U.S. inflation · 1939–1980
$100 in 1939 has the same buying power as
$593
in 1980
| Cumulative price change | 492.8% |
|---|---|
| Average inflation rate | 4.44% per year |
| Converted amount ($100 base) | $593 |
| Price difference ($100 base) | $493 |
| CPI in 1939 | 13.9 |
| CPI in 1980 | 82.4 |
| Inflation in 1939 | -1.42% |
| Inflation in 1980 | 13.50% |
| $100 in 1939 → 1980 | $593 |
| $100 in 1980 → 1939 | $16.87 |
Between 1939 and 1980, the Consumer Price Index went from 13.9 to 82.4. Cumulatively, prices increased 492.8%, which works out to an average of 4.44% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 1939 bought what $0.17 buys in 1980.
| Amount in 1939 | Value in 1980 |
|---|---|
| $1.00 | $5.93 |
| $5.00 | $29.64 |
| $10.00 | $59.28 |
| $20.00 | $119 |
| $50.00 | $296 |
| $100 | $593 |
| $500 | $2,964 |
| $1,000 | $5,928 |
| $5,000 | $29,640 |
| $10,000 | $59,281 |
| $100,000 | $592,806 |
| $1,000,000 | $5,928,058 |
The headline number is an average. Individual categories moved very differently over this period. Here is what $100 of 1939 spending costs in 1980, by category:
| Category | Avg. yearly inflation | $100 in 1939 → |
|---|---|---|
| All items (CPI-U) | 4.44% | $593 |
| Food | 4.99% | $736 |
| Medical care | 4.96% | $727 |
| Transportation | 4.39% | $581 |
| Apparel | 3.57% | $421 |
Not shown because the BLS began these indexes after 1939: core (all items less food & energy) (1957–), energy (1957–), housing (1967–), recreation (1993–), education & communication (1993–).
| Year | CPI | Inflation rate | $100 from 1939 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | 13.9 | -1.4% | $100 |
| 1941 | 14.7 | 5.0% | $106 |
| 1943 | 17.3 | 6.1% | $124 |
| 1945 | 18 | 2.3% | $129 |
| 1947 | 22.3 | 14.4% | $160 |
| 1949 | 23.8 | -1.2% | $171 |
| 1951 | 26 | 7.9% | $187 |
| 1953 | 26.7 | 0.8% | $192 |
| 1955 | 26.8 | -0.4% | $193 |
| 1957 | 28.1 | 3.3% | $202 |
| 1959 | 29.1 | 0.7% | $209 |
| 1961 | 29.9 | 1.0% | $215 |
| 1963 | 30.6 | 1.3% | $220 |
| 1965 | 31.5 | 1.6% | $227 |
| 1967 | 33.4 | 3.1% | $240 |
| 1969 | 36.7 | 5.5% | $264 |
| 1971 | 40.5 | 4.4% | $291 |
| 1973 | 44.4 | 6.2% | $319 |
| 1975 | 53.8 | 9.1% | $387 |
| 1977 | 60.6 | 6.5% | $436 |
| 1979 | 72.6 | 11.3% | $522 |
| 1980 | 82.4 | 13.5% | $593 |
Long periods are sampled every 2 years; the calculator above covers any pair of years.
1980 sat at the very peak of the Great Inflation. Prices rose 13.5% in that single year, mortgage rates were climbing toward 16%, and the Federal Reserve under Paul Volcker was administering the painful interest-rate medicine that would finally break the inflationary spiral, at the cost of the deep 1981–82 recession. No single year looms larger in how Americans think about inflation.
MLA: “Inflation from 1939 to 1980: $100 is worth $593 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/1939-to-1980/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 1939 to 1980. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/1939-to-1980/
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, CPI-U annual averages (series CUUR0000SA0; category indexes listed on the data sources page). See how these numbers are calculated.