Monthly Consumer Price Index Indicator

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The monthly CPI indicator is a measure of inflation and includes statistics about prices for categories of households expenditure

Reference period
July 2025
Released
27/08/2025
Release date and time
27/08/2025 11:30am AEST

Key statistics

  • The monthly CPI indicator rose 2.8% in the 12 months to July.
  • The largest contributors to the annual movement were Housing (+3.6%), Food and non-alcoholic beverages (+3.0%), and Alcohol and tobacco (+6.5%). 

What's new this month

The 2025 Commonwealth Energy Bill Relief Fund rebate extension until the end of 2025, applied from July 2025. These rebates have the effect of reducing electricity costs for households. More details on the impact and timing of these rebates are provided below. 

On 23 July the ABS announced that the first release of the complete Monthly CPI will be published on Wednesday 26 November 2025, using the October 2025 reference month. This publication will mark the transition from the quarterly CPI to the Monthly CPI as Australia’s primary measure of headline inflation. More details available on the Complete monthly measure of the CPI

The final release of the monthly CPI indicator will be published for the September 2025 reference month on 29 October 2025.

Main features

Weighted average of eight capital cities, annual movement
 May 24 to May 25 % changeJun 24 to Jun 25 % changeJul 24 to Jul 25 % change
All groups monthly CPI2.11.92.8
Food and non-alcoholic beverages2.93.23.0
 Bread and cereal products2.02.31.9
 Meat and seafood3.13.32.4
 Dairy and related products0.10.30.2
 Fruit and vegetables2.84.94.8
 Food products n.e.c.3.73.83.7
 Non-alcoholic beverages5.25.55.7
Alcohol and tobacco5.95.76.5
 Alcohol3.33.33.8
 Tobacco11.511.112.4
Clothing and footwear1.31.42.3
 Garments1.11.21.2
Housing2.01.63.6
 Rents4.54.23.9
 New dwelling purchases by owner-occupiers0.80.40.4
 Electricity-5.9-6.313.1
 Gas and other household fuels6.54.34.7
Furnishings, household equipment and services0.90.90.9
Health4.44.14.1
Transport-2.5-1.9-1.0
 Automotive fuel-10.0-8.0-5.5
Communications1.00.90.8
Recreation and culture1.4-0.72.6
 Holiday travel and accommodation0.6-3.73.3
Education5.75.65.6
Insurance and financial services3.13.13.1
CPI analytical series   
 Seasonally adjusted2.11.82.8
 CPI excluding volatile items* and holiday travel2.72.53.2
 Annual trimmed mean2.42.12.7

* = Volatile items are Fruit and vegetables and Automotive fuel

Monthly overview

The monthly CPI indicator rose 2.8% in the 12 months to July, following a 1.9% rise in the 12 months to June. 

The monthly CPI indicator excluding volatile items and holiday travel rose 3.2% in the 12 months to July following a 2.5% rise in the 12 months to June. This series excludes Automotive fuel, Fruit and vegetables, and Holiday travel and accommodation. 

The annual trimmed mean is an alternative measure of underlying inflation that reduces the impact of irregular or temporary price changes. Annual trimmed mean inflation, which this month excluded the annual fall in Automotive fuel, and annual rise in Electricity, alongside other large price rises and falls, was 2.7% to July, up from 2.1% to June.

*Volatile items are Fruit and vegetables and Automotive fuel

Electricity

Electricity rose 13.1% in the 12 months to July, compared to a 6.3% fall in the 12 months to June. The large annual rise in electricity costs was due to households using up the State government and Commonwealth Energy Bill Relief Fund (EBRF) rebates in some capital cities, as well as price increases following annual electricity price reviews in July.

State government electricity rebates that have been used up by households over the year include the Queensland $1,000 State rebate, the Western Australia $400 State rebate and the Tasmania $250 State rebate. Rebates reduce electricity costs for households.

In monthly terms, electricity prices rose 13.0% in July. This is due to the timing of when the extended EBRF rebates were applied in some capital cities, combined with annual price reviews that increased electricity prices across all capital cities. 

The EBRF rebates were extended for 6 months from July 2025 to December 2025. However, households in NSW and ACT did not receive payments of the extended Commonwealth Energy Bill Relief Fund (EBRF) in July.  Payment of rebates for households in NSW and ACT will instead commence in August. This means that those households had higher out-of-pocket costs for electricity in July. Combined with general increases in electricity prices this led to strong rises in overall electricity costs in the month of July. 

Commonwealth and State government electricity rebates
 
Commonwealth $150 rebate (EBRF 2025 extension)
TAS $60 State rebate (Renewable Energy Dividend)
Rebate methodApplied directly to electricity bills as two equal $75 quarterly instalments between July 2025 and December 2025 inclusive. (a)Applied directly to electricity bills as a one-off $60 rebate
TimingFrom July 2025 for VIC, QLD, SA, TAS and NT. From August 2025 for NSW and ACT (b). For WA, households will receive rebates later in the year. From May 2025
  1. This applies to all States and Territories, except WA, where rebates will be paid later in the year.
  2. For States and Territories receiving rebates from August 2025, the households whose billing cycle is in July 2025 will receive two instalments in October 2025.

The following graph shows the Electricity series including and excluding government electricity rebates. The EBRF rebates were first introduced in July 2023 and were expanded to all households in July 2024. These rebates were extended in July 2025 until the end of 2025. These rebates have had the effect of reducing electricity prices for households. Including government electricity rebates, electricity prices for households have increased by 13.8% since June 2023. Excluding these rebates, electricity prices for households would have increased 23.0% since June 2023. 

June 2023, index = 100

a. Introduction of the 2023-24 Commonwealth Energy Bill Relief Fund (EBRF) rebates

b. Introduction of the first instalment of the 2024-25 EBRF rebates for all households in QLD and WA, and State rebates in QLD, WA and TAS

c. Introduction of the first instalment of the extended 2024-25 EBRF rebates for all households in VIC, QLD, SA, TAS and NT

Rents

Rents rose 3.9% in the 12 months to July down from a 4.2% rise in the 12 months to June. This is the lowest annual growth in rental prices since November 2022, consistent with stable vacancy rates across most capital cities. In monthly terms, rental prices rose 0.3% in July. 

  1. Commonwealth Rent Assistance (CRA) maximum rates increased by 15% on top of the usual biannual CPI indexation from 20 September 2023.
  2. Commonwealth Rent Assistance (CRA) maximum rates increased by 10% on top of the usual biannual CPI indexation from 20 September 2024. 

Gas and other household fuels

Gas prices rose 4.7% in the twelve months to July, up from a rise of 4.3% in the twelve months to June. The rise is due to annual price reviews in July 2025, reflecting higher operating costs over the last year. In monthly terms, Gas prices rose 6.2% in July.

New dwellings

New dwelling prices, which capture new builds and major renovations, rose 0.4% in the 12 months to July, compared to a 0.4% rise in the 12 months to June. 

In the month of July, new dwelling prices rose 0.4% as project home builders increased prices and reduced discounts and promotional offers in some cities.

Food and non-alcoholic beverages

Annual inflation for Food and non-alcoholic beverages was 3.0% in July, down from 3.2% in June. 

Fruit and vegetable prices rose 4.8% in the 12 months to July, compared to a 4.9% rise in the 12 months to June. Fruit rose 1.8% in the month of July with higher prices for avocados, grapes and raspberries.

Food products n.e.c. rose 3.7% in the 12 months to July, down from a 3.8% rise in the 12 months to June. Higher cocoa bean prices and egg shortages have contributed to price rises for snacks and confectionery (+5.6%) and eggs (+18.0%) in the 12 months to July.

Non-alcoholic beverages rose 5.7% in the 12 months to July, compared to a 5.5% rise in the 12 months to June. Coffee, tea and cocoa rose 14.4% over the year to July, reflecting higher coffee bean prices. 

Holiday travel and accommodation

Holiday travel and accommodation prices rose 3.3% in the 12 months to July, following a 3.7% fall in the 12 months to June. 

In monthly terms, Holiday travel and accommodation prices rose 4.7% in July. This was driven by Domestic holiday travel with a rise in demand for the July school holidays. 

Automotive fuel

Automotive fuel prices fell 5.5% in the 12 months to July, compared to a fall of 8.0% in the 12 months to June. Average unleaded fuel prices were 10 cents per litre lower compared to July 2024. 

In July, Automotive fuel prices were unchanged for the month, following a 3.5% rise in June.

Data downloads

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Data explorer for the monthly CPI indicator.

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Detailed monthly data

Monthly Expenditure class data

About the monthly CPI indicator

What is the monthly CPI Indicator?

Introducing monthly indicators of underlying inflation

Articles

Measuring Rents in the CPI 

Using price indexes

Price indexes published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) provide summary measures of the movements in various categories of prices over time. They are published primarily for use in Government economic analysis. 

Consistent with existing policy, the ABS does not comment on the use (or otherwise) of the price indexes we publish. However, it should be noted that the monthly CPI indicator may be routinely subject to revision, in contrast to the quarterly CPI which is only revised in exceptional circumstances.

Use of Price Indexes in Contracts sets out a range of issues that should be taken into account by parties considering including an Indexation Clause in a contract using an ABS published price index.

Frequently asked questions

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) specific to the monthly CPI indicator can be found in the Information paper: Introducing a monthly CPI indicator for Australia FAQs 

In addition, the Frequently Asked Questions page has answers to a number of common questions to do with price indexes and the quarterly Consumer Price Index in particular.

Methodology

Scope

The monthly CPI indicator is a general measure of price change for goods and services purchased by Australian households.

Geography

Monthly data is published at the national level, derived as a weighted average of the eight capital cities.

Source

Prices are collected for a range of goods and services (the CPI basket) from a variety of retailers across the eight capital cities.

Collection method

Prices are collected in a range of frequencies including monthly, quarterly, and annually using: 

  • web-scraping
  • online and telephone collections from retailers
  • administrative data, including supermarket scanner data.

Concepts, sources and methods

Information about the data sources and methods used to compile the CPI is contained in the Consumer Price Index: Concepts, Sources and Methods.

History of changes

  • Annual update of CPI weights January 2025.
  • Annual update of CPI weights January 2024.
  • Partial update of CPI weights July 2023.
  • Monthly Gas series included June 2023.
  • Annual trimmed mean included April 2023.
  • Monthly Electricity included February 2023.
View full methodology
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