Copyright ZeroHedge
Even as headline inflation stabilizes, the cost of everyday items and services in the U.S. continues to shift unevenly across categories. For example, while beef has gotten more expensive, eggs have gotten cheaper. In this graphic, Visual Capitalist's Marcus Lu breaks down inflation by product type, revealing where Americans are seeing the biggest price changes. Data & Discussion The data for this visualization comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), accessed via USAFacts. It details year-over-year inflation rates from Sept. 2024 to Sept. 2025, based on CPI-U (a measure of the average change over time in prices paid by urban consumers). ProductInflation (%)🥩 Beef & veal14.7🚗 Car maintenance & repair7.7🏠 Home insurance7.5🚬 Tobacco products6.9🍭 Sugar & sweets6.7⚡ Electricity6.4🏥 Hospital services5.8🚰 Water & trash collection services4.8📦 Postage & delivery services4.7🛠️ Tools and home hardware4.3🩺 Health insurance4.2🛋️ Furniture & bedding3.8🐶 Pets (incl. products & services)3.5🏢 Rent3.4🚘 Car insurance3.1🎓 School tuition2.9🥕 Fresh vegetables2.8🐟 Seafood2.1💍 Jewelry & watches2.0🚌 Public transportation1.8🚙 New & used cars1.7🥓 Pork1.6🐔 Poultry1.4👟 Footwear1.3🔌 Appliances1.3🩻 Medical equipment & supplies0.8🧀 Dairy products0.7💊 Medicinal drugs0.6🍷 Alcoholic beverages0.3🏀 Sporting goods0🍎 Fresh fruits-0.2⛽ Gas-0.4🥚 Eggs-1.3📞 Telephone services-1.8👗 Women's apparel-2.0💻 IT hardware & services-2.0 Food and Household Staples Lead Price Increases Among the categories shown, beef and veal prices jumped 14.7%, leading the pack. Food inflation has been a major pain point in recent years, with a recent survey finding that 90% of American adults are stressed about the cost of groceries. Sugar, sweets, and other processed food items also became more expensive, reinforcing the trend that grocery store essentials are rising in cost. Deflation Hits Tech, Apparel, and Energy While some prices continue to climb, other categories are seeing declines. IT hardware and services (-2%), women’s apparel (-2%), and gasoline (-0.4%) have all recorded price decreases over the past year ending Sept. 2025. Note that within the IT hardware category (e.g. computers, peripherals, smart-home devices), the BLS makes price adjustments based on quality. As devices become more capable, the “effective price” paid by consumers may fall even if nominal sticker prices have not.
