This study analyzes the development of inflation and commodity prices of shallots and cayenne pepper, and examines the influence of these two commodities on inflation in Kotabaru, South Kalimantan, from January 2020 to July 2025. It uses secondary time series data on consumer-level prices and inflation rates, sourced from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) of Kotabaru and the Kotabaru Food Security and Agriculture Office. Descriptive analysis addresses the first objective, while ARDL (Autoregressive Distributed Lag) is used to examine the price-inflation relationship. Results show cayenne pepper prices fluctuated sharply, with extreme, repeated spikes in 2020–2021 and another increase in 2024–2025. Shallot prices followed a more seasonal, temporary pattern, returning to equilibrium faster after price surges. Monthly inflation showed sharp fluctuations in 2024 and deflation in 2025, indicating short-term volatility but long-term stability. The ARDL results indicate that inflation in the previous two periods, current cayenne pepper prices, and current shallot prices significantly affect current inflation in the short term. In the long term, only cayenne pepper prices have a significant effect on inflation.