Standards
Editorial standards
Basket Report uses named U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics price series, publishes its methodology, and provides downloadable data for verification and citation.
Data and attribution
Every published number maps to a named U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics series and a real retrieval timestamp. Data pages identify the series, observation month, unit, source, and download files needed to reproduce the figure. Basket Report is independently published and is not endorsed by BLS.
We prefer primary government sources. National and regional retail prices come from BLS CPI Average Price Data; supporting context may cite agencies such as USDA when the source directly addresses the subject. The data directory lists the downloadable series, while the methodology explains the basket calculation and geographic limits.
Unavailable data
Missing source values and unavailable comparisons are shown as N/A. They are never replaced with zero, flat, unchanged, interpolated, or estimated values. Regional comparisons use only the items available across every region in the comparison, and the page discloses that coverage.
Calculations and interpretation
Original BLS observations remain unchanged. Basket totals, percentage changes, annual averages, inflation-adjusted comparisons, rankings, and records are derived calculations and are labeled as Basket Report analysis. Month-over-month and year-over-year comparisons use like-for-like observations rather than treating a missing item as no change.
Automated narration may describe direction, magnitude, records, and other facts computed from the page's own data. It does not assign a cause to a price movement. Supply or market context appears separately and carries its own visible sources.
Updates and freshness
Pages update only after the source pipeline retrieves and validates a newer observation. Visible “data through” dates refer to the latest published observation, while retrieval dates state when Basket Report obtained the data. A failed or unchanged pipeline does not advance those claims.
Forecasting
Basket Report publishes historical and current grocery-price analysis. It does not publish forecasts unless a documented forecasting methodology is attached to the page.
Editorial independence
Advertising, sponsorships, newsletter placements, and commercial relationships do not determine which series are tracked, how a calculation is performed, or whether a correction is published. Sponsored placements must be labeled and kept visually separate from editorial analysis.
Corrections
Factual corrections and methodology changes are documented on the corrections page. Readers can report a possible error through the contact page; reports are checked against the source observation and the generated data artifact before the published page is changed.