$100 in 2003 is worth $130 in 2016,
because prices increased 30.4% over that period, an average of
2.07% a year.
$100 in 2003 has
the same buying power as
$130
in 2016
Detailed inflation statistics
Cumulative price change
30.4%
Average inflation rate
2.07% per year
Converted amount ($100 base)
$130
Price difference ($100 base)
$30.44
CPI in 2003
184
CPI in 2016
240.007
Inflation in 2003
2.28%
Inflation in 2016
1.26%
$100 in 2003 → 2016
$130
$100 in 2016 → 2003
$76.66
What happened to prices between 2003 and 2016
Between 2003 and 2016, the Consumer Price Index went from 184 to 240.007.
Cumulatively, prices increased 30.4%, which works out to an average of
2.07% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 2003 bought what
$0.77 buys in 2016: the 2003 dollar
lost 23.3% of its purchasing power over
these 13 years.
Inflation was 2.3% in 2003, up from 1.6% in 2002, as gasoline climbed from $1.36 to $1.59 a
gallon around the March invasion of Iraq. Even so, the Federal Reserve spent the year worried
about prices being too low: on June 25 it cut its policy rate to 1.0%, the lowest since 1958,
and said the risk of deflation, though small, deserved a response. The median household earned
about $43,300 and a new home cost roughly $195,000. Congress passed a second round of tax cuts
in May, and the economy grew faster in the second half of the year than at any point since
1999. Hiring lagged the recovery, and unemployment peaked at 6.3% in June. A first-class stamp
stayed at 37 cents and the federal minimum wage at $5.15.
Every 2003 amount converts to 2016 at the same ratio, 1.30: $1,000 becomes
$1,304, and $10,000 becomes $13,044.
Amount in 2003
Value in 2016
$1.00
$1.30
$5.00
$6.52
$10.00
$13.04
$20.00
$26.09
$50.00
$65.22
$100
$130
$500
$652
$1,000
$1,304
$5,000
$6,522
$10,000
$13,044
$100,000
$130,439
$1,000,000
$1,304,386
Inflation by spending category, 2003–2016
Between 2003 and 2016, medical care rose the most, up 56.1%, while apparel rose the least, up 4.3%, against 30.4% for all items. The headline number is an average; here is what $100 of 2003
spending costs in 2016, by category:
Category
Avg. yearly inflation
$100 in 2003 →
All items (CPI-U)
2.07%
$130
Medical care
3.48%
$156
Energy
2.56%
$139
Food
2.49%
$138
Housing
2.16%
$132
Core (all items less food & energy)
1.93%
$128
Education & communication
1.84%
$127
Transportation
1.65%
$124
Recreation
0.65%
$109
Apparel
0.32%
$104
Decade by decade: 2003 to 2016
Prices climbed fastest in the 2000s, averaging 2.46% a year, and slowest in the 2010s (1.61% a year). Each step below chains into the full 2003–2016 change:
Years
Avg. yearly inflation
Price change
$100 from 2003, at end
2003–2010
2.46%
18.5%
$119
2010–2016
1.61%
10.1%
$130
Year by year: CPI and the value of $100 from 2003
$100 from 2003 had already become $117 by
2009, on its way to $130 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 2003 had the buying
power of $130; 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 2003 to 2016: $100 is worth $130 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2003-to-2016/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 2003 to 2016. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2003-to-2016/