$100 in 2004 is worth $176 in 2026,
because prices increased 75.9% over that period, an average of
2.60% a year.
$100 in 2004 has
the same buying power as
$176
in 2026
Detailed inflation statistics
Cumulative price change
75.9%
Average inflation rate
2.60% per year
Converted amount ($100 base)
$176
Price difference ($100 base)
$75.88
CPI in 2004
188.9
CPI in 2026
332.243
Inflation in 2004
2.66%
Inflation in 2026
3.20%
$100 in 2004 → 2026
$176
$100 in 2026 → 2004
$56.86
Uses a partial-year average for the current year; updates with each CPI release.
What happened to prices between 2004 and 2026
Between 2004 and 2026, the Consumer Price Index went from 188.9 to 332.243.
Cumulatively, prices increased 75.9%, which works out to an average of
2.60% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 2004 bought what
$0.57 buys in 2026: the 2004 dollar
lost 43.1% of its purchasing power over
these 22 years.
Consumer prices rose 2.7% in 2004, with a 29-cent jump in the price of gasoline, to $1.88 a
gallon, doing much of the work. Crude oil passed $50 a barrel in October on rising demand
from China and India. The Federal Reserve raised rates for the first time in four years on
June 30, to 1.25%, and it kept going: 17 consecutive quarter-point increases took the rate to
5.25% by June 2006. Housing was already running ahead of incomes. The median household earned
about $44,300, up 2.3% from 2003, while the median new home sold for $221,000, up about 13%. A
first-class stamp stayed at 37 cents and the federal minimum wage at $5.15, unchanged since
1997.
Every 2004 amount converts to 2026 at the same ratio, 1.76: $1,000 becomes
$1,759, and $10,000 becomes $17,588.
Amount in 2004
Value in 2026
$1.00
$1.76
$5.00
$8.79
$10.00
$17.59
$20.00
$35.18
$50.00
$87.94
$100
$176
$500
$879
$1,000
$1,759
$5,000
$8,794
$10,000
$17,588
$100,000
$175,883
$1,000,000
$1,758,830
Inflation by spending category, 2004–2026
Between 2004 and 2026, energy rose the most, up 110.0%, while apparel rose the least, up 13.3%, against 75.9% for all items. The headline number is an average; here is what $100 of 2004
spending costs in 2026, by category:
Category
Avg. yearly inflation
$100 in 2004 →
All items (CPI-U)
2.60%
$176
Energy
3.43%
$210
Medical care
2.99%
$191
Housing
2.93%
$189
Food
2.89%
$187
Transportation
2.59%
$176
Core (all items less food & energy)
2.47%
$171
Recreation
1.31%
$133
Education & communication
1.28%
$132
Apparel
0.57%
$113
Decade by decade: 2004 to 2026
Prices climbed fastest in the 2020s, averaging 4.25% a year, and slowest in the 2010s (1.73% a year). Each step below chains into the full 2004–2026 change:
Years
Avg. yearly inflation
Price change
$100 from 2004, at end
2004–2010
2.42%
15.4%
$115
2010–2020
1.73%
18.7%
$137
2020–2026
4.25%
28.4%
$176
Year by year: CPI and the value of $100 from 2004
$100 from 2004 had already become $125 by
2015, on its way to $176 in 2026; 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 2026, prices rose 3.2% and $100 from 2004 had the buying
power of $176; the year's average CPI of 332.243 is the level
behind every 2026 figure on this page.
Cite this page
MLA: “Inflation from 2004 to 2026: $100 is worth $176 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2004-to-2026/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 2004 to 2026. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2004-to-2026/