$100 in 2002 is worth $133 in 2016,
because prices increased 33.4% over that period, an average of
2.08% a year.
$100 in 2002 has
the same buying power as
$133
in 2016
Detailed inflation statistics
Cumulative price change
33.4%
Average inflation rate
2.08% per year
Converted amount ($100 base)
$133
Price difference ($100 base)
$33.41
CPI in 2002
179.9
CPI in 2016
240.007
Inflation in 2002
1.58%
Inflation in 2016
1.26%
$100 in 2002 → 2016
$133
$100 in 2016 → 2002
$74.96
What happened to prices between 2002 and 2016
Between 2002 and 2016, the Consumer Price Index went from 179.9 to 240.007.
Cumulatively, prices increased 33.4%, which works out to an average of
2.08% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 2002 bought what
$0.75 buys in 2016: the 2002 dollar
lost 25.0% of its purchasing power over
these 14 years.
The CPI rose 1.6% in 2002, the lowest annual rate of the decade so far, with gasoline down to an
average of $1.36 a gallon and slack in the labor market keeping wage pressure low. The median
household earned about $42,400, and a new home cost roughly $187,600, an increase of about 7%
from the year before as low mortgage rates began to lift housing. The Federal Reserve cut its
policy rate to 1.25% in November. Stocks were moving the other way: after the Enron and WorldCom
scandals, the S&P 500 hit its bear-market low on October 9, about 49% below its March 2000
peak, and Congress passed the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in July to tighten corporate accounting rules.
On January 1, euro banknotes and coins replaced national currencies in 12 European countries. A
first-class stamp rose to 37 cents in June, and the federal minimum wage stayed at $5.15.
Every 2002 amount converts to 2016 at the same ratio, 1.33: $1,000 becomes
$1,334, and $10,000 becomes $13,341.
Amount in 2002
Value in 2016
$1.00
$1.33
$5.00
$6.67
$10.00
$13.34
$20.00
$26.68
$50.00
$66.71
$100
$133
$500
$667
$1,000
$1,334
$5,000
$6,671
$10,000
$13,341
$100,000
$133,411
$1,000,000
$1,334,113
Inflation by spending category, 2002–2016
Between 2002 and 2016, medical care rose the most, up 62.4%, while apparel rose the least, up 1.6%, against 33.4% for all items. The headline number is an average; here is what $100 of 2002
spending costs in 2016, by category:
Category
Avg. yearly inflation
$100 in 2002 →
All items (CPI-U)
2.08%
$133
Medical care
3.52%
$162
Energy
3.21%
$156
Food
2.47%
$141
Housing
2.18%
$135
Core (all items less food & energy)
1.89%
$130
Education & communication
1.83%
$129
Transportation
1.75%
$127
Recreation
0.69%
$110
Apparel
0.12%
$102
Decade by decade: 2002 to 2016
Prices climbed fastest in the 2000s, averaging 2.43% a year, and slowest in the 2010s (1.61% a year). Each step below chains into the full 2002–2016 change:
Years
Avg. yearly inflation
Price change
$100 from 2002, at end
2002–2010
2.43%
21.2%
$121
2010–2016
1.61%
10.1%
$133
Year by year: CPI and the value of $100 from 2002
$100 from 2002 had already become $119 by
2009, on its way to $133 in 2016; 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 2016, prices rose 1.3% and $100 from 2002 had the buying
power of $133; the year's average CPI of 240.007 is the level
behind every 2016 figure on this page.
2016 opened with the cheapest oil in more than a decade and closed with a
change in political direction. Crude fell to about $26 a barrel in February,
and gasoline averaged $2.14 a gallon for the year, its lowest annual
average since 2004. Headline inflation was 1.3%, a modest rebound from 2015’s
0.1%, though prices excluding food and energy rose faster, driven by rents and
health care.
Median household income rose to $59,039, the second large gain in a row, and
the median new home sold for about $307,800. The federal minimum wage held at
$7.25, and a first-class stamp fell to 47 cents after a January rate cut, a
rare decrease.
Two votes changed the outlook. Britain’s June decision to leave the European
Union unsettled currency markets, and the U.S. election in November raised
expectations of tax cuts, deficits, and faster growth, sending long-term
interest rates higher. OPEC’s November output cut ended the oil slump, and the
Federal Reserve made its second rate increase in December, to 0.50–0.75%.
MLA: “Inflation from 2002 to 2016: $100 is worth $133 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2002-to-2016/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 2002 to 2016. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2002-to-2016/