US real hourly earnings, September 2026: inflation-adjusted pay falls 0.5% to $11.24
US average hourly pay adjusted for inflation fell 0.5% in September 2026 to $11.24, as the consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.65% and wages only 0.1%. It is down 0.7% from a year earlier.
A data update from FactIQ, written from Bureau of Labor Statistics figures. What is FactIQ?
Key figures
- US private-sector average hourly earnings adjusted for inflation, September 2026
- $11.24down from $11.30 in August (-0.5%) and from $11.32 in September 2025 (-0.7%)2022-09-012026-09-01Average hourly earnings of all employees in the total private sector adjusted for inflation in 1982-1984 dollars
- US production and nonsupervisory workers' hourly earnings adjusted for inflation, September 2026
- $9.88down from $9.942022-09-012026-09-01Average hourly earnings of production and nonsupervisory employees in the total private sector adjusted for inflation in 1982-84 dollars and seasonally adjusted
- US private-sector average weekly earnings adjusted for inflation, September 2026
- $386.76down 0.5% on the month, about 0.1% on the year2022-09-012026-09-01Average weekly earnings of all employees in the total private sector adjusted for inflation in 1982 to 1984 dollars
- US manufacturing average hourly earnings adjusted for inflation, September 2026
- $10.98down from $11.042022-09-012026-09-01Average hourly earnings of all employees in the manufacturing industry adjusted for inflation in 1982 to 1984 dollars and seasonally adjusted
Prices rose much faster than pay in September
Real earnings show how much pay can buy once inflation is taken out. They matter because they show whether workers' living standards are rising or falling. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) states them in 1982-84 dollars, meaning pay valued at prices from 1982 to 1984.
- Average hourly earnings for all private-sector workers, before adjusting for inflation, rose only 0.1% to $37.81. That is up 3.0% on the year.
- The seasonally adjusted consumer price index (CPI), which tracks the prices consumers pay, rose 0.65% in the month to 336.298. That is up 3.7% on the year.
- As a result, inflation-adjusted hourly pay fell to $11.24 from $11.30 in August, and from $11.32 in September 2025.
The squeeze on pay has lasted six months
Inflation-adjusted hourly pay has been lower than a year earlier for six months in a row, from April to September. This is the longest such run since 2022-23. The September level matches the low from early 2025.
Hourly-paid workers lost more ground
- Production and nonsupervisory workers, mostly hourly staff below management level, saw their inflation-adjusted hourly pay fall to $9.88 from $9.94. The CPI for urban wage earners and clerical workers (CPI-W) rose about 0.75% in the month.
- In manufacturing, inflation-adjusted hourly pay fell to $10.98 from $11.04.
Longer hours kept weekly pay nearly flat on the year
Inflation-adjusted average weekly earnings were $386.76. That is down 0.5% on the month but only about 0.1% on the year. The average workweek was longer, at 34.4 hours compared with 34.2.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics. See all BLS data in FactIQ.