Nigeria’s headline inflation eased to 16.05% in October 2025, down from 18.02% in September, according to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The moderation follows the full adoption of the new CPI base year (2024 = 100), which has significantly altered year-on-year comparisons.
Despite the softer annual figure, underlying price momentum picked up.
Month-on-month inflation rose to 0.93%, higher than 0.72% in September.
However, food inflation eased to 13.12% year-on-year from 39.16% in October 2024, a drop of 26.04 percentage points, following the change in the CPI base year. On a monthly basis, food prices rose -0.37%, an increase from -1.57% in September, indicating fresh upward pressure.
Despite signs of easing headline inflation across the country, the data from the NBS revealed that some states remain significantly costlier to live in than others.
Based on the latest CPI report for October 2025, these are the top 10 most expensive states to live in Nigeria:
Zamfara’s living costs rose by 18.8% year-on-year, with food inflation at 14.5%.
Prices jumped by 3.4% month-on-month for both food and all items, making it one of the most inflation-impacted states in October. This uniform rise signals widespread inflation across the consumption basket.
