Cost of Living
Grocery prices, gas prices, utility costs, inflation impacts on everyday expenses, consumer sentiment, and the real-world financial pressures facing households.
Latest in Cost of Living
Tariffs could price out America’s last affordable cars, report warns
Walk into a dealership looking for the cheapest new car in America and you will land on the Nissan Versa, stickered just under $17,000. The...
Americans hit a breaking point on price hikes, WSJ reports
The price of a dozen eggs has nearly doubled since 2020. Rent for a typical two-bedroom apartment costs hundreds more per month than it did...
Domino’s misses U.S. sales estimates as diners cut back on spending
Domino’s Pizza Inc. posted U.S. same-store sales growth of just 0.4% in the first quarter of 2026, badly missing the 1.5% gain Wall Street had...
Companies revisit benefit cuts as employers regain leverage in hiring
On October 1, 2025, Sherwin-Williams stopped matching employee contributions to its 401(k) Plan and its Deferred Compensation Savings Plan. No phase-out, no partial reduction. The...
Wealthy newcomers drive Florida housing costs up, squeezing the middle class
When Maria Gonzalez started looking for a three-bedroom house near her children’s school in Hillsborough County in early 2024, she found listings that would have...
NYC’s proposed $30 minimum wage by 2030 could raise costs for businesses
A home health aide in the Bronx who works full time and still needs a second job. A Brooklyn restaurant owner who says another round...
Airlines push to keep fares high even as jet fuel prices drop
A round-trip flight from Chicago to Miami cost roughly $340 in March 2026, according to booking aggregators tracking domestic routes. A year earlier, the same...
Tech layoffs surge, leaving workers facing a tougher job market
Thousands of technology workers across the United States have lost their jobs since January 2026, and the job market waiting for them looks nothing like...
Iran war lifts plastic resin costs, pushing consumer prices higher
A standard yogurt cup contains roughly 10 grams of polypropylene. That sliver of plastic has never been cheaper to ignore and never been more useful...
Gen Z grads turn to gigs and startups as entry-level hiring dries up
Gen Z grads turn to gigs and startups as entry-level hiring dries up Career counselors say the class of 2026 faces one of the toughest...
American Airlines says the Iran war just added $4 billion to its fuel bill — and the tickets you already bought were priced before the spike
Millions of passengers who locked in summer airfares earlier this year did so in one of the cheapest fuel environments the airline industry had seen...
Trump says Americans should expect higher gas prices “for a little while” — gas is already at $4 a gallon and oil just hit $105
President Trump acknowledged this week that Americans will pay more at the pump “for a little while,” framing the pain as a necessary cost of...
Tariffs are still costing the average household $600–$1,500 per year — and the burden falls 3x harder on the lowest-income families
A pair of kids’ sneakers. A microwave. A pack of underwear. None of these purchases feels like a trade-policy decision, but each one now carries...
What the IEA chief’s “biggest energy security threat in history” warning actually means for your gas, grocery, and travel costs this summer
The national average price of regular gasoline has jumped more than 40 cents a gallon since early March, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s...
Oil hits $98 a barrel as the Iran ceasefire expires tomorrow — here’s what $5 gas would cost the average family this summer
Two-car families could spend between $360 and $400 extra on gasoline this summer if crude oil clears $100 a barrel, and the clock ticking on...
Gas prices hit $4.05 nationally — Energy Secretary says don’t expect sub-$3 gas until 2027
The last time Americans paid this much to fill up, Russia had just invaded Ukraine and the global energy market was in chaos. Now, a...
The states where $4 gas hurts the most — and the least: a full price breakdown by state
A two-car family in Tupelo, Mississippi, filling up this spring is paying about $2.78 a gallon for regular. A two-car family in Bakersfield, California, doing...
Trump’s energy secretary says gas won’t drop below $3 a gallon until 2027 — here’s what $4+ gas costs the average family per year
Energy Secretary Chris Wright told CNN in mid-April that Americans should not expect gasoline to fall below $3 a gallon until 2027, a timeline first...
Tariffs are about to hit your grocery bill hard — beef up 15%, canned goods up 15%, coffee still surging
The receipt at checkout keeps getting bigger without the cart getting any fuller. A pound of ground beef now runs roughly 15% more than it...
One chart that explains why 22.7 million renters are cost-burdened even as rent growth hits a 15-year low
Rents are rising at their slowest pace in about 15 years. That sounds like good news until you see the other number: 22.7 million renter...