U.S. inflation · 2018–2022
$100 in 2018 has the same buying power as
$117
in 2022
| Cumulative price change | 16.5% |
|---|---|
| Average inflation rate | 3.90% per year |
| Converted amount ($100 base) | $117 |
| Price difference ($100 base) | $16.55 |
| CPI in 2018 | 251.107 |
| CPI in 2022 | 292.655 |
| Inflation in 2018 | 2.44% |
| Inflation in 2022 | 8.00% |
| $100 in 2018 → 2022 | $117 |
| $100 in 2022 → 2018 | $85.80 |
Between 2018 and 2022, the Consumer Price Index went from 251.107 to 292.655. Cumulatively, prices increased 16.5%, which works out to an average of 3.90% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 2018 bought what $0.86 buys in 2022.
| Amount in 2018 | Value in 2022 |
|---|---|
| $1.00 | $1.17 |
| $5.00 | $5.83 |
| $10.00 | $11.65 |
| $20.00 | $23.31 |
| $50.00 | $58.27 |
| $100 | $117 |
| $500 | $583 |
| $1,000 | $1,165 |
| $5,000 | $5,827 |
| $10,000 | $11,655 |
| $100,000 | $116,546 |
| $1,000,000 | $1,165,459 |
The headline number is an average. Individual categories moved very differently over this period. Here is what $100 of 2018 spending costs in 2022, by category:
| Category | Avg. yearly inflation | $100 in 2018 → |
|---|---|---|
| All items (CPI-U) | 3.90% | $117 |
| Energy | 7.91% | $136 |
| Transportation | 6.04% | $126 |
| Food | 4.76% | $120 |
| Housing | 3.86% | $116 |
| Core (all items less food & energy) | 3.39% | $114 |
| Medical care | 3.05% | $113 |
| Recreation | 2.38% | $110 |
| Education & communication | 1.26% | $105 |
| Apparel | 0.28% | $101 |
| Year | CPI | Inflation rate | $100 from 2018 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 251.107 | 2.4% | $100 |
| 2019 | 255.657 | 1.8% | $102 |
| 2020 | 258.811 | 1.2% | $103 |
| 2021 | 270.97 | 4.7% | $108 |
| 2022 | 292.655 | 8.0% | $117 |
2022 was the year inflation returned. Consumer prices rose 8.0% on average, the worst since 1981, driven by pandemic-era supply chains, stimulus-fueled demand, and an energy shock from the war in Ukraine. Gas briefly topped $5 a gallon nationally for the first time ever, and “inflation” became the top-ranked economic concern in nearly every poll of American households.
MLA: “Inflation from 2018 to 2022: $100 is worth $117 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2018-to-2022/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 2018 to 2022. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2018-to-2022/
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, CPI-U annual averages (series CUUR0000SA0; category indexes listed on the data sources page). See how these numbers are calculated.