$100 in 2018 is worth $132 in 2026,
because prices increased 32.3% over that period, an average of
3.56% a year.
$100 in 2018 has
the same buying power as
$132
in 2026
Detailed inflation statistics
Cumulative price change
32.3%
Average inflation rate
3.56% per year
Converted amount ($100 base)
$132
Price difference ($100 base)
$32.31
CPI in 2018
251.107
CPI in 2026
332.243
Inflation in 2018
2.44%
Inflation in 2026
3.20%
$100 in 2018 → 2026
$132
$100 in 2026 → 2018
$75.58
Uses a partial-year average for the current year; updates with each CPI release.
What happened to prices between 2018 and 2026
Between 2018 and 2026, the Consumer Price Index went from 251.107 to 332.243.
Cumulatively, prices increased 32.3%, which works out to an average of
3.56% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 2018 bought what
$0.76 buys in 2026: the 2018 dollar
lost 24.4% of its purchasing power over
these 8 years.
2018 was the peak of the late-2010s expansion. Consumer prices rose 2.4%,
the fastest since 2011, with gasoline averaging $2.72 a gallon after a summer
high. Unemployment fell to 3.7% in September, the lowest since 1969, and median
household income reached $63,179. The median new home sold for about $331,800,
and a first-class stamp cost 50 cents. The federal minimum wage was still $7.25.
Trade policy became a price factor for the first time in decades. New tariffs
on steel, aluminum, and a growing list of Chinese goods raised costs for
manufacturers and some consumer products, and retaliation cut into exports of
soybeans and other farm goods.
The Federal Reserve, led from February by Jerome Powell, raised rates four
times to 2.25–2.50%. A stock-market drop of nearly 20% in the fourth quarter
led the Fed to signal a pause in early 2019. Oil fell from over $75 a barrel in
October to below $50 by December, which pulled headline inflation lower going
into the next year.
Every 2018 amount converts to 2026 at the same ratio, 1.32: $1,000 becomes
$1,323, and $10,000 becomes $13,231.
Amount in 2018
Value in 2026
$1.00
$1.32
$5.00
$6.62
$10.00
$13.23
$20.00
$26.46
$50.00
$66.16
$100
$132
$500
$662
$1,000
$1,323
$5,000
$6,616
$10,000
$13,231
$100,000
$132,311
$1,000,000
$1,323,113
Inflation by spending category, 2018–2026
Between 2018 and 2026, energy rose the most, up 44.5%, while education & communication rose the least, up 8.0%, against 32.3% for all items. The headline number is an average; here is what $100 of 2018
spending costs in 2026, by category:
Category
Avg. yearly inflation
$100 in 2018 →
All items (CPI-U)
3.56%
$132
Energy
4.71%
$145
Housing
4.14%
$138
Food
4.06%
$137
Transportation
3.92%
$136
Core (all items less food & energy)
3.38%
$130
Medical care
2.54%
$122
Recreation
2.45%
$121
Apparel
1.03%
$109
Education & communication
0.97%
$108
Decade by decade: 2018 to 2026
Prices climbed fastest in the 2020s, averaging 4.25% a year, and slowest in the 2010s (1.52% a year). Each step below chains into the full 2018–2026 change:
Years
Avg. yearly inflation
Price change
$100 from 2018, at end
2018–2020
1.52%
3.1%
$103
2020–2026
4.25%
28.4%
$132
Year by year: CPI and the value of $100 from 2018
$100 from 2018 had already become $117 by
2022, on its way to $132 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 the smallest rise was 1.2% in 2020.
In 2026, prices rose 3.2% and $100 from 2018 had the buying
power of $132; the year's average CPI of 332.243 is the level
behind every 2026 figure on this page.
Cite this page
MLA: “Inflation from 2018 to 2026: $100 is worth $132 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2018-to-2026/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 2018 to 2026. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/2018-to-2026/