by Mia Taylor
Last updated: 4:20 PM ET, Wed October 14, 2026
Daily life keeps getting more expensive for Americans.
The latest Consumer Price Index (CPI), released today, shows costs rose 0.6% in September, after rising 0.4% in August. Over the past 12 months, the all-items index has shot up 3.7%.
One of the steepest increases recorded on the index directly impacts travelers: The cost of gasoline increased 9.1% in September. The news comes as many Americans plan road trips for the holiday season.
Additional travel-related indexes that increased in September include food away from home (up 0.2%), full-service meals (up 0.3%), and limited-service meals (up 0.2%).
The CPI increase is higher than forecast, and much of the rise is linked to soaring gasoline prices, which have ticked up steadily due to the US-Israel conflict with Iran.
Tariffs introduced by the Trump Administration during his second term have also played a significant role, according to research conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported by the BBC.
After the Supreme Court outlawed most tariffs earlier this year, the administration introduced a new 10% global tariff on most US trading partners worldwide. That has increased prices for US companies, and those increases are typically passed on to consumers.
Airfare rises sharply
Airline fares are continuing their steady march upward as well, rising 1.2% in September, according to the CPI. While some consumers have shown they're willing to keep paying steep prices, others are growing weary and turning to other modes of travel, such as road trips.
A separate index, the NerdWallet Travel Price Index, shows that, on average, US travel costs are 9% higher as of October than at the same time last year. Airfare costs alone are up 22.4% over the past year. Costs like lodging are also trending higher, up 4.3% year over year.
The NerdWallet index is based on data from individual travel categories tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics' (BLS) Consumer Price Index, such as airfares, lodging, meals and rental cars.
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