$100 in 2001 is worth $142 in 2018,
because prices increased 41.8% over that period, an average of
2.08% a year.
$100 in 2001 has
the same buying power as
$142
in 2018
Detailed inflation statistics
Cumulative price change
41.8%
Average inflation rate
2.08% per year
Converted amount ($100 base)
$142
Price difference ($100 base)
$41.79
CPI in 2001
177.1
CPI in 2018
251.107
Inflation in 2001
2.85%
Inflation in 2018
2.44%
$100 in 2001 → 2018
$142
$100 in 2018 → 2001
$70.53
What happened to prices between 2001 and 2018
Between 2001 and 2018, the Consumer Price Index went from 177.1 to 251.107.
Cumulatively, prices increased 41.8%, which works out to an average of
2.08% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 2001 bought what
$0.71 buys in 2018: the 2001 dollar
lost 29.5% of its purchasing power over
these 17 years.
Inflation fell to 2.8% in 2001 from 3.4% the year before, as a recession that began in March
cut demand and gasoline slid to an average of $1.46 a gallon. The median household earned about
$42,200, roughly flat from 2000, and a new home cost about $175,200. The Federal Reserve cut its
policy rate 11 times over the year, from 6.5% to 1.75%, the lowest since 1961. After the
September 11 attacks, U.S. stock markets closed for four trading days, and air travel dropped
sharply until the following year. Congress had already passed a $1.35 trillion tax cut in June,
which included rebate checks of up to $600. The National Bureau of Economic Research dates the
recession’s end at November, but unemployment kept rising into 2003. A first-class stamp went to
34 cents in January, and the federal minimum wage stayed at $5.15. The Fed’s cuts were the
first step in a long period of very cheap borrowing that would fuel the housing boom.
Every 2001 amount converts to 2018 at the same ratio, 1.42: $1,000 becomes
$1,418, and $10,000 becomes $14,179.
Amount in 2001
Value in 2018
$1.00
$1.42
$5.00
$7.09
$10.00
$14.18
$20.00
$28.36
$50.00
$70.89
$100
$142
$500
$709
$1,000
$1,418
$5,000
$7,089
$10,000
$14,179
$100,000
$141,788
$1,000,000
$1,417,883
Inflation by spending category, 2001–2018
Between 2001 and 2018, medical care rose the most, up 77.7%, while apparel fell 1.3%, against 41.8% for all items. The headline number is an average; here is what $100 of 2001
spending costs in 2018, by category:
Category
Avg. yearly inflation
$100 in 2001 →
All items (CPI-U)
2.08%
$142
Medical care
3.44%
$178
Energy
3.17%
$170
Housing
2.27%
$147
Food
2.27%
$146
Core (all items less food & energy)
1.93%
$138
Transportation
1.85%
$137
Education & communication
1.56%
$130
Recreation
0.75%
$114
Apparel
-0.08%
$98.71
Decade by decade: 2001 to 2018
Prices climbed fastest in the 2000s, averaging 2.34% a year, and slowest in the 2010s (1.78% a year). Each step below chains into the full 2001–2018 change:
Years
Avg. yearly inflation
Price change
$100 from 2001, at end
2001–2010
2.34%
23.1%
$123
2010–2018
1.78%
15.2%
$142
Year by year: CPI and the value of $100 from 2001
$100 from 2001 had already become $121 by
2009, on its way to $142 in 2018; 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 prices fell 0.4% in 2009, the deepest deflation of the period.
In 2018, prices rose 2.4% and $100 from 2001 had the buying
power of $142; the year's average CPI of 251.107 is the level
behind every 2018 figure on this page.
2018 was the peak of the late-2010s expansion. Consumer prices rose 2.4%,
the fastest since 2011, with gasoline averaging $2.72 a gallon after a summer
high. Unemployment fell to 3.7% in September, the lowest since 1969, and median
household income reached $63,179. The median new home sold for about $331,800,
and a first-class stamp cost 50 cents. The federal minimum wage was still $7.25.
Trade policy became a price factor for the first time in decades. New tariffs
on steel, aluminum, and a growing list of Chinese goods raised costs for
manufacturers and some consumer products, and retaliation cut into exports of
soybeans and other farm goods.
The Federal Reserve, led from February by Jerome Powell, raised rates four
times to 2.25–2.50%. A stock-market drop of nearly 20% in the fourth quarter
led the Fed to signal a pause in early 2019. Oil fell from over $75 a barrel in
October to below $50 by December, which pulled headline inflation lower going
into the next year.
MLA: “Inflation from 2001 to 2018: $100 is worth $142 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2001-to-2018/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 2001 to 2018. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2001-to-2018/