What construction materials cost right now
Producer price movement for the materials trades actually buy, from US Bureau of Labor Statistics data through July 2026. This is the number that decides whether last year's quote still works.
| Material | What that is | vs last year | vs last month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nonferrous metals | copper wire, pipe, flashing, aluminium | +31.9% | -1.7% |
| Steel mill products | studs, rebar, joists, fixings | +22.5% | +3.9% |
| Iron and steel | structural steel, fasteners | +17.6% | +2.4% |
| Softwood lumber | framing timber, joists, studs | +15.0% | +6.4% |
| Lumber (all) | boards, timber, sheet goods | +10.1% | +3.9% |
| Hand and edge tools | saws, chisels, hand tools | +6.2% | +0.6% |
| Plastic construction products | PVC pipe, conduit, fittings, trim | +5.0% | +0.4% |
| Plumbing fixtures and fittings | taps, valves, sanitaryware | +4.9% | +0.0% |
| Asphalt felts and coatings | underlayment, roof coatings | +4.6% | +1.2% |
| Concrete products | block, precast, ready-mix products | +3.7% | -0.0% |
| Gypsum products | plasterboard, drywall, compound | -0.4% | +0.9% |
These are index movements, not spot prices. They tell you the direction and size of the change in what suppliers charge — not the dollar price of a board or a pound of copper. For a live spot price, ask your supplier; for deciding whether to reprice, this is the useful view.
If you are quoting off last year's numbers
Nonferrous metals is up +31.9% on the year. On a job where that material is most of the cost, a quote built on last year's pricing is wrong by roughly that much before you have made a single mistake — and it comes straight out of your margin, because the customer agreed to the old number.
At the other end, Gypsum products has moved -0.4%. The spread across categories is the point: material inflation is not one number, and a blanket percentage added to every quote overcharges some jobs and underprices others.
What to do about it
- Put an expiry on your quotes. Thirty days is standard and it is not rude — it is the only thing standing between you and eating a price rise on a job you won three months ago.
- Reprice by category, not across the board. A metal-heavy job and a drywall-heavy job have moved very differently this year.
- Price materials at replacement cost, not what you paid. If you are working through stock bought last year, quoting at that price quietly funds your customer's discount.
- Recheck your hourly rate too. Materials are only half of it — our state-by-state wage data shows what labour is going for.
Our profit margin calculator takes your real material and labour costs and works out the price you need to charge to hit a target margin.
Where this comes from and how often it updates
US Bureau of Labor Statistics Producer Price Index, commodity series, not seasonally adjusted. BLS publishes monthly with roughly a two-week lag, so the most recent month here (July 2026) is the latest available. Figures are refreshed periodically rather than live.
FAQ
Are construction material prices going up?
As of July 2026, 10 of the 11 categories tracked here are up year on year. Nonferrous metals has moved the most at +31.9%; Gypsum products the least at -0.4%. Material inflation is uneven, so the honest answer depends on what you build with.
How much have lumber prices changed?
Softwood lumber — framing timber, joists and studs — is +15.0% year on year as of July 2026. All lumber including boards and sheet goods is +10.1%. Note these are producer price index movements rather than a dollar price per board foot.
Why has copper gone up so much?
Copper sits inside the nonferrous metals category, which is +31.9% on the year — the sharpest move in this table. It hits electricians and plumbers hardest, since wire, pipe and fittings are copper-intensive. If you quote rewires or repipes, this is the number to watch.
Should I add a percentage to my quotes to cover price rises?
Better to shorten quote validity and price at replacement cost. A flat uplift overcharges customers on jobs whose materials have not moved and still underprices the ones that have — the categories in the table above range from -0.4% to +31.9% this year, so no single percentage is right.
Is this a spot price?
No. It is the Producer Price Index, which measures change in what producers charge over time. It is the right tool for deciding whether to reprice, and the wrong tool for looking up today's cost of a specific item. For that, ask your supplier.