$100 in 1992 is worth $153 in 2008,
because prices increased 53.5% over that period, an average of
2.71% a year.
$100 in 1992 has
the same buying power as
$153
in 2008
Detailed inflation statistics
Cumulative price change
53.5%
Average inflation rate
2.71% per year
Converted amount ($100 base)
$153
Price difference ($100 base)
$53.46
CPI in 1992
140.3
CPI in 2008
215.303
Inflation in 1992
3.01%
Inflation in 2008
3.84%
$100 in 1992 → 2008
$153
$100 in 2008 → 1992
$65.16
What happened to prices between 1992 and 2008
Between 1992 and 2008, the Consumer Price Index went from 140.3 to 215.303.
Cumulatively, prices increased 53.5%, which works out to an average of
2.71% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 1992 bought what
$0.65 buys in 2008: the 1992 dollar
lost 34.8% of its purchasing power over
these 16 years.
1992 was the year the recovery finally showed up in the numbers, if not yet in hiring. The
median household earned about $30,600, gas averaged $1.13 a gallon, and a new home cost roughly
$121,500. Inflation ran at 3.0% for the year, its calmest reading since the mid-1980s, as energy
prices stayed well below their 1990 peak and a slack labor market kept a lid on wages and prices
alike. The Federal Reserve kept cutting its policy rate through the year, reaching about 3% by
September, the lowest in decades, trying to jump-start hiring more than a year after the 1990-91
recession officially ended. The sluggish job market became the defining issue of the November
election, and Bill Clinton unseated incumbent George H.W. Bush, whose approval ratings had
fallen sharply from their post-Gulf War highs. In August, Hurricane Andrew tore through South
Florida, the costliest U.S. hurricane on record at the time, causing tens of billions of dollars
in damage and reshaping how insurers priced catastrophe risk for years afterward. Falling rates,
a costly hurricane, and an election fought over jobs defined a recovery that showed up in the
data well before it showed up in most paychecks.
Every 1992 amount converts to 2008 at the same ratio, 1.53: $1,000 becomes
$1,535, and $10,000 becomes $15,346.
Amount in 1992
Value in 2008
$1.00
$1.53
$5.00
$7.67
$10.00
$15.35
$20.00
$30.69
$50.00
$76.73
$100
$153
$500
$767
$1,000
$1,535
$5,000
$7,673
$10,000
$15,346
$100,000
$153,459
$1,000,000
$1,534,590
Inflation by spending category, 1992–2008
Between 1992 and 2008, energy rose the most, up 129.8%, while apparel fell 9.9%, against 53.5% for all items. The headline number is an average; here is what $100 of 1992
spending costs in 2008, by category:
Category
Avg. yearly inflation
$100 in 1992 →
All items (CPI-U)
2.71%
$153
Energy
5.34%
$230
Medical care
4.14%
$192
Housing
2.87%
$157
Food
2.79%
$155
Transportation
2.76%
$155
Core (all items less food & energy)
2.41%
$146
Apparel
-0.65%
$90.15
Not shown because the BLS began these indexes after 1992: recreation (1993–), education & communication (1993–).
Decade by decade: 1992 to 2008
Prices climbed fastest in the 2000s, averaging 2.83% a year, and slowest in the 1990s (2.59% a year). Each step below chains into the full 1992–2008 change:
Years
Avg. yearly inflation
Price change
$100 from 1992, at end
1992–2000
2.59%
22.7%
$123
2000–2008
2.83%
25.0%
$153
Year by year: CPI and the value of $100 from 1992
$100 from 1992 had already become $123 by
2000, on its way to $153 in 2008; each row shows the CPI, that
year's inflation rate, and the running value.
Within the span, inflation peaked at 3.8% in 2008, and the smallest rise was 1.6% in 1998.
In 2008, prices rose 3.8% and $100 from 1992 had the buying
power of $153; the year's average CPI of 215.303 is the level
behind every 2008 figure on this page.
Inflation averaged 3.8% in 2008, but that figure hides a swing. The 12-month rate reached 5.6% in
July, when oil hit $147 a barrel and gasoline passed $4 a gallon, then fell to 0.1% by December
as crude dropped near $40. For the year, gas averaged $3.27, the highest yet. The financial
system broke in the fall: Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy on September 15, Congress
created the $700 billion TARP bank rescue on October 3, and the Federal Reserve cut its policy
rate to a range of 0–0.25% in December. The median household earned about $50,300, barely
above 2007, and the median new home price fell to $232,100. The minimum wage rose to $6.55 in
July, and a first-class stamp cost 42 cents. The price collapse at the end of 2008 set up the
deflation of 2009.
MLA: “Inflation from 1992 to 2008: $100 is worth $153 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/1992-to-2008/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 1992 to 2008. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/1992-to-2008/