Consumer prices rose 1.3% in 1963, up slightly from 1962’s 1.0% as the expansion entered its third year with inflation still low, conditions that gave Kennedy room to push the large tax cut he had proposed to Congress. The cost of a first-class stamp rose that January 7, to 5 cents from 4 cents, the first postal rate change since 1958. That August 28, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to a quarter million people gathered for the March on Washington, building pressure on Congress to pass the civil rights bill Kennedy had proposed that June. The year ended in tragedy: Kennedy was assassinated while riding in a motorcade through Dallas on November 22, and Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in aboard Air Force One that same afternoon. Johnson would spend the following year pushing Kennedy’s stalled tax and civil rights agenda through Congress. The minimum wage rose again that September, to $1.25 an hour, the second step of the phased increase set two years earlier. Consumer prices finished 1963 209.1% above their 1913 level.
Year in review
Inflation in 1963
The U.S. inflation rate in 1963 was 1.3% (CPI: 30.6). Convert 1963 dollars to today →
1.3% 1963 inflation rate
2.4% 1960s average
1.6% peak month (Dec)
1.0% lowest month (Sep)
What things cost in 1963
| First-class stamp | $0.05 |
|---|---|
| Federal minimum wage | $1.25 |
What $100 from 1963 was worth later
| In 1970 | $127 |
|---|---|
| In 1980 | $269 |
| In 1990 | $427 |
| In 2000 | $563 |
| In 2010 | $713 |
| In 2020 | $846 |
| In 2026 | $1,084 |
Inflation in 1963, month by month
| Month | CPI-U | 12-month rate |
|---|---|---|
| January | 30.4 | 1.3% |
| February | 30.4 | 1.0% |
| March | 30.5 | 1.3% |
| April | 30.5 | 1.0% |
| May | 30.5 | 1.0% |
| June | 30.6 | 1.3% |
| July | 30.7 | 1.3% |
| August | 30.7 | 1.3% |
| September | 30.7 | 1.0% |
| October | 30.8 | 1.3% |
| November | 30.8 | 1.3% |
| December | 30.9 | 1.6% |
Economic events of 1963
- Consumer prices rise 1.3% as the expansion enters its third year Growth continued at a steady clip with inflation still low, conditions that gave Kennedy room to push the large tax cut he proposed that year to Congress.
- First-class postage rises to 5 cents The January 7 increase, up from 4 cents, was the first change to the first-class rate since 1958.
- The March on Washington draws a quarter million people On August 28, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, building pressure on Congress to pass the civil rights bill Kennedy had proposed that June.
- President Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas Kennedy was shot while riding in a motorcade on November 22. Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in aboard Air Force One that same afternoon and would push Kennedy's stalled tax and civil rights agenda through Congress the following year.
- The minimum wage rises to $1.25 an hour The increase took effect September 3, the second step of the phased schedule set by the Fair Labor Standards Amendments of 1961.
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index history; USPS historical postage rates; National Archives (March on Washington); John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum; U.S. Department of Labor, history of the federal minimum wage.
Inflation figures: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, CPI-U annual averages. See the methodology.