Office for National Statistics (ONS), CPI annual rate 00: all items (series D7G7) publishes it, so a single reading is a snapshot and not a trend. The 24 observations in the table above, from September 2024 onwards, are what gives the figure context.
Where the uk inflation rate (cpi) figure sits in its own history
Across the 24 readings loaded here, the series moved between 1.7% and 3.8%. The latest value sits inside that range, so nothing in this window is exceptional. A window this short cannot show a cycle. It shows the direction of travel and the size of the usual swing, which is enough to tell a normal move from an unusual one, and no more than that.
Who sets the uk inflation rate (cpi) and who it affects in United Kingdom
Office for National Statistics (ONS), CPI annual rate 00: all items (series D7G7) publishes the uk inflation rate (cpi) series, and the page links the exact dataset and its licence below. Nothing here is a second-hand copy: the figure above is read from that source and shown with the date the source gave it. People reach this page searching for "uk inflation rate", and the honest answer is the published figure plus its date. A national figure is an average: your own rate, bill or salary in United Kingdom will sit above or below it.
Glossary
Policy rate
The interest rate a central bank sets to steer the economy, and the floor under most other rates in that currency. It moves only when the rate-setting committee decides, so its history is a series of steps rather than a continuous line.
Year-on-year inflation
The change in a price index against the same month a year earlier. It can fall while prices are still rising, because it measures the speed of the increase, not the level of prices.
Basis point
One hundredth of a percentage point. Central banks and markets talk in basis points because "a 0.25 point cut" and "a 25 basis point cut" are the same thing, and the second wording leaves no room for doubt.
Real rate
An interest rate after inflation is taken out, roughly the quoted rate minus the inflation rate. A savings account paying less than inflation has a negative real rate, which means the money loses purchasing power.
Revision
A later correction of a published figure, as the statistics office receives more complete data. Values marked provisional or estimated are the ones most likely to change, which is why the page keeps the source flag.
National average
A figure averaged over a whole country, and therefore not a quote for you. Your own mortgage rate, salary or grocery bill depends on your region, your lender or your shop and will sit above or below the average.
Yield
The annual return an investor earns by lending money through a bond, expressed as a percentage of its price. Price and yield move in opposite directions: when a bond gets cheaper, its yield rises.
Source: Office for National Statistics (ONS), CPI annual rate 00: all items (series D7G7)
Licence: Open Government Licence v3.0 (contains public sector information)
Update frequency: Monthly, mid-month for the previous month
Information only, not financial advice. Figures come from the official source shown and may be revised.