Since 2020, clothing has become the most expensive item in the Czech Republic, according to an analysis by Cyrrus on inflation trends between 2020 and 2025.
The report highlights a significant rise in the cost of clothing, audiovisual and photographic equipment, and accommodation services, which have outpaced price increases in other EU countries. Conversely, food prices in the Czech Republic have risen in line with the European average, while gasoline prices have increased less than in many EU nations.
From January 2020 to January 2025, core inflation in the Czech Republic, measured by the European harmonized index, reached 39.8%. This is the fifth-largest increase in the EU, while the EU average inflation during this period stood at 24.6%. Hungary recorded the highest inflation at 53.5%.
Clothing prices in the Czech Republic rose by 49.3%, the highest increase across the EU, compared to a much smaller 11.4% rise in the European average. Household textiles saw similar trends, with prices increasing by 48.5% in the Czech Republic, far surpassing the 13.8% rise in the EU as a whole.
Accommodation costs also surged in the Czech Republic, with a 58.3% increase, the largest among EU countries, while the European average was 29.5%. Photographic and audiovisual equipment prices in the country grew by 20.1%, the fastest increase in the EU, as other EU nations saw an average decrease of 5.3%.
Food prices in the Czech Republic increased by 33.6% from January 2020 to the present, which aligns with the European average. Slovakia and Poland saw the fastest growth in food prices, at 47.9% and 46.6%, respectively. Meanwhile, gasoline prices in the Czech Republic rose by just 13.4%, significantly lower than the EU average increase of 21.7%.
