$100 in 2006 is worth $107 in 2008,
because prices increased 6.8% over that period, an average of
3.34% a year.
$100 in 2006 has
the same buying power as
$107
in 2008
Detailed inflation statistics
Cumulative price change
6.8%
Average inflation rate
3.34% per year
Converted amount ($100 base)
$107
Price difference ($100 base)
$6.80
CPI in 2006
201.6
CPI in 2008
215.303
Inflation in 2006
3.23%
Inflation in 2008
3.84%
$100 in 2006 → 2008
$107
$100 in 2008 → 2006
$93.64
What happened to prices between 2006 and 2008
Between 2006 and 2008, the Consumer Price Index went from 201.6 to 215.303.
Cumulatively, prices increased 6.8%, which works out to an average of
3.34% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 2006 bought what
$0.94 buys in 2008: the 2006 dollar
lost 6.4% of its purchasing power over
these 2 years.
Inflation was 3.2% in 2006 and gasoline averaged $2.59 a gallon, up 29 cents from 2005. The
median household earned about $48,200 and the median new home cost $246,500, a gain of about
2% after a 13% jump in 2004 and 9% in 2005. National home prices, by the S&P/Case-Shiller
index, peaked in mid-2006. Ben Bernanke replaced Alan Greenspan as Federal Reserve chair on
February 1, and on June 29 the Fed raised its policy rate to 5.25%, the last of 17 straight
quarter-point increases. It held there for over a year. A first-class stamp rose to 39 cents in
January, and the federal minimum wage was $5.15 for the ninth full year in a row.
Every 2006 amount converts to 2008 at the same ratio, 1.07: $1,000 becomes
$1,068, and $10,000 becomes $10,680.
Amount in 2006
Value in 2008
$1.00
$1.07
$5.00
$5.34
$10.00
$10.68
$20.00
$21.36
$50.00
$53.40
$100
$107
$500
$534
$1,000
$1,068
$5,000
$5,340
$10,000
$10,680
$100,000
$106,797
$1,000,000
$1,067,971
Inflation by spending category, 2006–2008
Between 2006 and 2008, energy rose the most, up 20.2%, while apparel fell 0.5%, against 6.8% for all items. The headline number is an average; here is what $100 of 2006
spending costs in 2008, by category:
Category
Avg. yearly inflation
$100 in 2006 →
All items (CPI-U)
3.34%
$107
Energy
9.63%
$120
Food
4.73%
$110
Medical care
4.06%
$108
Transportation
3.97%
$108
Housing
3.16%
$106
Education & communication
2.88%
$106
Core (all items less food & energy)
2.32%
$105
Recreation
1.06%
$102
Apparel
-0.25%
$99.50
Year by year: CPI and the value of $100 from 2006
$100 from 2006 had already become $103 by
2007, on its way to $107 in 2008; 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 the smallest rise was 2.8% in 2007.
In 2008, prices rose 3.8% and $100 from 2006 had the buying
power of $107; the year's average CPI of 215.303 is the level
behind every 2008 figure on this page.
Inflation averaged 3.8% in 2008, but that figure hides a swing. The 12-month rate reached 5.6% in
July, when oil hit $147 a barrel and gasoline passed $4 a gallon, then fell to 0.1% by December
as crude dropped near $40. For the year, gas averaged $3.27, the highest yet. The financial
system broke in the fall: Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy on September 15, Congress
created the $700 billion TARP bank rescue on October 3, and the Federal Reserve cut its policy
rate to a range of 0–0.25% in December. The median household earned about $50,300, barely
above 2007, and the median new home price fell to $232,100. The minimum wage rose to $6.55 in
July, and a first-class stamp cost 42 cents. The price collapse at the end of 2008 set up the
deflation of 2009.
MLA: “Inflation from 2006 to 2008: $100 is worth $107 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2006-to-2008/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 2006 to 2008. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2006-to-2008/