$100 in 1991 is worth $244 in 2026,
because prices increased 143.9% over that period, an average of
2.58% a year.
$100 in 1991 has
the same buying power as
$244
in 2026
Detailed inflation statistics
Cumulative price change
143.9%
Average inflation rate
2.58% per year
Converted amount ($100 base)
$244
Price difference ($100 base)
$144
CPI in 1991
136.2
CPI in 2026
332.243
Inflation in 1991
4.21%
Inflation in 2026
3.20%
$100 in 1991 → 2026
$244
$100 in 2026 → 1991
$40.99
Uses a partial-year average for the current year; updates with each CPI release.
What happened to prices between 1991 and 2026
Between 1991 and 2026, the Consumer Price Index went from 136.2 to 332.243.
Cumulatively, prices increased 143.9%, which works out to an average of
2.58% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 1991 bought what
$0.41 buys in 2026: the 1991 dollar
lost 59.0% of its purchasing power over
these 35 years.
1991 opened in recession and closed in a slow, uneven recovery. The median household earned
about $30,100 for the year, gas averaged $1.14 a gallon, and a new home cost roughly $120,000.
Inflation ran at 4.2% for the year, down from 1990’s oil-driven spike, as the Gulf War ended in
February and crude oil retreated from its autumn highs. The recession itself, dated by the
National Bureau of Economic Research from July 1990 to March 1991, was technically over by
spring, but hiring stayed weak well into 1992, the stretch economists came to call the jobless
recovery. The Federal Reserve kept cutting interest rates through the year to support growth,
reversing the tightening campaign it had run through the late 1980s. In April the federal
minimum wage rose to $4.25 an hour, the second step of an increase from the $3.35 rate that had
held since 1981. The Postal Service had already raised the cost of a first-class stamp to 29
cents that February. It was the first full year of the decade without an oil shock driving
prices, even if the job market took longer to follow.
Every 1991 amount converts to 2026 at the same ratio, 2.44: $1,000 becomes
$2,439, and $10,000 becomes $24,394.
Amount in 1991
Value in 2026
$1.00
$2.44
$5.00
$12.20
$10.00
$24.39
$20.00
$48.79
$50.00
$122
$100
$244
$500
$1,220
$1,000
$2,439
$5,000
$12,197
$10,000
$24,394
$100,000
$243,938
$1,000,000
$2,439,376
Inflation by spending category, 1991–2026
Between 1991 and 2026, medical care rose the most, up 234.8%, while apparel rose the least, up 6.0%, against 143.9% for all items. The headline number is an average; here is what $100 of 1991
spending costs in 2026, by category:
Category
Avg. yearly inflation
$100 in 1991 →
All items (CPI-U)
2.58%
$244
Medical care
3.51%
$335
Energy
3.29%
$310
Housing
2.85%
$268
Food
2.72%
$256
Core (all items less food & energy)
2.49%
$236
Transportation
2.43%
$231
Apparel
0.17%
$106
Not shown because the BLS began these indexes after 1991: recreation (1993–), education & communication (1993–).
Decade by decade: 1991 to 2026
Prices climbed fastest in the 2020s, averaging 4.25% a year, and slowest in the 2010s (1.73% a year). Each step below chains into the full 1991–2026 change:
Years
Avg. yearly inflation
Price change
$100 from 1991, at end
1991–2000
2.64%
26.4%
$126
2000–2010
2.39%
26.6%
$160
2010–2020
1.73%
18.7%
$190
2020–2026
4.25%
28.4%
$244
Year by year: CPI and the value of $100 from 1991
$100 from 1991 had already become $158 by
2009, on its way to $244 in 2026; each row shows the CPI, that
year's inflation rate, and the running value.
Within the span, inflation peaked at 8.0% in 2022, and prices fell 0.4% in 2009, the deepest deflation of the period.
Long periods are sampled every 2 years; the calculator above covers any pair of years.
The destination year: 2026
In 2026, prices rose 3.2% and $100 from 1991 had the buying
power of $244; the year's average CPI of 332.243 is the level
behind every 2026 figure on this page.
Cite this page
MLA: “Inflation from 1991 to 2026: $100 is worth $244 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/1991-to-2026/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 1991 to 2026. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/1991-to-2026/