$100 in 2008 is worth $110 in 2015,
because prices increased 10.1% over that period, an average of
1.38% a year.
$100 in 2008 has
the same buying power as
$110
in 2015
Detailed inflation statistics
Cumulative price change
10.1%
Average inflation rate
1.38% per year
Converted amount ($100 base)
$110
Price difference ($100 base)
$10.09
CPI in 2008
215.303
CPI in 2015
237.017
Inflation in 2008
3.84%
Inflation in 2015
0.12%
$100 in 2008 → 2015
$110
$100 in 2015 → 2008
$90.84
What happened to prices between 2008 and 2015
Between 2008 and 2015, the Consumer Price Index went from 215.303 to 237.017.
Cumulatively, prices increased 10.1%, which works out to an average of
1.38% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 2008 bought what
$0.91 buys in 2015: the 2008 dollar
lost 9.2% of its purchasing power over
these 7 years.
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.
Every 2008 amount converts to 2015 at the same ratio, 1.10: $1,000 becomes
$1,101, and $10,000 becomes $11,009.
Amount in 2008
Value in 2015
$1.00
$1.10
$5.00
$5.50
$10.00
$11.01
$20.00
$22.02
$50.00
$55.04
$100
$110
$500
$550
$1,000
$1,101
$5,000
$5,504
$10,000
$11,009
$100,000
$110,085
$1,000,000
$1,100,853
Inflation by spending category, 2008–2015
Between 2008 and 2015, medical care rose the most, up 22.7%, while energy fell 14.3%, against 10.1% for all items. The headline number is an average; here is what $100 of 2008
spending costs in 2015, by category:
Category
Avg. yearly inflation
$100 in 2008 →
All items (CPI-U)
1.38%
$110
Medical care
2.97%
$123
Food
2.08%
$115
Core (all items less food & energy)
1.68%
$112
Education & communication
1.61%
$112
Housing
1.38%
$110
Apparel
0.82%
$106
Recreation
0.34%
$102
Transportation
0.26%
$102
Energy
-2.18%
$85.73
Decade by decade: 2008 to 2015
Prices climbed fastest in the 2010s, averaging 1.68% a year, and slowest in the 2000s (0.64% a year). Each step below chains into the full 2008–2015 change:
Years
Avg. yearly inflation
Price change
$100 from 2008, at end
2008–2010
0.64%
1.3%
$101
2010–2015
1.68%
8.7%
$110
Year by year: CPI and the value of $100 from 2008
$100 from 2008 had already become $104 by
2011, on its way to $110 in 2015; each row shows the CPI, that
year's inflation rate, and the running value.
Within the span, inflation peaked at 3.2% in 2011, and prices fell 0.4% in 2009, the deepest deflation of the period.
In 2015, prices rose 0.1% and $100 from 2008 had the buying
power of $110; the year's average CPI of 237.017 is the level
behind every 2015 figure on this page.
2015 was almost a year with no inflation at all. Consumer prices rose 0.1%,
the smallest increase since the 2009 decline, because energy prices kept
falling. Gasoline averaged $2.45 a gallon, down from $3.37 in 2014, and a
strong dollar made imported goods cheaper. The picture was different outside
food and energy: core prices rose about 1.8% as rents and medical costs
climbed.
Incomes finally showed real progress. Median household income reached $56,516,
a large jump from $53,657, and the median new home sold for about $296,400. The
federal minimum wage stayed at $7.25, and a first-class stamp stayed at 49
cents.
The Federal Reserve chose December to end its zero-rate policy, raising the
target range to 0.25–0.50% for the first time since 2006. It moved even
though headline inflation was far under 2%, arguing that the drag from
energy was temporary. Earlier, a currency shift in China in August had shaken
global markets and pushed oil below $40 a barrel. Prices in 2015 ended
the year barely above their 2014 level.
MLA: “Inflation from 2008 to 2015: $100 is worth $110 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2008-to-2015/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 2008 to 2015. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2008-to-2015/