Iranian households grapple with soaring inflation and wartime shortages

Iranian citizens are confronting a deepening economic crisis as inflation approaches 90% and food prices have risen 134% year‑on‑year. A pensioner in western Tehran receives about 180 million rials ($94) each month, a 40% increase that still fails to cover basic costs. Rent hikes of up to 50% have been negotiated despite legal caps of 27% in Tehran and 25% elsewhere, forcing many tenants to consider moving to cheaper districts.

Compounding the hardship, the United States and Israel launched a war in February that has intensified sanctions and disrupted banking, electricity, and internet services. Government cash subsidies and electronic food coupons provide only a few dollars in relief, and some shops are refusing the coupons because they have not been reimbursed. The combined effect of war, sanctions, and longstanding structural issues is eroding purchasing power and stability for ordinary Iranians.