Consumer prices rose 1.7% in 1960, up from 1959’s 0.7% even as the economy slipped into recession that April, a downturn that would prove the shortest since World War II. The year’s defining political moment came that November, when John F. Kennedy narrowly defeated Richard Nixon in one of the closest presidential elections in U.S. history, decided by roughly two-tenths of a percentage point in the popular vote. Television played a new role in the race: the first-ever televised presidential debate that September, watched by an estimated 70 million people, was widely seen as favoring the telegenic Kennedy. Civil rights protest took a new form that February, when four Black freshmen at North Carolina A&T State University sat down at a whites-only Woolworth’s lunch counter in Greensboro and refused to leave; the sit-in tactic spread to dozens of Southern cities within weeks. Cold War tensions flared that May, when a Soviet missile downed an American U-2 spy plane deep inside Soviet airspace. The pilot, Francis Gary Powers, was captured alive, embarrassing the Eisenhower administration and collapsing a Paris summit called to ease relations with Moscow. Consumer prices finished 1960 199.0% above their 1913 level. First-class postage held at 4 cents, and the minimum wage stayed at $1.00 an hour.
Year in review
Inflation in 1960
The U.S. inflation rate in 1960 was 1.7% (CPI: 29.6). Convert 1960 dollars to today →
1.7% 1960 inflation rate
2.4% 1960s average
1.7% peak month (Feb)
1.0% lowest month (Sep)
What things cost in 1960
| First-class stamp | $0.04 |
|---|---|
| Federal minimum wage | $1.00 |
What $100 from 1960 was worth later
| In 1970 | $131 |
|---|---|
| In 1980 | $278 |
| In 1990 | $442 |
| In 2000 | $582 |
| In 2010 | $737 |
| In 2020 | $874 |
| In 2026 | $1,120 |
Inflation in 1960, month by month
| Month | CPI-U | 12-month rate |
|---|---|---|
| January | 29.3 | 1.0% |
| February | 29.4 | 1.7% |
| March | 29.4 | 1.7% |
| April | 29.5 | 1.7% |
| May | 29.5 | 1.7% |
| June | 29.6 | 1.7% |
| July | 29.6 | 1.4% |
| August | 29.6 | 1.4% |
| September | 29.6 | 1.0% |
| October | 29.8 | 1.4% |
| November | 29.8 | 1.4% |
| December | 29.8 | 1.4% |
Economic events of 1960
- Consumer prices rise 1.7% as a mild recession takes hold The downturn that began that April, and which would prove the shortest recession since World War II, did little to slow price growth, which held close to the pace of the previous few years.
- John F. Kennedy narrowly defeats Richard Nixon The November election, decided by roughly two-tenths of a percentage point in the popular vote, was one of the closest in U.S. history. It followed the first-ever televised presidential debate that September, watched by an estimated 70 million people and widely seen as favoring the telegenic Kennedy.
- Four students launch the sit-in movement in Greensboro On February 1, four Black freshmen at North Carolina A&T State University sat down at a whites-only Woolworth's lunch counter and refused to leave. The tactic spread to dozens of Southern cities within weeks and became a defining strategy of the civil rights movement.
- A Soviet missile downs an American U-2 spy plane The May 1 shootdown deep inside Soviet airspace, and the capture of pilot Francis Gary Powers, embarrassed the Eisenhower administration and collapsed a Paris summit called to ease Cold War tensions.
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index history; National Bureau of Economic Research, US Business Cycle Expansions and Contractions; National Archives, 1960 presidential election results; International Civil Rights Center & Museum (Greensboro sit-ins); U.S. Department of State, Office of the Historian (U-2 incident).
Inflation figures: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, CPI-U annual averages. See the methodology.