What is $100 in 1977 worth in 1979?

$100 in 1977 has the purchasing power of about $120 in 1979, based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI-U).

What was the average inflation rate between 1977 and 1979?

Prices rose 19.8% in total between 1977 and 1979, an average of 9.45% per year.

How much is $1 in 1977 worth today?

$1 in 1977 is equivalent to about $1.20 in 1979. Equivalently, a 1979 dollar buys what $0.83 bought in 1977.

U.S. inflation · 1977–1979

Value of $100 in 1977, adjusted to 1979

Amount From year To year

$100 in 1977 has the same buying power as

$120

in 1979

Detailed inflation statistics
Cumulative price change	19.8%
Average inflation rate	9.45% per year
Converted amount ($100 base)	$120
Price difference ($100 base)	$19.80
CPI in 1977	60.6
CPI in 1979	72.6
Inflation in 1977	6.50%
Inflation in 1979	11.35%
$100 in 1977 → 1979	$120
$100 in 1979 → 1977	$83.47

What happened to prices between 1977 and 1979

Between 1977 and 1979, the Consumer Price Index went from 60.6 to 72.6. Cumulatively, prices increased 19.8%, which works out to an average of 9.45% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 1977 bought what $0.83 buys in 1979.

Common amounts: 1977 dollars in 1979

Amount in 1977	Value in 1979
$1.00	$1.20
$5.00	$5.99
$10.00	$11.98
$20.00	$23.96
$50.00	$59.90
$100	$120
$500	$599
$1,000	$1,198
$5,000	$5,990
$10,000	$11,980
$100,000	$119,802
$1,000,000	$1,198,020

Inflation by spending category, 1977–1979

The headline number is an average. Individual categories moved very differently over this period. Here is what $100 of 1977 spending costs in 1979, by category:

Category	Avg. yearly inflation	$100 in 1977 →
All items (CPI-U)	9.45%	$120
Energy	15.32%	$133
Housing	10.51%	$122
Food	10.45%	$122
Transportation	9.31%	$119
Medical care	8.82%	$118
Core (all items less food & energy)	8.57%	$118
Apparel	3.93%	$108

Not shown because the BLS began these indexes after 1977: recreation (1993–), education & communication (1993–).

Year by year: CPI and the value of $100 from 1977

Year	CPI	Inflation rate	$100 from 1977
1977	60.6	6.5%	$100
1978	65.2	7.6%	$108
1979	72.6	11.3%	$120

Cite this page

MLA: “Inflation from 1977 to 1979: $100 is worth $120 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/1977-to-1979/

APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 1977 to 1979. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/1977-to-1979/

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.