The Consumer Price Index for January 2026 uses a new classification scheme, European Classification of Individual Consumption by Purpose Version 2 (ECOICOP Ver. 2). This replaces the existing ECOICOP classification. The change in classification scheme will not impact on the overall rate of the CPI. More information is available under our Methodology Documents page.
From January 2026, there is also a change to the methodology for some Non-Energy Industrial Goods items. Further details of this can be found on the methodology page Methodology Change for Some Non-Energy Industrial Goods.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 2.7% between January 2025 and January 2026, down from an annual increase of 2.8% in the 12 months to December 2025.
Excluding Energy and Unprocessed Food, the CPI grew by 2.8% in the 12 months to January 2026.
The divisions with the largest increases in the 12 months to January 2026 were Education Services (+8.9%) and Clothing & Footwear (+7.3%).
The only divisions to record a decline when compared with January 2025 were Furnishings, Household Equipment & Routine Household Maintenance (-0.6%) and Transport (-0.1%).
Consumer prices fell by 0.9% in the month between December 2025 and January 2026.
The divisions with the largest declines in the month were Clothing & Footwear (-7.2%) and Recreation, Sport & Culture (-3.1%).
The divisions to record the largest rises in the month were Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco (+2.7%) and Health (+0.3%).
From 19 February 2026, CPI PxStat tables incorporate ECOICOP Ver. 2, with the previous tables archived and replaced as follows:
CPM20 replaces CPM01 Consumer Price Index by Commodity Group
CPM21 replaces CPM03 Consumer Price Index by Selected Sub Indices
CPM22 replaces CPM11 Contributions to changes in the Consumer Price Index
CPM23 replaces CPM15 EU Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices by Commodity Group
CPM24 replaces CPM18 Consumer Price Index by Detailed Sub Indices
CPM25 replaces CPM19 Consumer Price Index by Goods and Services
CPA07 replaces CPA01 Consumer Price Index by Commodity Group
CPA08 replaces CPA02 Consumer Price Index by Selected Sub Indices
CPA09 replaces CPA06 EU Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices by Commodity Group
In addition, CPA10 is a new annual table measuring weights for the CPI and HICP by Commodity Group
Figure 1 shows the development of the CPI and HICP over recent months. The primary difference between CPI and HICP is the inclusion of Mortgage Interest in the CPI, whereas it’s not included in the HICP. Full details of the difference between CPI and HICP can be found in the background notes of this release.
| CPI and HICP | |||||||
| CPI | HICP | ||||||
| % monthly change | % annual change | % monthly change | % annual change | ||||
| Sep 2025 | -0.2 | 2.7 | -0.2 | 2.7 | |||
| Oct 2025 | 0.5 | 2.9 | 0.4 | 2.8 | |||
| Nov 2025 | -0.2 | 3.2 | -0.2 | 3.1 | |||
| Dec 2025 | 0.5 | 2.8 | 0.6 | 2.7 | |||
| Jan 2026 | -0.9 | 2.7 | -1.0 | 2.5 | |||
| X-axis label | CPI | HICP |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 2025 | 1.9 | 1.7 |
| Feb 2025 | 1.8 | 1.4 |
| Mar 2025 | 2 | 1.8 |
| Apr 2025 | 2.2 | 2 |
| May 2025 | 1.7 | 1.4 |
| Jun 2025 | 1.8 | 1.6 |
| Jul 2025 | 1.7 | 1.6 |
| Aug 2025 | 2 | 1.9 |
| Sep 2025 | 2.7 | 2.7 |
| Oct 2025 | 2.9 | 2.8 |
| Nov 2025 | 3.2 | 3.1 |
| Dec 2025 | 2.8 | 2.7 |
| Jan 2026 | 2.7 | 2.5 |
Prices on average, as measured by the CPI, are 2.7% higher in January 2026 compared with January 2025.
The most notable changes in the year were increases in Education Services (+8.9%), Clothing & Footwear (+7.3%), Insurance & Financial Services (+6.1%) and Recreation, Sport & Culture (+4.8%). The only divisions to show a decrease were Furnishings, Household Equipment & Routine Household Maintenance (-0.6%) and Transport (-0.1%).
Consumer Prices in January, as measured by the CPI, decreased by 0.9% in the month. During January of last year, prices fell by 0.8% in the month. The most significant monthly price decreases were in Clothing & Footwear (-7.2%) and Recreation, Sport & Culture (-3.1%). The largest increases were recorded in Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco (+2.7%) and Health (+0.3%).
Table 3 shows the contribution of each 2-digit ECOICOP1 division to the overall change in the CPI. A detailed breakdown of the individual components of each of the 13 ECOICOP divisions is presented in Tables 4 to 16.
The divisions which caused the largest upward percentage point (pp) contributions to the CPI in the year were Restaurants & Accommodation Services (+0.66 pp), Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels (+0.48 pp), Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages (+0.41 pp) and Recreation, Sport & Culture (+0.29 pp).
The divisions to cause a downward contribution to the CPI in the year were Furnishings, Household Equipment & Routine Household Maintenance (-0.03 pp) and Transport (-0.01).
The main factors contributing to the annual change were as follows:
1European Classification of Individual Consumption According to Purpose Version 2.
The divisions which caused the largest downward percentage point contributions to the CPI in the month were Clothing & Footwear (-0.36 pp) and Transport (-0.25 pp). The divisions that caused the largest upward percentage point contributions to the CPI in the month were Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco (+0.09 pp) and Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages (+0.02 pp).
The main factors contributing to the monthly change were as follows:
Tables 4 to 16 detail all ECOICOP sub-indices of the CPI.
Table 2 and table 18 detail selected consumer price index sub-indices. The sub index for Services rose by 3.6% in the year to January, while Goods increased by 1.5%. Services, excluding mortgage interest repayments, increased by 3.5% in the year since January 2025.
The CPI excluding tobacco decreased by 0.9% in the month of January and rose by 2.6% in the year. The CPI excluding mortgage interest fell by 0.9% in the month and climbed by 2.6% in the year.
Prices on average, as measured by the EU Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP), increased by 2.5% compared with January 2025.
Table 20 details the ECOICOP sub-indices for the HICP. The most notable changes in the year were increases in Education Services (+9.0%), Clothing & Footwear (+7.4%), Insurance & Financial Services (+5.4%) and Recreation, Sport & Culture (+4.8%). The only decreases were recorded in Furnishings, Household Equipment & Routine Household Maintenance (-0.7%) and Transport (-0.1%).
The HICP decreased by 1.0% in the month. This compares to a decrease of 0.7% recorded in January of last year.
The most significant monthly price decreases were in Clothing & Footwear (-7.2%) and Recreation, Sport & Culture (-3.1%). There were increases in Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco (+2.7%) and Health (+0.3%).
National Average Prices for selected goods and services for January 2026 are detailed in Table 21.
Looking at the National Average Prices of some staple items:
To calculate the percentage change in the CPI between two periods of time
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (19 February 2026) published the Consumer Price Index (CPI) January 2026.
Commenting on the release, Anthony Dawson, Statistician in the Prices Division, said: “Today’s release of the CPI shows that prices for consumer goods and services in January 2026 rose by 2.7% on average when compared with January 2025.
Annual Changes
The most significant increases in the 12 months to January 2026 were seen in Education Services (+8.9%) and Clothing & Footwear (+7.3%). The annual change in Education Services reflects a rise in costs associated with third-level education which came into effect from October 2025.
Furnishings, Household Equipment & Routine Household Maintenance (-0.6%) and Transport (-0.1%) were the only divisions to show a decline when compared with January 2025.
Monthly Changes
Consumer prices in January 2026 fell by 0.9% in the month compared with January 2025, when prices were down by 0.8% in the month. In January 2026, the most significant monthly price decreases were in Clothing & Footwear (-7.2%) and Recreation, Sport & Culture (-3.1%). The decrease in Clothing & Footwear was due to sales.
Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco (+2.7%) and Health (+0.3%) were the divisions to show the largest increases when compared with December 2025.
It should be noted that these figures relate to the CPI. The Flash Estimate Press Statement published on 30 January 2026 related to the EU Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP).
(See Background Notes for differences between CPI and HICP)."
National Average Prices
The National Average Prices for selected goods and services for January 2026 are also published today. The National Average Prices are compiled together with the CPI.
Commenting on the National Average Prices, Anthony Dawson said: “There were price increases in the 12 months to January 2026 for sirloin steak per kg (+€4.68), Irish cheddar per kg (+45c), a pound of butter (+34c), 2 litres of full fat milk (+6c), and an 800g loaf of white sliced pan (+4c). There were decreases in the price of a 2.5kg bag of potatoes (-22c), and an 800g loaf of brown sliced pan (-1c) when compared with January 2025.”
The comprehensive list of items included in the National Average Prices and their monthly prices are available at: https://data.cso.ie/table/CPM12.