Consumer Price Index, April 2025
Released: 2025-05-20
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 1.7% year over year in April, down from a 2.3% increase in March. The slowdown in April was driven by lower energy prices, which fell 12.7% following a 0.3% decline in March. Excluding energy, the CPI rose 2.9% in April, following a 2.5% increase in March.
Moderating the slowdown in the CPI in April were higher prices for travel tours (+6.7%) and food purchased from stores (+3.8%).
On a monthly basis, the CPI fell 0.1% in April. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, the CPI was down 0.2%.
Chart 1
The 12-month change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and CPI excluding energy
Chart 2
Transportation prices contribute the most to the slowdown in headline inflation, due largely to lower gasoline prices
Energy prices fall year over year in April
Gasoline led the decline in consumer energy prices, falling 18.1% year over year in April, following a 1.6% decline in March. The price decrease in April was mainly driven by the removal of the consumer carbon price. Lower crude oil prices also contributed to the decline. Global oil demand decreased due to slowing international trade related to tariffs. In addition, supply from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its partners (OPEC+) increased.
Year over year, prices for natural gas fell 14.1% in April, after a 6.4% gain in March. The removal of the consumer carbon price contributed to the decline in April.
Chart 3
Energy prices fall in April
Infographic 1
Gasoline prices decline year over year in April
Focus on Canada and the United States
Tariffs affect many facets of the economy, including inflation. The imposition of tariffs by the United States and countermeasure tariffs by the Canadian government can result in varying effects on final consumer prices. Read more about the potential impacts of US tariffs on the Bank of Canada's website.
No special adjustments will be required to the Consumer Price Index for tariffs, as their effect is embedded in the final prices collected.
Statistics Canada will continue to monitor developments on tariffs and the impact on consumer price inflation.
For more data and insights on areas touched by the socio-economic relationship between Canada and the United States, see the Focus on Canada and the United States webpage.
Consumers pay more for groceries in April
In April, prices for food purchased from stores grew at a faster pace, increasing 3.8% year over year compared with 3.2% in March. Prices for food purchased from stores have been increasing at a faster rate than the all-items CPI for three consecutive months.
The largest contributors to the year-over-year acceleration in April were fresh vegetables (+3.7%), fresh or frozen beef (+16.2%), coffee and tea (+13.4%), sugar and confectionery (+8.6%) and other food preparations (+3.2%).
Prices for food purchased from restaurants also rose at a faster rate in April, increasing 3.6% year over year, following a 3.2% gain in March.
Chart 4
Price growth accelerates in four of the seven major food components
Prices for travel tours rise at a faster pace
Year over year, prices for travel tours rose 6.7% in April, after a 4.7% decline in March. On a month-over-month basis, prices for travel tours rose 3.7% in April after an 8.0% decline in March.
Explore the Consumer Price Index tools
Check out Statistics Canada's Food Price Data Hub, which features a variety of food price related statistics, articles and tools.
Check out the Personal Inflation Calculator. This interactive calculator allows you to enter dollar amounts in the common expense categories to produce a personalized inflation rate, which you can compare with the official measure of inflation for the average Canadian household—the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
Browse the Consumer Price Index Data Visualization Tool to access current (Latest Snapshot of the CPI) and historical (Price trends: 1914 to today) CPI data in a customizable visual format.
Regional highlights
On a yearly basis, prices rose at a slower pace in nine provinces in April compared with March. The only province with faster price growth was Quebec, as prices for gasoline (-12.1%) fell to a lesser extent compared with other provinces. Quebec consumers were not impacted by the removal of the federal consumer carbon price because of the province's cap-and-trade system.
In Nova Scotia, an HST rate decrease in April contributed to slower year-over-year price growth in the province.
Chart 5
The Consumer Price Index rises at a slower pace in nine provinces
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Note to readers
Visit the Consumer Price Index portal to find all Consumer Price Index (CPI) data, publications, interactive tools and announcements highlighting new products and upcoming changes to the CPI in one convenient location.
Enhancement to the passenger vehicle and homeowners' home insurance price indexes
With this release, the passenger vehicle and homeowners' home insurance price indexes are now calculated using an enhanced methodology. For more information, please consult the technical paper, "Enhancements to the passenger vehicle and homeowners' home insurance price indexes," describing the new approach.
Consumer Price Index basket update in June 2025
The CPI is based on a fixed basket of goods and services designed according to international standards and methods. On June 17, 2025, updated basket weights for the goods and services used in the calculation of the CPI will be made available in table 18-10-0007-01. The new basket weight reference period will be 2024, based on the most recent household final consumption expenditure data, updated expenditures from the Survey of Household Spending and other alternative data. The methods and data sources used will be similar to the last basket update in June 2024.
One week later, on June 24, 2025, the May CPI will be released, based on the updated basket weights.
For general information on basket updates, consult The Canadian Consumer Price Index reference paper, chapter 8, "Weights and basket updates."
Planned maintenance
The Consumer Price Index Data Visualization Tool will be temporarily unavailable from June 17 to 24, 2025, due to planned maintenance related to the updated basket.
Update: Consumer Price Index (CPI), all-items excluding food, energy and the effect of indirect taxes
With the release of the May 2025 CPI on June 24, Statistics Canada will incorporate two new series into Table 18-10-0256-01:
- Consumer Price Index (CPI), all-items excluding food, energy and the effect of indirect taxes (currently v41755376)
- Consumer Price Index (CPI), all-items excluding food, energy and the effect of indirect taxes, seasonally adjusted (currently v41755378)
Currently, these series are calculated by the Bank of Canada and published in Table 10-10-0106-01. With the release of the May 2025 CPI, Statistics Canada will assume responsibility for the calculation and dissemination of these series, and the original two series will be terminated. Updated vectors will be available for these series upon publication.
Existing historical data, calculated by the Bank of Canada and currently available in Table 10-10-0106-01, will remain publicly available in Table 18-10-0256-01 as of June 24, 2025.
For additional information, users may contact the Consumer Prices Division (statcan.cpddisseminationunit-dpcunitedediffusion.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).
Real-time data tables
Real-time data table 18-10-0259-01 will be updated on June 2. For more information, consult the document, "Real-time data tables."
Next release
The Consumer Price Index for May will be released on June 24.
Products
The "Consumer Price Index Data Visualization Tool" is available on the Statistics Canada website.
More information on the concepts and use of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) is available in The Canadian Consumer Price Index Reference Paper (62-553-X).
For information on the history of the CPI in Canada, consult the publication Exploring the first century of Canada's Consumer Price Index (62-604-X).
Two videos, "An Overview of Canada's Consumer Price Index (CPI)" and "The Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Your Experience of Price Change," are available on Statistics Canada's YouTube channel.
The podcast ''Eh Sayers Episode 18 - Why Food Inflation Is Such A Hard Nut To Crack'' is also available.
Find out answers to the most common questions posed about the CPI in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.
Contact information
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).
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