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From Phones to Jewelry, These 7 Things Are Getting More Expensive in 2026
By Pete Grieve MONEY RESEARCH COLLECTIVE
Ready to pay up? Amid stubborn inflation and the fallout from tariffs, experts have identified several key goods that are primed to see price increases in the new year.
For the fifth year in a row, the U.S. economy is entering January with inflation above the Federal Reserve’s target 2% level.
Consumer goods and services like coffee, beef and car repair experienced sharp inflation this year, and experts have identified several key categories that will likely see more price increases in 2026. The Supreme Court is also still mulling its decision on the legal challenge to the president’s tariffs — an X-factor complicating price forecasts for the year.
But tariffs are just one reason that prices are rising. As the new year begins, here are seven things getting more expensive and why:
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Home insurance
Home insurance prices continued to soar in 2025, with premiums up 8.5% for new policies, according to a report from Matic, an insurance firm. That’s not as steep as the increase in 2024 (18%), but it’s still a key force driving up homeowners’ costs.
Insurers continue to cite weather risk in certain states as they push for higher rates. Homeowners are responding by trading higher deductibles for lower premiums, a move that saves money but exposes the customer to greater risk (because out-of-pocket costs will be higher if they need to file a claim). According to the Matic report, the average deductible increased 22% in 2025.
A separate look at the home insurance market from real estate analytics firm Cotality predicts an 8% increase in average premiums next year.
Streaming services
At this point, you can safely assume your bundle of subscriptions is going to get more expensive every year. Here is a non-exhaustive list of streamers that hiked prices in 2025: Apple TV+, Disney+, Peacock, HBO Max and Netflix.
In January, Paramount+ will raise prices for ad-free and ad-supported plans. The cost of the basic Paramount+ Essential option will increase from $7.99 per month to $8.99 per month, while Paramount+ Premium — which includes Showtime and a no-ads experience — is increasing from $12.99 per month to $13.99 per month.
Considering recent trends, Paramount likely will not be the only streaming service to enact an increase in 2026; we just don’t know the specific timelines for others yet.
Phones and computers
In September, Apple announced a $1,099 price tag for the iPhone 17 Pro, a $100 increase from the previous year’s model. (The latest version now ships with 256 GB of base storage, double the starting amount on the iPhone 16 Pro.)
According to forecasts, smartphone prices could jump across the industry in 2026. Prices for smartphones and computers will continue to be affected by memory shortages as tech’s AI race continues, experts say.
“The ongoing global memory shortage is expected to constrain supply and raise prices, which will impact low-to-mid range Android devices more significantly as they remain more price sensitive,” the International Data Corporation said in an early December report.
Computer prices could spike in the new year for similar reasons. Dell, for example, is raising PC prices for commercial clients, with multiple reports pointing to higher memory costs as the reason.
Jewelry
The cost of jewelry is up 8.3% since November 2024, according to the latest consumer price index (CPI) report.
Jewelers say the industry is responding to rising metal prices. Gold reached a high of $4381.58 in October, while silver hit $66.88 in December. As such, pieces containing those precious metals are set to continue to get more expensive.
In fact, experts say it’s now hard to find entry-level silver jewelry items at a sub-$100 price point, according to JCK Magazine. Jewelers are also reportedly using less gold in an effort to manage costs, with some makers emphasizing their creative use of negative space in pieces.
Eating in restaurants
Inflation at the grocery store typically draws the headlines when it comes to food inflation, but the cost of dining at restaurants is actually climbing faster.
The CPI for food away from home is up 3.7% in the past year, outpacing the general rate of inflation. (In November, annual CPI inflation was 2.7%, according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics report.)
A recent forecast from IFMA the Food Away from Home Association projects that food costs at restaurants will increase by another 3% in 2026.
Veterinary services
The cost of veterinary services increased 5.4% in the past year, according to the CPI. Veterinarians say higher costs for medicine, supplies and labor are behind the increases.
Roughly half of pet owners say unexpected vet bills are now a financial concern, up from about one-third in 2022, according to a report from Synchrony. For dog owners, the cost of veterinary services is their No. 1 cost concern with pet ownership.
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Health insurance
Americans will face higher health insurance costs in 2026. For workers who get health insurance through their employer, costs are forecast to rise between 6.7% and 9% in 2026, according to estimates.
High prescription drug prices and cancer treatment costs are among the factors driving up premiums.
Costs are also rising for government-sponsored health plans. After Congress failed to extend enhanced subsidies before its winter recess, some Americans with Affordable Care Act coverage could see average premium increases of 114% in 2026, according to KFF.
Medicare Part B premiums are also forecast to increase nearly 12% in 2026, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
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Pete Grieve is a New York-based reporter who covers personal finance news. At Money, Pete covers trending stories that affect Americans’ wallets on topics including car buying, insurance, housing, credit cards, retirement and taxes. He studied political science and photography at the University of Chicago, where he was editor-in-chief of The Chicago Maroon. Pete began his career as a professional journalist in 2019. Prior to joining Money, he was a health reporter for Spectrum News in Ohio, where he wrote digital stories and appeared on TV to provide coverage to a statewide audience. He has also written for the San Francisco Chronicle, the Chicago Sun-Times and CNN Politics. Pete received extensive journalism training through Report for America, a nonprofit organization that places reporters in newsrooms to cover underreported issues and communities, and he attended the annual Investigative Reporters and Editors conference in 2021. Pete has discussed his reporting in interviews with outlets including the Columbia Journalism Review and WBEZ (Chicago's NPR station). He’s been a panelist at the Chicago Headline Club’s FOIA Fest and he received the Institute on Political Journalism’s $2,500 Award for Excellence in Collegiate Reporting in 2017. An essay he wrote for Grey City magazine was published in a 2020 book, Remembering J. Z. Smith: A Career and its Consequence.