U.S. inflation · 1979–1980
$100 in 1979 has the same buying power as
$113
in 1980
| Cumulative price change | 13.5% |
|---|---|
| Average inflation rate | 13.50% per year |
| Converted amount ($100 base) | $113 |
| Price difference ($100 base) | $13.50 |
| CPI in 1979 | 72.6 |
| CPI in 1980 | 82.4 |
| Inflation in 1979 | 11.35% |
| Inflation in 1980 | 13.50% |
| $100 in 1979 → 1980 | $113 |
| $100 in 1980 → 1979 | $88.11 |
Between 1979 and 1980, the Consumer Price Index went from 72.6 to 82.4. Cumulatively, prices increased 13.5%, which works out to an average of 13.50% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 1979 bought what $0.88 buys in 1980.
| Amount in 1979 | Value in 1980 |
|---|---|
| $1.00 | $1.13 |
| $5.00 | $5.67 |
| $10.00 | $11.35 |
| $20.00 | $22.70 |
| $50.00 | $56.75 |
| $100 | $113 |
| $500 | $567 |
| $1,000 | $1,135 |
| $5,000 | $5,675 |
| $10,000 | $11,350 |
| $100,000 | $113,499 |
| $1,000,000 | $1,134,986 |
The headline number is an average. Individual categories moved very differently over this period. Here is what $100 of 1979 spending costs in 1980, by category:
| Category | Avg. yearly inflation | $100 in 1979 → |
|---|---|---|
| All items (CPI-U) | 13.50% | $113 |
| Energy | 30.90% | $131 |
| Transportation | 17.87% | $118 |
| Housing | 15.69% | $116 |
| Core (all items less food & energy) | 12.38% | $112 |
| Medical care | 10.96% | $111 |
| Food | 8.64% | $109 |
| Apparel | 7.07% | $107 |
Not shown because the BLS began these indexes after 1979: recreation (1993–), education & communication (1993–).
| Year | CPI | Inflation rate | $100 from 1979 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 72.6 | 11.3% | $100 |
| 1980 | 82.4 | 13.5% | $113 |
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 1979 to 1980: $100 is worth $113 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/1979-to-1980/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 1979 to 1980. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/1979-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.