Core PCE Price Index
Core PCE is the PCE price index with food and energy stripped out, and it is the specific measure the Federal Reserve targets when it talks about 2% inflation. The BEA builds it with the same chain-weighted methodology as headline PCE, leaving a basket heavily weighted toward sticky services like housing, healthcare, and finance.
Latest reading
As of May 2026, Core PCE (Core PCE YoY %) stands at 3.4% — up from 3.3% the prior reading. Year-over-year Core PCE is what the Fed watches, and every FOMC projection is framed in these terms — markets move hard on the release. Readings stuck above 2.5% keep the Fed restrictive; a clean glide toward 2% opens the door to cuts. Analysts also track "supercore" (core services ex-housing) for the stickiest component. Series history runs from 1993 to present.
Sources, methodology & freshnessLast updated 2026-07-24 · Open ↓Close ↑
Core PCE YoY %
Next release: Jul 30, 2026
Full history
Index & YoY %
3-month annualized %
The trailing 3-month change in core PCE, annualized — the single number the Fed watches most for underlying inflation momentum. It moves ahead of the year-over-year rate at inflection points.
Methodology & data
Core PCE is sourced from BEA via the Federal Reserve's FRED service (BEA via FRED (PCEPILFE), monthly, seasonally adjusted). We pull the complete history, chart it on a monthly basis, overlay SPY for context, and generate a dated plain-English reading from the latest release — with no smoothing or adjustment beyond what the chart legend states.
Every reading is stamped with its release date, last updated 2026-07-24. Maintained and reviewed by Yuriy Matso; see our methodology for the standards every series on the site is held to.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Core PCE Price Index?
Core PCE is the PCE price index with food and energy stripped out, and it is the specific measure the Federal Reserve targets when it talks about 2% inflation. The BEA builds it with the same chain-weighted methodology as headline PCE, leaving a basket heavily weighted toward sticky services like housing, healthcare, and finance.
How do you read Core PCE?
Year-over-year Core PCE is what the Fed watches, and every FOMC projection is framed in these terms — markets move hard on the release. Readings stuck above 2.5% keep the Fed restrictive; a clean glide toward 2% opens the door to cuts. Analysts also track "supercore" (core services ex-housing) for the stickiest component.
Where does the Core PCE data come from?
BEA via FRED (PCEPILFE), monthly, seasonally adjusted. We chart the full history and publish a dated, plain-English reading with every release; the raw series is downloadable as CSV at /data/indicators/core-pce.csv.
How often is Core PCE updated?
Core PCE is a monthly series from BEA, refreshed here as soon as a new release posts to FRED.
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