$100 in 2003 is worth $166 in 2023,
because prices increased 65.6% over that period, an average of
2.55% a year.
$100 in 2003 has
the same buying power as
$166
in 2023
Detailed inflation statistics
Cumulative price change
65.6%
Average inflation rate
2.55% per year
Converted amount ($100 base)
$166
Price difference ($100 base)
$65.60
CPI in 2003
184
CPI in 2023
304.702
Inflation in 2003
2.28%
Inflation in 2023
4.12%
$100 in 2003 → 2023
$166
$100 in 2023 → 2003
$60.39
What happened to prices between 2003 and 2023
Between 2003 and 2023, the Consumer Price Index went from 184 to 304.702.
Cumulatively, prices increased 65.6%, which works out to an average of
2.55% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 2003 bought what
$0.60 buys in 2023: the 2003 dollar
lost 39.6% of its purchasing power over
these 20 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 2023 at the same ratio, 1.66: $1,000 becomes
$1,656, and $10,000 becomes $16,560.
Amount in 2003
Value in 2023
$1.00
$1.66
$5.00
$8.28
$10.00
$16.56
$20.00
$33.12
$50.00
$82.80
$100
$166
$500
$828
$1,000
$1,656
$5,000
$8,280
$10,000
$16,560
$100,000
$165,599
$1,000,000
$1,655,989
Inflation by spending category, 2003–2023
Between 2003 and 2023, energy rose the most, up 107.5%, while apparel rose the least, up 8.0%, against 65.6% for all items. The headline number is an average; here is what $100 of 2003
spending costs in 2023, by category:
Category
Avg. yearly inflation
$100 in 2003 →
All items (CPI-U)
2.55%
$166
Energy
3.72%
$208
Medical care
3.12%
$185
Food
2.97%
$179
Housing
2.79%
$173
Transportation
2.67%
$169
Core (all items less food & energy)
2.37%
$160
Education & communication
1.41%
$132
Recreation
1.19%
$127
Apparel
0.39%
$108
Decade by decade: 2003 to 2023
Prices climbed fastest in the 2020s, averaging 5.59% a year, and slowest in the 2010s (1.73% a year). Each step below chains into the full 2003–2023 change:
Years
Avg. yearly inflation
Price change
$100 from 2003, at end
2003–2010
2.46%
18.5%
$119
2010–2020
1.73%
18.7%
$141
2020–2023
5.59%
17.7%
$166
Year by year: CPI and the value of $100 from 2003
$100 from 2003 had already become $127 by
2013, on its way to $166 in 2023; 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.
In 2023, prices rose 4.1% and $100 from 2003 had the buying
power of $166; the year's average CPI of 304.702 is the level
behind every 2023 figure on this page.
2023 was the year inflation came down without a recession. Consumer prices
rose 4.1% on average, roughly half of 2022’s 8.0%, and the December-to-December
rate fell to 3.4%. Gasoline averaged $3.52 a gallon, well below the 2022
average, and supply-chain pressure on goods eased. Shelter, restaurant meals,
and other services stayed expensive, so the CPI kept rising at a rate well
above the pre-pandemic pace.
The Federal Reserve completed its rate-hiking campaign in July, taking the
policy rate to 5.25–5.50%, the highest level in 22 years. The effects showed
up in banking: Silicon Valley Bank failed in March after rate increases eroded
the value of its bond portfolio, the second-largest bank failure in U.S.
history at the time. Despite that, unemployment stayed under 4% all year.
Median household income was $80,610 according to the Census Bureau. The
federal minimum wage stayed at $7.25, and a first-class stamp rose to 66 cents
in July.
MLA: “Inflation from 2003 to 2023: $100 is worth $166 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2003-to-2023/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 2003 to 2023. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2003-to-2023/