Inflation Calculator

Evaluate the purchasing power of money over time using historical CPI-U data or project future rates.

Historical Settings

Initial Amount ($)

Start Year

Start Month

Target Year

Target Month

Purchasing Value Trend Over Time

Equivalent Value

$181.92

Cumulative Inflation:+81.9%

Average Annual Rate:2.52%

Real Commodity Value

Loaves of Bread:67 ➔ 73 units

Gallons of Gas:83 ➔ 52 gal

Year-by-Year Historical CPI Table

Year	CPI-U	Equivalent Value
2000	172.20	$100.00
2001	177.10	$102.85
2002	179.90	$104.47
2003	184.00	$106.85
2004	188.90	$109.70
2005	195.30	$113.41
2006	201.60	$117.07
2007	207.30	$120.38
2008	215.30	$125.03
2009	214.50	$124.56
2010	218.10	$126.66
2011	224.90	$130.60
2012	229.60	$133.33
2013	233.00	$135.31
2014	236.70	$137.46
2015	237.00	$137.63
2016	240.00	$139.37
2017	245.10	$142.33
2018	251.10	$145.82
2019	255.70	$148.49
2020	258.80	$150.29
2021	270.97	$157.36
2022	292.66	$169.95
2023	304.70	$176.95
2024	313.27	$181.92

How inflation rates are determined

Historical inflation calculations apply CPI-U averages released by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The index converts equivalent purchasing power using: Equivalent = Amount × (Target CPI / Base CPI).

Future projections apply standard compound annual decay rates. Real values model purchasing power relative to custom commodity weights.

Built and maintained by Meet Shah · Last updated 4 August 2026

What this tool is used for

Converting a historical price into today's money.
Comparing two salaries from different decades.
Checking whether a rise kept pace with inflation.
Understanding a historical figure quoted in a book or an article.
Producing a real rather than nominal comparison for a report.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is inflation applied over several years?: By compounding, not by adding. 3% a year for ten years is 1.03¹⁰ = 34.4% cumulative, not 30%. That gap widens with the rate and the horizon, and treating inflation as additive systematically understates its effect on a long projection.
What does the CPI actually measure?: The price of a fixed basket of goods and services, reweighted periodically. It is an average across a whole population, so an individual's experienced inflation differs — housing, energy and education have consistently outpaced it while consumer electronics have fallen.
What is the difference between nominal and real?: Nominal is the number on the label; real is adjusted for inflation. A 5% pay rise in a 3% inflation year is roughly a 2% real increase — and a 2% rise in that year is a real pay cut, which is the arithmetic behind most pay disputes.
Why is 2% the target for most central banks?: It is judged high enough to keep clear of deflation, which is far harder to escape, and low enough not to distort decisions. The number is a policy convention adopted from New Zealand in 1989 rather than a result derived from theory.
Is historical inflation a good guide to the future?: Only loosely. Long-run averages hide episodes that dominate any individual's experience — 1970s double digits, the near-zero 2010s, the 2021–23 spike. A projection at a flat historical rate is a scenario rather than a forecast.

Common errors and gotchas

Using one country's index for another's prices, which diverge substantially over time.
Assuming a single index describes everyone, when housing and healthcare weight differs by household.
Comparing across a currency change without accounting for it.
Treating an index as precise, when the basket itself changes over decades.
Converting a wage without accounting for changes in tax and benefits, which alters the real comparison.