Consumer Price Index, May 2025
Released: 2025-06-24
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 1.7% on a year-over-year basis in May, matching the 1.7% increase in April.
Compared with one year earlier, a smaller price increase for rent and a decline in travel tours put downward pressure on the CPI in May. Smaller declines for gas and cellular services put upward pressure on the index compared with the previous month.
Excluding energy, the CPI rose 2.7% in May, following a 2.9% increase in April.
On a monthly basis, the CPI rose 0.6% in May. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, the CPI was up 0.2%.
Chart 1
The 12-month change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and CPI excluding energy
Chart 2
Prices for four major components grow at a slower pace in May compared with April
Shelter prices grow at a slower pace
The shelter component grew at a slower pace year over year in May, rising 3.0% following a 3.4% increase in April.
Prices for rent rose 4.5% on a year-over-year basis in May, compared with a 5.2% increase in April. Rent price growth slowed the most in Ontario, with prices rising 3.0% in May following a 5.4% increase in April. The increased availability of rental units, coupled with slower population growth compared with spring of the previous year, contributed to the slowdown in rent price growth in May. Given the large weight of Ontario nationally, these effects alone were enough to offset faster price growth in seven other provinces.
The mortgage interest cost index decelerated for the 21st consecutive month in May (+6.2%) after rising 6.8% in April.
Chart 3
Prices for rent and mortgage interest cost continue to grow at a slower pace
Prices for travel tours and air transportation fall in May
Year over year, prices for travel tours fell 0.2% in May after rising 6.7% the previous month. Prices for air transportation decreased 10.1% on an annual basis in May, following a 5.8% decline in April.
Gasoline prices continue to decline year over year
Gasoline led the decline in consumer energy prices again this month, down 15.5% year over year in May after declining 18.1% in April. Gasoline prices in May remained below May 2024 levels, primarily due to the removal of the consumer carbon levy.
In May 2025, prices for gasoline increased 1.9% month over month. The increase was largely attributed to higher refining margins, which were partially due to higher costs associated with switching to summer blends.
Chart 4
Gasoline prices increase month over month in May
Slower decline year-over-year for cellular services
On an annual basis, prices for cellular services fell 5.5% in May, compared with a 10.8% decline in April.
On a month-over-month basis, prices for cellular services rose 7.2% in May. The higher prices followed the end of promotions from some wireless service providers.
Prices for new cars grow at a faster pace year over year
Prices for new passenger vehicles rose 4.9% year over year in May, after increasing 4.6% in April. This faster price growth was primarily driven by higher prices for some electric vehicles.
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 to the Consumer Price Index will be required 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.
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, price growth was faster in six provinces, slower in three provinces and was unchanged in one province in May compared with April.
In Alberta, prices for homeowners' home and mortgage insurance rose 11.9% in May, following a 7.7% increase the previous month, contributing to the faster growth in the province.
Chart 5
The Consumer Price Index rises at a faster pace in six 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.
Reddit "Ask Me Anything"
Do you have questions about the CPI, Canadian inflation or what the new CPI basket means for measuring consumer prices? Join us for our "Ask Me Anything" event on Reddit on June 25, 2025, at 1:30 p.m., Eastern Time.
Consumer Price Index basket update
The basket of goods and services used in the calculation of the CPI has been updated with the release of the May 2025 data. The new basket weights, available in table 18-10-0007-01, are based on 2024 expenditure data from the most recent household final consumption expenditure data, updated expenditures from the Survey of Household Spending and other alternative data. This ensures the relevance of the CPI as a reflection of the most recent consumer expenditure data available.
The base period, in which the all-items CPI is set to equal 100, remains 2002.
The headline CPI for May 2025 would have been the same, rounded to the nearest 10th, using the 2023 basket weights.
For more detailed information, consult the document entitled "An Analysis of the 2025 Consumer Price Index Basket Update, Based on 2024 Expenditures," in the Prices Analytical Series (62F0014M).
Update: Consumer Price Index (CPI), all-items excluding food, energy and the effect of indirect taxes
With this release, Statistics Canada has incorporated two new series into table 18-10-0256-01:
- Consumer Price Index (CPI), all-items excluding food, energy and the effect of indirect taxes (v1675033092, previously v41755376)
- Consumer Price Index (CPI), all-items excluding food, energy and the effect of indirect taxes, seasonally adjusted (v1675033093, previously v41755378)
Previously, these series were calculated by the Bank of Canada and published in table 10-10-0106-01. With this release, Statistics Canada has assumed responsibility for the calculation and dissemination of these series, and the two original series have been terminated.
Existing historical data, calculated by the Bank of Canada and currently available in table 10-10-0106-01, remains publicly available in table 18-10-0256-01. As a result of this change, seasonally adjusted data have been added from January 1984 to December 1991 and revised from January 1992 to April 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 July 7. For more information, consult the document, "Real-time data tables."
Next release
The Consumer Price Index for June will be released on July 15.
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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