Ireland’s annual inflation rate inched up to 3.7% in April 2026 from 3.6% in March, reaching its highest level since January 2024. The uptick was driven by faster price increases for alcoholic beverages and tobacco (2.7% vs 2.3% in March), housing and utilities (8.1% vs 7.2%), transportation (3.8% vs 2.8%), information and communication (1.0% vs 0.7%), restaurants and hotels (3.9% vs 3.5%), and miscellaneous goods and services (1.5% vs 0.9%).
Meanwhile, prices for furnishing and household equipment fell at a slower rate (-0.6% vs -0.9%), and education costs maintained a robust pace of growth (8.9%). By contrast, inflation eased for food and non-alcoholic beverages (2.0% vs 2.3%), clothing and footwear (7.9% vs 9.0%), health (1.6% vs 1.7%), and recreation and culture (1.2% vs 4.2%).
On a monthly basis, consumer prices rose 0.5% in April, decelerating from a 1.6% increase in the previous month.
