The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in Urban Alaska rose by 0.8 percent over the two months ending in August 2025, according to a report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund stated that the index for all items less food and energy increased by 0.5 percent during this period. The food index went up by 0.6 percent, while the energy index saw a rise of 4.8 percent.
Over the past year, the Anchorage area’s all items CPI-U increased by 2.4 percent as of August. The index for all items less food and energy advanced by 2.3 percent over the same period, with the food index rising by 4.0 percent and the energy index increasing by 0.8 percent.
Within the last two months, prices for food at home—grocery store purchases—fell slightly by 0.1 percent, with three out of six major grocery store food groups seeing lower prices. In contrast, prices for food away from home—which includes restaurant, cafeteria, and vending purchases—increased by 2.0 percent.
For the twelve-month period ending in August, prices for food at home were up by 2.5 percent, with increases noted in four out of six major grocery store categories. Food away from home costs rose more sharply at 7.1 percent.
The energy index climbed by 4.8 percent over two months, largely due to gasoline prices increasing by 4.4 percent during that time frame; gasoline was up just under one percent over the year.
In terms of other components excluding food and energy, apparel prices grew by 6.1 percent and shelter costs increased by 1.1 percent during the last two months measured; meanwhile, new and used motor vehicle prices declined by 0.8 percent.
Looking at annual changes excluding food and energy, shelter prices rose significantly at a rate of 4.2 percent while recreation costs fell by nearly two percent.
The next release covering October’s Consumer Price Index data for Anchorage is scheduled for November 13, 2025.
According to information provided with this release, the Consumer Price Index tracks average price changes over time within a fixed market basket of goods and services and is published bi-monthly for Urban Alaska—which covers Anchorage and Matanuska-Susitna Borough—and is subject to greater volatility than national or regional indexes due to smaller sample sizes and lack of seasonal adjustment (https://www.bls.gov/cpi/). These local indexes do not compare absolute price levels between cities but instead reflect changes since their base periods.
Additional historical data can be accessed through BLS data query tools linked in Table 1 of this release under historical data (https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/CUURA423SA0?amp%253bdata_tool=XGtable&output_view=data&include_graphs=true).
Further details about CPI methodology are available via national CPI news releases or through the BLS Handbook of Methods (https://www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cpi/home.htm).
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