India May 2026 CPI Inflation Release
The Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for May 2026, reporting a provisional year-on-year retail inflation rate of 3.93% for the month, based on the new 2024=100 base year. This represents an increase from the final April 2026 inflation rate of 3.48%. The inflation trajectory shows a consistent rise from 2.74% in January 2026 to the current 3.93% in May 2026.
Key National Statistics
At the national level, rural inflation was higher at 4.25% while urban inflation stood at 3.53%. The Consumer Food Price Index (CFPI) showed food inflation accelerating to 4.78% in May from 4.20% in April, with rural food inflation at 4.85% and urban at 4.66%. Housing inflation was more moderate at 2.12% nationally, with rural housing inflation at 2.73% and urban at 1.91%.
The CPI index values for May 2026 stood at 105.91 for combined, 106.11 for rural, and 105.66 for urban areas. Corresponding CFPI values were 105.35 combined, 105.07 rural, and 105.83 urban.
Extreme Price Movements
The report highlighted significant disparities in price movements across different items. The top five items with the highest inflation at the All India combined level were Silver Jewellery (155.23%), Tomato (48.43%), Gold/Diamond/Platinum Jewellery (40.93%), Ginger (32.49%), and Raisin (kishmish) and monacca (21.97%). Conversely, the items with the lowest inflation (deflation) were Potato (-23.71%), Peas (-11.47%), Motor car and jeep (-7.19%), Cumin (jeera) (-4.59%), and Motor cycle and scooter (-3.56%).
Division-Wise Inflation Breakdown
The data provided detailed division-wise inflation rates showing significant variation across categories. Personal care, social protection and miscellaneous goods and services showed exceptionally high inflation at 18.46% combined (19.52% rural, 17.07% urban). Restaurants and accommodation services inflation was 5.75%, while Food and beverages stood at 4.55%. The lowest inflation was recorded in Information and communication at 0.30%.
State-Level Variations
At the state level, among states with more than 50 lakh population, Telangana recorded the highest combined inflation at 6.15%, followed by Andhra Pradesh at 4.90%, Tamil Nadu at 5.11%, Karnataka at 4.59%, and Odisha at 4.54%. The northeastern state of Mizoram recorded the lowest combined inflation at 1.03%.
Data Collection Methodology
The data was collected from 1,407 urban markets (including online markets) and 1,465 villages covering all States/UTs through personal visits by field staff. The response rate for May 2026 was 100% in both rural and urban markets. The next CPI release for June 2026 is scheduled for July 13, 2026. Detailed state and item-wise indices are available on the eSankhyiki portal of MoSPI, though state-level item indices should be interpreted cautiously due to thin samples in some cases.