$100 in 1921 is worth $1,301 in 2013,
because prices increased 1201.4% over that period, an average of
2.83% a year.
$100 in 1921 has
the same buying power as
$1,301
in 2013
Detailed inflation statistics
Cumulative price change
1201.4%
Average inflation rate
2.83% per year
Converted amount ($100 base)
$1,301
Price difference ($100 base)
$1,201
CPI in 1921
17.9
CPI in 2013
232.957
Inflation in 1921
-10.50%
Inflation in 2013
1.46%
$100 in 1921 → 2013
$1,301
$100 in 2013 → 1921
$7.68
What happened to prices between 1921 and 2013
Between 1921 and 2013, the Consumer Price Index went from 17.9 to 232.957.
Cumulatively, prices increased 1201.4%, which works out to an average of
2.83% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 1921 bought what
$0.08 buys in 2013: the 1921 dollar
lost 92.3% of its purchasing power over
these 92 years.
Consumer prices fell 10.5% in 1921, the mirror image of the wartime
inflation that had more than doubled the cost of living between
1913 and 1920. The Depression of 1920-21, one
of the sharpest contractions in U.S. history, bottomed out that July
according to the National Bureau of Economic Research, even though it had
lasted barely eighteen months. Unemployment climbed toward one worker in ten
as businesses cut production and prices to work through wartime inventories,
but the same collapse in prices also meant the recovery, once it started,
had room to run without reigniting inflation. Warren Harding took office
March 4, promising a return to “normalcy” after a decade of war, pandemic,
labor unrest, and rapid price swings; his administration moved quickly to
cut top income tax rates and federal spending. Congress also acted on
immigration that year: the Emergency Quota Act, signed May 19, capped annual
arrivals from each country at 3% of that nationality’s population in the
1910 census, the first time the United States had set a numerical ceiling on
immigration. The law favored northern and western Europe and cut total
immigration by more than half compared with prewar levels; Congress
tightened the formula again in 1924. First-class postage held at 2 cents,
unchanged since mid-1919.
Every 1921 amount converts to 2013 at the same ratio, 13.01: $1,000 becomes
$13,014, and $10,000 becomes $130,144.
Amount in 1921
Value in 2013
$1.00
$13.01
$5.00
$65.07
$10.00
$130
$20.00
$260
$50.00
$651
$100
$1,301
$500
$6,507
$1,000
$13,014
$5,000
$65,072
$10,000
$130,144
$100,000
$1,301,436
$1,000,000
$13,014,358
Inflation by spending category, 1921–2013
Between 1921 and 2013, food rose the most, up 1390.8%, while apparel rose the least, up 283.8%, against 1201.4% for all items. The headline number is an average; here is what $100 of 1921
spending costs in 2013, by category:
Category
Avg. yearly inflation
$100 in 1921 →
All items (CPI-U)
2.83%
$1,301
Food
2.98%
$1,491
Apparel
1.47%
$384
Not shown because the BLS began these indexes after 1921: core (all items less food & energy) (1957–), energy (1957–), housing (1967–), medical care (1935–), transportation (1935–), recreation (1993–), education & communication (1993–).
Decade by decade: 1921 to 2013
Prices climbed fastest in the 1970s, averaging 7.82% a year, and fell in the 1930s (1.7% a year). Each step below chains into the full 1921–2013 change:
Years
Avg. yearly inflation
Price change
$100 from 1921, at end
1921–1930
-0.77%
-6.7%
$93.30
1930–1940
-1.75%
-16.2%
$78.21
1940–1950
5.58%
72.1%
$135
1950–1960
2.08%
22.8%
$165
1960–1970
2.74%
31.1%
$217
1970–1980
7.82%
112.4%
$460
1980–1990
4.72%
58.6%
$730
1990–2000
2.80%
31.8%
$962
2000–2010
2.39%
26.6%
$1,218
2010–2013
2.23%
6.8%
$1,301
Year by year: CPI and the value of $100 from 1921
$100 from 1921 had already become $181 by
1966, on its way to $1,301 in 2013; each row shows the CPI, that
year's inflation rate, and the running value.
Within the span, inflation peaked at 14.4% in 1947, and prices fell 9.9% in 1932, the deepest deflation of the period.
Long periods are sampled every 5 years; the calculator above covers any pair of years.
The destination year: 2013
In 2013, prices rose 1.5% and $100 from 1921 had the buying
power of $1,301; the year's average CPI of 232.957 is the level
behind every 2013 figure on this page.
2013 was a low-inflation year with a lot of noise around the Federal Reserve.
Consumer prices rose 1.5%, below the Fed’s 2% target, and gasoline eased to an
average of $3.51 a gallon. Housing was the exception: the median new home sold
for about $268,900, up sharply from $245,200 in 2012, as the market recovered
from its post-crisis bottom.
The Fed dominated the news. Chairman Ben Bernanke’s May comments about slowing
bond purchases pushed long-term interest rates up by roughly a percentage
point that summer, and mortgages became more expensive within weeks. In
December the Fed finally announced a first small cut to its purchases while
promising to keep short-term rates near zero for a long time.
Washington added its own disruption. A 16-day government shutdown in October
delayed data releases and left a hole in that month’s CPI collection. Median
household income was reported at $53,585, the federal minimum wage stayed at
$7.25, and a first-class stamp cost 46 cents. The decade’s pattern was taking
shape: slow price growth, ultra-low interest rates, and a labor market that
improved gradually.
MLA: “Inflation from 1921 to 2013: $100 is worth $1,301 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/1921-to-2013/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 1921 to 2013. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/1921-to-2013/