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Vol. I, No. 6 Afternoon Edition

The Fed Gazette

A civic journal of money and credit

Live Federal Reserve rates, FOMC decisions, speeches, and Treasury data, with every figure copied from the agency that published it.

Prices and inflation

PCE Inflation: Personal Consumption Expenditures Chart

The PCE price index was 131.579 for August 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, via GOVSPENDING.ORG.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (Personal Income and Outlays), via GOVSPENDING.ORG, PCEPI, Personal consumption expenditures chain-type price index, monthly; U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (Personal Income and Outlays), via GOVSPENDING.ORG, PCEPILFE, Personal consumption expenditures chain-type price index excluding food and energy, monthly · Published · Updated

The Personal Consumption Expenditures price index, headline and core, with a chart back to 1959, what changed since last month, and a plain explanation. The figures are index levels copied as published. This paper does not compute an inflation rate.

  • All items 131.579 August 2026 Higher than the previous print
  • Excluding food and energy (core) 130.455 August 2026 Higher than the previous print

PCE Inflation chart

PCE price index over time

Monthly index levels for all items and for all items less food and energy, as published. Each point is a stored monthly print.

126127128129130131132Oct 25Jan 26Apr 26Jul 26126127128129130131132Oct 25Jan 26Apr 26Jul 26
1001101201301402022202320242025202610011012013014020222023202420252026
90100110120130140201820202022202420269010011012013014020182020202220242026
0501001501960196519701975198019851990199520002005201020152020202505010015019601975199020052020
  • All items 131.579 Aug 1, 2026
  • Excluding food and energy (core) 130.455 Aug 1, 2026

Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (Personal Income and Outlays), via GOVSPENDING.ORG, PCEPI, Personal consumption expenditures chain-type price index, monthly · as of · retrieved

Data
PCE price index over time, the last print of each calendar quarter (a sample of the plotted lines)
PeriodAll itemsExcluding food and energy (core)
March 195915.18915.531
June 195915.27115.635
September 195915.36515.738
December 195915.4315.818
March 196015.44615.853
June 196015.52515.917
September 196015.58815.981
December 196015.66216.028
March 196115.6716.053
June 196115.67716.12
September 196115.74216.194
December 196115.74616.216
March 196215.83916.3
June 196215.87716.356
September 196215.96916.404
December 196215.95816.42
March 196316.00116.48
June 196316.06116.558
September 196316.11216.618
December 196316.1916.694
March 196416.25716.765
June 196416.29416.806
September 196416.35216.852
December 196416.40916.907
March 196516.45516.96
June 196516.56617.007
September 196516.5917.076
December 196516.68317.154
March 196616.81317.223
June 196616.93417.387
September 196617.08617.524
December 196617.19217.679
March 196717.22217.754
June 196717.33917.887
September 196717.50518.067
December 196717.6418.237
March 196817.85218.47
June 196818.03218.681
September 196818.22418.892
December 196818.40419.098
March 196918.6119.326
June 196918.85819.545
September 196919.07219.77
December 196919.30820.005
March 197019.50220.223
June 197019.71420.448
September 197019.92720.683
December 197020.19420.997
March 197120.36321.228
June 197120.61921.485
September 197120.77221.633
December 197120.92921.784
March 197221.12821.979
June 197221.23922.126
September 197221.47322.31
December 197221.6322.449
March 197321.96422.625
June 197322.36322.943
September 197322.79323.265
December 197323.323.598
March 197424.07324.051
June 197424.6924.715
September 197425.39325.4
December 197425.97125.968
March 197526.36326.441
June 197526.72426.813
September 197527.20427.218
December 197527.6927.702
March 197627.87328.047
June 197628.19228.405
September 197628.65128.894
December 197629.09429.326
March 197729.6429.812
June 197730.13130.292
September 197730.54330.758
December 197731.01131.227
March 197831.54231.706
June 197832.21732.278
September 197832.74232.83
December 197833.34533.378
March 197934.0433.852
June 197935.03834.655
September 197935.88935.299
December 197936.73936.041
March 198037.98737.017
June 198038.72537.756
September 198039.71538.657
December 198040.62139.518
March 198141.71540.375
June 198142.25341.117
September 198143.03341.915
December 198143.59442.568
March 198244.09843.182
June 198244.70443.808
September 198245.23344.459
December 198245.69345.049
March 198346.04345.583
June 198346.55746.001
September 198347.18546.738
December 198347.35846.965
March 198448.04147.598
June 198448.37148.046
September 198448.75948.486
December 198449.08148.891
March 198549.74949.593
June 198550.07549.988
September 198550.44950.484
December 198550.8550.827
March 198650.97251.389
June 198651.15151.725
September 198651.39652.096
December 198651.65152.452
March 198752.21452.841
June 198752.74153.36
September 198753.25153.892
December 198753.6254.349
March 198854.09354.952
June 198854.74655.641
September 198855.44456.307
December 198855.92856.864
March 198956.61257.468
June 198957.32257.987
September 198957.59458.419
December 198958.11358.954
March 199059.03359.754
June 199059.55260.349
September 199060.46560.965
December 199060.94561.331
March 199161.22161.936
June 199161.6962.442
September 199162.14463.055
December 199162.55363.468
March 199262.94963.973
June 199263.31564.323
September 199263.71364.73
December 199264.17665.242
March 199364.56165.7
June 199364.95566.177
September 199365.23866.538
December 199365.58266.849
March 199465.93767.275
June 199466.27267.676
September 199466.70867.997
December 199466.99168.305
March 199567.3768.755
June 199567.71769.092
September 199567.99569.458
December 199568.369.77
March 199668.76770.102
June 199669.09170.373
September 199669.49970.78
December 199669.91471.068
March 199770.22571.46
June 199770.35271.758
September 199770.6271.927
December 199770.70172.1
March 199870.7172.349
June 199870.83572.461
September 199871.06772.795
December 199871.29873.076
March 199971.41273.177
June 199971.82673.474
September 199972.40773.837
December 199972.76374.128
March 200073.50574.568
June 200073.75474.754
September 200074.25275.203
December 200074.57175.515
March 200175.05576.009
June 200175.51876.318
September 200175.22776.118
December 200175.36376.828
March 200275.76377.11
June 200276.22577.534
September 200276.68177.972
December 200276.97178.187
March 200377.72578.474
June 200377.58878.718
September 200378.32379.114
December 200378.60579.467
March 200479.19979.934
June 200479.83180.379
September 200480.10480.656
December 200480.80181.109
March 200581.37581.737
June 200581.782.056
September 200583.17282.425
December 200583.13182.959
March 200683.74683.509
June 200684.56984.186
September 200684.90284.573
December 200685.03284.88
March 200785.89485.494
June 200786.52985.859
September 200787.05486.351
December 200787.98486.92
March 200888.63587.349
June 200889.82787.76
September 200890.24788.116
December 200888.09887.909
March 200988.16988.015
June 200988.91288.392
September 200989.32488.755
December 200989.93989.236
March 201090.26189.579
June 201090.30189.767
September 201090.59289.906
December 201091.26890.179
March 201192.16690.667
June 201192.81991.191
September 201193.32791.57
December 201193.57491.96
March 201294.28492.521
June 201294.25492.85
September 201294.89393.119
December 201295.09493.514
March 201395.48893.891
June 201395.67394.209
September 201395.97694.543
December 201396.41494.961
March 201496.81595.25
June 201497.25395.682
September 201497.41396.013
December 201497.1296.249
March 201597.00896.47
June 201597.51696.882
September 201597.47797.196
December 201597.45697.396
March 201697.67397.876
June 201698.32598.386
September 201698.66698.834
December 201699.07199.12
March 201799.53599.519
June 201799.76699.937
September 2017100.4100.24
December 2017100.821100.683
March 2018101.524101.419
June 2018102.029101.872
September 2018102.418102.205
December 2018102.701102.735
March 2019103.069103.058
June 2019103.484103.56
September 2019103.733103.873
December 2019104.307104.322
March 2020104.271104.632
June 2020104.27104.565
September 2020105.057105.41
December 2020105.699105.896
March 2021107.019106.865
June 2021108.668108.522
September 2021109.948109.548
December 2021112.088111.28
March 2022114.425112.807
June 2022116.512114.273
September 2022117.307115.727
December 2022118.372116.923
March 2023119.564118.295
June 2023120.41119.35
September 2023121.403120.053
December 2023121.76120.694
March 2024123.093122.016
June 2024123.504122.667
September 2024124.146123.462
December 2024124.984124.198
March 2025125.869125.144
June 2025126.73126.133
September 2025127.601126.94
December 2025128.455127.765
March 2026130.105129.03
June 2026131.106129.969
August 2026131.579130.455
Cite this

Cite the agency first. This paper is the place you read the figure, as of Aug 1, 2026.

  • APA U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (Personal Income and Outlays), via GOVSPENDING.ORG. (2026, August 1). PCEPI, Personal consumption expenditures chain-type price index, monthly [Data set]. https://govspending.org/series/PCEPI/ Retrieved October 6, 2026, via The Fed Gazette, https://fedgazette.com/pce-inflation/#chart-pce-inflation-0
  • MLA U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (Personal Income and Outlays), via GOVSPENDING.ORG. “PCEPI, Personal consumption expenditures chain-type price index, monthly.” PCEPI, Personal consumption expenditures chain-type price index, monthly, data as of 1 Aug. 2026, https://govspending.org/series/PCEPI/. Accessed 6 Oct. 2026 via The Fed Gazette, https://fedgazette.com/pce-inflation/#chart-pce-inflation-0.
  • Chicago U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (Personal Income and Outlays), via GOVSPENDING.ORG. “PCEPI, Personal consumption expenditures chain-type price index, monthly.” Data as of August 1, 2026. https://govspending.org/series/PCEPI/. Retrieved October 6, 2026 via The Fed Gazette, https://fedgazette.com/pce-inflation/#chart-pce-inflation-0.
Cite this

Cite the agency first. This paper is the place you read the figure, as of Aug 1, 2026.

  • APA U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (Personal Income and Outlays), via GOVSPENDING.ORG. (2026, August 1). PCEPILFE, Personal consumption expenditures chain-type price index excluding food and energy, monthly [Data set]. https://govspending.org/series/PCEPILFE/ Retrieved October 6, 2026, via The Fed Gazette, https://fedgazette.com/pce-inflation/#chart-pce-inflation-0
  • MLA U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (Personal Income and Outlays), via GOVSPENDING.ORG. “PCEPILFE, Personal consumption expenditures chain-type price index excluding food and energy, monthly.” PCEPILFE, Personal consumption expenditures chain-type price index excluding food and energy, monthly, data as of 1 Aug. 2026, https://govspending.org/series/PCEPILFE/. Accessed 6 Oct. 2026 via The Fed Gazette, https://fedgazette.com/pce-inflation/#chart-pce-inflation-0.
  • Chicago U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (Personal Income and Outlays), via GOVSPENDING.ORG. “PCEPILFE, Personal consumption expenditures chain-type price index excluding food and energy, monthly.” Data as of August 1, 2026. https://govspending.org/series/PCEPILFE/. Retrieved October 6, 2026 via The Fed Gazette, https://fedgazette.com/pce-inflation/#chart-pce-inflation-0.

As of August 2026 · U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (Personal Income and Outlays), via GOVSPENDING.ORG · PCEPI, Personal consumption expenditures chain-type price index, monthly · Index 2017=100 · original series PCEPI on FRED · Retrieved

As of August 2026 · U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (Personal Income and Outlays), via GOVSPENDING.ORG · PCEPILFE, Personal consumption expenditures chain-type price index excluding food and energy, monthly · Index 2017=100 · original series PCEPILFE on FRED · Retrieved

PCE price index: what changed since the last print

The latest all items print is 131.579 for August 2026, higher than the print before it, 131.172 for July 2026. About a year earlier, for August 2025, it was 127.229, and the latest print is higher than that.

The latest excluding food and energy (core) print is 130.455 for August 2026, higher than the print before it, 130.133 for July 2026. About a year earlier, for August 2025, it was 126.646, and the latest print is higher than that.

This paper says only whether the latest stored print is higher than, lower than, or the same as an earlier stored print, and prints both. It does not compute a difference or a percent.

PeriodAll itemsExcluding food and energy (core)
August 2026131.579130.455
July 2026131.172130.133
June 2026131.106129.969
May 2026131.241129.796
April 2026130.672129.395
March 2026130.105129.03
February 2026129.293128.701
January 2026128.845128.27
December 2025128.455127.765
November 2025128.045127.363
October 2025127.79127.165
September 2025127.601126.94

What the PCE price index is, in plain English

The PCE price index measures the prices of the goods and services that households buy, built from the Bureau of Economic Analysis’s accounts of personal consumption spending. It is published as an index, set to a round base value in a base year.

The Federal Open Market Committee states its longer-run inflation goal in terms of the annual change in the PCE price index. That is why the Fed’s own materials lean on PCE, even though the CPI is better known.

Core PCE leaves out food and energy. This paper prints the index levels as published and does not compute the annual change. The Bureau of Economic Analysis publishes it.

PCE
Personal consumption expenditures: what households spend on goods and services.
Chain-type price index
An index that updates its spending weights over time, as the Bureau of Economic Analysis builds this one.
Core PCE
The index less food and energy.

PCE price index questions answered

What is the latest PCE price index?

The PCE price index was 131.579 for August 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, via GOVSPENDING.ORG.

What is the PCE price index?

It is the Bureau of Economic Analysis’s measure of the prices of what households buy, built from its personal consumption spending accounts.

Why does the Fed use PCE and not CPI?

The FOMC’s stated longer-run goal for inflation is written in terms of the PCE price index. The two measures differ in what they cover and how they weight spending.

Is PCE the same as the inflation rate?

No. PCE is an index level. The inflation rate is its percent change over a period. This paper prints the level as published and leaves the percent change to the Bureau.

How often does PCE update?

Monthly, with the Personal Income and Outlays release. The period for the latest print is shown beside the figure.