Data / Rankings / Food price inflation (HICP, annual rate) / EU countries

EU countries by food price inflation (HICP, annual rate)

Romania had the highest food price inflation (HICP, annual rate) of 27 EU countries in March 2026, at 7.7%. Hungary had the lowest, at -3.2%. The median was 2.5% and the figure for the European Union (27) was 2.4%. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

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Highest7.7Romania
Lowest-3.2Hungary
Median2.527 EU countries
European Union (27)2.4History

Map of EU countries, March 2026

Austria: 2.1 %Belgium: -0.8 %Bulgaria: 3.9 %Cyprus: 6.5 %Czechia: -1.3 %Germany: 1.5 %Denmark: 1.8 %Estonia: 4.3 %Spain: 2.7 %Finland: 0.5 %France: 1.9 %Greece: 4.3 %Croatia: 3.4 %Hungary: -3.2 %Ireland: 2.3 %Italy: 2.8 %Lithuania: 2.7 %Luxembourg: 2.7 %Latvia: 1.1 %Malta: 3.2 %Netherlands: 2 %Poland: 2.5 %Portugal: 3.6 %Romania: 7.7 %Sweden: 0.2 %Slovenia: 2.8 %Slovakia: 1.3 %
  • Under -1.9
  • -1.9 to -1.1
  • -1.1 to 0
  • 0 to 2.1
  • 2.1 to 2.9
  • 2.9 and over
%, March 2026. Red areas are below zero and blue areas above it. Source: Eurostat, HICP, monthly data, annual rate of change, food and non-alcoholic beverages, COICOP 2018 CP01 (prc_hicp_minr). Boundaries: Natural Earth (public domain).

All EU countries, March 2026

Romania: 7.7 %Romania7.7Cyprus: 6.5 %Cyprus6.5Estonia: 4.3 %Estonia4.3Greece: 4.3 %Greece4.3Bulgaria: 3.9 %Bulgaria3.9Portugal: 3.6 %Portugal3.6Croatia: 3.4 %Croatia3.4Malta: 3.2 %Malta3.2Italy: 2.8 %Italy2.8Slovenia: 2.8 %Slovenia2.8Lithuania: 2.7 %Lithuania2.7Luxembourg: 2.7 %Luxembourg2.7Spain: 2.7 %Spain2.7Poland: 2.5 %Poland2.5Ireland: 2.3 %Ireland2.3Austria: 2.1 %Austria2.1Netherlands: 2 %Netherlands2France: 1.9 %France1.9Denmark: 1.8 %Denmark1.8Germany: 1.5 %Germany1.5Slovakia: 1.3 %Slovakia1.3Latvia: 1.1 %Latvia1.1Finland: 0.5 %Finland0.5Sweden: 0.2 %Sweden0.2Belgium: -0.8 %Belgium-0.8Czechia: -1.3 %Czechia-1.3Hungary: -3.2 %Hungary-3.2Romania: 7.7 %Romania7.7Cyprus: 6.5 %Cyprus6.5Estonia: 4.3 %Estonia4.3Greece: 4.3 %Greece4.3Bulgaria: 3.9 %Bulgaria3.9Portugal: 3.6 %Portugal3.6Croatia: 3.4 %Croatia3.4Malta: 3.2 %Malta3.2Italy: 2.8 %Italy2.8Slovenia: 2.8 %Slovenia2.8Lithuania: 2.7 %Lithuania2.7Luxembourg: 2.7 %Luxembourg2.7Spain: 2.7 %Spain2.7Poland: 2.5 %Poland2.5Ireland: 2.3 %Ireland2.3Austria: 2.1 %Austria2.1Netherlands: 2 %Netherlands2France: 1.9 %France1.9Denmark: 1.8 %Denmark1.8Germany: 1.5 %Germany1.5Slovakia: 1.3 %Slovakia1.3Latvia: 1.1 %Latvia1.1Finland: 0.5 %Finland0.5Sweden: 0.2 %Sweden0.2Belgium: -0.8 %Belgium-0.8Czechia: -1.3 %Czechia-1.3Hungary: -3.2 %Hungary-3.2
%. Source: Eurostat, HICP, monthly data, annual rate of change, food and non-alcoholic beverages, COICOP 2018 CP01 (prc_hicp_minr). Retrieved 2026-10-18.

Full ranking

RankEU countriesMarch 2026 (%)Change on March 2025
1Romania7.7+2.6 pts
2Cyprus6.5+3.9 pts
3Estonia4.3-2.4 pts
3Greece4.3+2 pts
5Bulgaria3.9-1.6 pts
6Portugal3.6+1.9 pts
7Croatia3.4-1.7 pts
8Malta3.20 pts
9Italy2.8+0.2 pts
9Slovenia2.8-0.5 pts
11Lithuania2.7-1.6 pts
11Luxembourg2.7+1.8 pts
11Spain2.7+0.3 pts
14Poland2.5-3.7 pts
15Ireland2.3-1 pts
16Austria2.1-1 pts
17Netherlands2-1.9 pts
18France1.9+1.3 pts
19Denmark1.8-3.2 pts
20Germany1.5-2 pts
21Slovakia1.3-1.9 pts
22Latvia1.1-5.4 pts
23Finland0.5-2.1 pts
24Sweden0.2-5.3 pts
25Belgium-0.8-3.2 pts
26Czechia-1.3-7.6 pts
27Hungary-3.2-9.7 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Harmonised index of consumer prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages (COICOP 2018 division 01), annual rate of change: the percentage change from the same month a year earlier. Monthly, comparable across EU countries (Eurostat).

Eurostat publishes the HICP under COICOP 2018 from the data for January 2026 and recalculated the category series back to 1997 on that basis, so figures for earlier years can differ from those first published under ECOICOP, by a lot for divisions 08 to 13. The headline rate for all items is hicp_annual_rate. Eurostat marks some back-calculated months as estimates.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the EU countries are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

Eurostat. HICP, monthly data, annual rate of change, food and non-alcoholic beverages, COICOP 2018 CP01 (prc_hicp_minr). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/prc_hicp_minr/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

Eurostat, European Commission. (2026). HICP, monthly data, annual rate of change, food and non-alcoholic beverages, COICOP 2018 CP01 (prc_hicp_minr) (EU countries by food price inflation (HICP, annual rate), 2026-03) [Data set]. Retrieved October 18, 2026, from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/prc_hicp_minr/default/table

MLA 9

HICP, monthly data, annual rate of change, food and non-alcoholic beverages, COICOP 2018 CP01 (prc_hicp_minr), EU countries by food price inflation (HICP, annual rate), 2026-03. Eurostat, European Commission, 16 Oct. 2026, https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/prc_hicp_minr/default/table. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/hicp-food-inflation/eu-countries?period=2026-03. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Eurostat, European Commission. 2026. HICP, monthly data, annual rate of change, food and non-alcoholic beverages, COICOP 2018 CP01 (prc_hicp_minr). EU countries by food price inflation (HICP, annual rate), 2026-03. Dataset. Accessed October 18, 2026. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/prc_hicp_minr/default/table. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/hicp-food-inflation/eu-countries?period=2026-03.

Harvard

Eurostat, European Commission (2026) HICP, monthly data, annual rate of change, food and non-alcoholic beverages, COICOP 2018 CP01 (prc_hicp_minr), EU countries by food price inflation (HICP, annual rate), 2026-03 [Dataset]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/prc_hicp_minr/default/table, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/hicp-food-inflation/eu-countries?period=2026-03 (Accessed: 18 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{eurostat_eu_countries_by_food_2026,
  author = {{Eurostat, European Commission}},
  title = {{HICP, monthly data, annual rate of change, food and non-alcoholic beverages, COICOP 2018 CP01 (prc\_hicp\_minr): EU countries by food price inflation (HICP, annual rate), 2026-03}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/prc_hicp_minr/default/table},
  urldate = {2026-10-18},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/hicp-food-inflation/eu-countries?period=2026-03. Publisher attribution: Eurostat. HICP, monthly data, annual rate of change, food and non-alcoholic beverages, COICOP 2018 CP01 (prc\_hicp\_minr). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/prc\_hicp\_minr/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - Eurostat, European Commission
TI  - HICP, monthly data, annual rate of change, food and non-alcoholic beverages, COICOP 2018 CP01 (prc_hicp_minr): EU countries by food price inflation (HICP, annual rate), 2026-03
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/16
PB  - Eurostat, European Commission
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/prc_hicp_minr/default/table
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/hicp-food-inflation/eu-countries?period=2026-03
Y2  - 2026/10/18
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/hicp-food-inflation/eu-countries?period=2026-03.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Eurostat. HICP, monthly data, annual rate of change, food and non-alcoholic beverages, COICOP 2018 CP01 (prc_hicp_minr). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/prc_hicp_minr/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.
ER  -
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Questions

Which EU country has the highest food price inflation (HICP, annual rate)?

Romania, with 7.7% in March 2026, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which EU country has the lowest food price inflation (HICP, annual rate)?

Hungary, with -3.2% in March 2026.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Eurostat, European Commission, HICP, monthly data, annual rate of change, food and non-alcoholic beverages, COICOP 2018 CP01 (prc_hicp_minr). Retrieved 2026-10-18.

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