Historical trend
Trend summary
UK CPI inflation was 2.8% in the year to April 2026, above the Bank of England's 2% target.
Trend
- Inflation fell from a peak of 11.1% in October 2022 to 2.8% by April 2026, a decline of 8.3 percentage points.
- Services inflation has remained above 5% throughout 2025–26; goods inflation has turned negative.
- The UK rate (2.8%) is above France (0.8%), Germany (2.2%), and Canada (2.3%), but below Japan (3.6%).
Context
- CPI measures the change in prices of a fixed basket of goods and services; it excludes owner-occupier housing costs.
- The ONS publishes CPI monthly, typically around three weeks after the reference month.
Official projections
The Bank of England (May 2025 Monetary Policy Report) projects CPI to return to around 2% by end-2025 before rising slightly in 2026.
Commentary contains no editorial judgement — describes direction, magnitude, and official projections only.
G7 comparison
UK ranks #5 of 7 in the G7 (lower is better)
🇫🇷 France
0.8 %
🇮🇹 Italy
1.5 %
🇩🇪 Germany
2.2 %
🇺🇸 United States
2.3 %
🇨🇦 Canada
2.3 %
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
2.8 %
🇯🇵 Japan
3.6 %