Croatia’s annual inflation rate eased to 5.2% in May 2026 from 5.8% in April, in line with preliminary estimates. Price growth slowed across several major categories, including food and non-alcoholic beverages (1.4% vs 2.8% in April), housing and utilities (11.8% vs 12.1%), transport (12.5% vs 13.1%), information and communication (2.7% vs 3.3%), and personal care, social protection, and other miscellaneous goods and services (3.6% vs 4.6%).
Inflation also eased slightly for alcoholic beverages and tobacco (7.5% vs 7.6%), recreation, sport and culture (3.9% vs 4.1%), and restaurants and hotels (6.1% vs 6.2%). At the same time, deflation persisted in clothing and footwear (-3.0% vs -3.1%), furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance (-0.2% vs 0.3%), and education (-1.5% vs -1.7%). By contrast, price growth accelerated in the health sector (5.2% vs 4.2%).
On a monthly basis, consumer prices declined by 0.3% in May, reversing a 1.6% increase in April and marking the first month-on-month drop since December.
