UK inflation: Consumer Prices Index release dates
The UK’s inflation reports are published monthly. When do they come out and where are prices heading?
UK inflation rose to 3.4% in December 2025, up 0.2 percentage points from November’s reading.
December’s increase was the first since July 2025 as prices had either plateaued or fallen since then, but was widely expected by most forecasters and slightly below the 3.5% the Bank of England had forecast.
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Thankfully, most forecasters expect that December’s reading was just a blip, and that inflation will continue to fall throughout 2026, reaching the Bank of England’s 2% target in late 2026 or early 2027.
Next UK inflation figures
In the UK, the main measure of inflation is CPI. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) releases this once a month. Each reading covers the previous month.
CPI release dates for 2026
- 18 February (covering January)
- 25 March (covering February)
- 22 April (covering March)
- 20 May (covering April)
- 17 June (covering May)
- 22 July (covering June)
- 19 August (covering July)
- 16 September (covering August)
- 21 October (covering September)
- 18 November (covering October)
- 16 December (covering November)
- 20 January 2027 (covering December)
What time is CPI released in the UK?
The ONS releases the latest CPI data at 7am once a month. The reports can be accessed by going onto the ONS website and clicking on its release calendar.
All published inflation reports, as well as pages for upcoming ones, are listed there. The report will be titled, “Consumer price inflation, UK”, followed by the month and year in question.
If you do not want to trawl through the data yourself, MoneyWeek reports on each month’s inflation data, bringing you the latest news and expert commentary, and explains what it means for you.
What is CPI and how is it calculated?
CPI, the main measure of inflation used in the UK, tells you how fast the cost of living is increasing (or decreasing).
It is calculated using a basket of typical household goods and services – from eggs, flour and milk to hotel costs, restaurants and air fryers – and tracking how their prices change.
The CPI basket of goods is adjusted once a year to reflect current trends in consumption. For example, VR headsets and yoga mats were added to the basket in 2025, while oven-ready gammon joints and DVD rentals were removed.
The Bank of England keeps a close eye on CPI when setting interest rates. If inflation is too high, the Bank may raise interest rates to slow consumer spending and cool the economy.
This works to bring prices down because households have less money to spend when mortgage rates are high and debts are more expensive to repay.
Meanwhile, if inflation is too low, the Bank may reduce interest rates so consumers have more disposable income to spend. Due to the laws of supply and demand, this should push prices back up.
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