By Adam McCann, Financial Writer
In 2022, Americans are dealing with the worst inflation in over 40 years, with the year-over-year inflation rate at 9.1% in June. This explosive inflation is driven by a variety of factors, including the continued presence of the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and labor shortages. The Federal Reserve is hoping to rein in inflation with aggressive interest rate hikes this year, but exactly how much of an effect that will have remains to be seen.
Consumer Price Index Change (Latest month vs 2 months before)
- 1. Anchorage, AK
- 2. Seattle, WA
- 3. Phoenix, AZ
- 4. Detroit, MI
- 5. Houston, TX
- T-17. New York, NY
- T-17. Washington, DC
- 20. Dallas, TX
- 21. Los Angeles, CA
- 22. Boston, MA
- 23. Honolulu, HI
Inflation is growing more quickly in some places than others, though. In order to determine the cities where inflation is growing the most – and thus is the biggest problem – WalletHub compared 23 major MSAs (Metropolitan Statistical Areas) across two key metrics related to the Consumer Price Index, which measures inflation. We compared the Consumer Price Index for the latest month for which BLS data is available to two months prior and one year prior to get a snapshot of how inflation has changed in the short and long term.
Cities Where Inflation is Growing The Most
| Overall Rank | MSA | Total Score | Consumer Price Index Change (Latest month vs 2 months before) |
Consumer Price Index Change (Latest month vs 1 year ago) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anchorage, AK | 100.00 | 7.10% | 12.40% |
| 2 | Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ | 68.38 | 3.10% | 12.30% |
| 3 | Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | 56.22 | 2.40% | 11.50% |
| 4 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 50.51 | 3.20% | 10.10% |
| 5 | Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | 50.13 | 2.60% | 10.60% |
| 6 | Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | 49.36 | 2.50% | 10.60% |
| 7 | Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | 48.28 | 2.80% | 10.20% |
| 8 | Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | 45.58 | 3.00% | 9.70% |
| 9 | Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | 45.22 | 1.30% | 11.20% |
| 10 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 32.57 | 2.30% | 8.80% |
| 11 | St. Louis, MO-IL | 29.95 | 2.40% | 8.40% |
| 12 | Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 27.65 | 1.00% | 9.40% |
| 13 | Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 26.73 | 1.10% | 9.20% |
| 14 | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | 26.42 | 1.50% | 8.80% |
| 15 | Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | 22.87 | 1.70% | 8.20% |
| 16 | Minneapolis-St.Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | 19.02 | 1.20% | 8.20% |
| 17 | Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 12.48 | 0.90% | 7.70% |
| 18 | Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 12.32 | 1.10% | 7.50% |
| 19 | San Diego-Carlsbad, CA | 11.40 | 1.20% | 7.30% |
| 20 | San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | 11.00 | 1.70% | 6.80% |
| 21 | Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | 5.01 | 0.70% | 7.00% |
| 22 | New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | 3.85 | 1.10% | 6.50% |
| 23 | Urban Honolulu, HI | 2.54 | 0.60% | 6.80% |
