Understanding the Consumer Price Index: Answers to Some Questions

The continually growing number of uses and users of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) has generated an increasing number of questions about the CPI. Although the Bureau of Labor Statis-tics (BLS; the Bureau) has provided extensive mate-rial to the public describing the CPI, much of this material has been quite technical. The Bureau has developed this pamphlet, therefore, to answer frequently asked questions about the CPI and help users of the CPI to better understand and use it.