Inflation Calculator
See what an amount from any month since 1913 is worth in another month, using official U.S. consumer price data, and how much inflation takes from investment returns.
Compare Buying Power
U.S. CPI-U, Jan 1913 – Sep 2026 · 26 years 8 months
Results
$100 · Jan 2000 → Sep 2026
$200
in Sep 2026 buys what $100 bought in Jan 2000
Prices Rose
99.6%
Average Inflation
2.6%/yr
Cash Lost Buying Power
49.9%
The Same Buying Power Over Time
Show the chart data as a table
| Period | Original Amount | Equal Buying Power |
|---|---|---|
| Dec 2000 | $100 | $103 |
| Dec 2001 | $100 | $105 |
| Dec 2002 | $100 | $107 |
| Dec 2003 | $100 | $109 |
| Dec 2004 | $100 | $113 |
| Dec 2005 | $100 | $117 |
| Dec 2006 | $100 | $120 |
| Dec 2007 | $100 | $124 |
| Dec 2008 | $100 | $125 |
| Dec 2009 | $100 | $128 |
| Dec 2010 | $100 | $130 |
| Dec 2011 | $100 | $134 |
| Dec 2012 | $100 | $136 |
| Dec 2013 | $100 | $138 |
| Dec 2014 | $100 | $139 |
| Dec 2015 | $100 | $140 |
| Dec 2016 | $100 | $143 |
| Dec 2017 | $100 | $146 |
| Dec 2018 | $100 | $149 |
| Dec 2019 | $100 | $152 |
| Dec 2020 | $100 | $154 |
| Dec 2021 | $100 | $165 |
| Dec 2022 | $100 | $176 |
| Dec 2023 | $100 | $182 |
| Dec 2024 | $100 | $187 |
| Dec 2025 | $100 | $192 |
| Sep 2026 | $100 | $200 |
S&P 500: returns before and after inflation
Yearly returns of SPY (dividends reinvested) to Sep 2026, and the same returns after U.S. CPI inflation.
| Period | Nominal return | Inflation | Real return |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 years | 15.2% | 3.4% | 11.5% |
| 20 years | 11.1% | 2.6% | 8.3% |
| 30 years | 10.2% | 2.6% | 7.5% |
| Since 1993 | 10.8% | 2.6% | 8.0% |
CPI source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, via FRED (series CPIAUCNS).
Frequently Asked Questions
How does the inflation calculator work?
It uses the U.S. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U, not seasonally adjusted), published monthly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and available from Jan 1913 to Sep 2026. An amount is restated by the ratio of the two months' CPI: if prices are 80% higher, $100 becomes $180.
What is $100 from the past worth today?
$100 in January 2000 has the same buying power as $200 in Sep 2026. $100 in January 1990 is $264, and $100 in January 1970 is $891.
What is the average U.S. inflation rate?
From Jan 1913 to Sep 2026, U.S. prices rose an average of 3.2% a year. Over the 12 months to Sep 2026 they rose 3.7%. Inflation varies a lot: it reached close to 15% a year in 1980 and was briefly negative in 2009.
What is the difference between nominal and real returns?
A nominal return is the growth in dollars; a real return is what's left after inflation, the growth in buying power: (1 + nominal) ÷ (1 + inflation) − 1. The S&P 500 (SPY, dividends reinvested) returned 10.8% a year from Jan 1993 to Sep 2026; with inflation at 2.6% a year, its real return was 8.0% a year.
Why is there no CPI for October 2025?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics did not collect or publish October 2025 CPI because of the federal government shutdown. The calculator fills that one month with the midpoint between September and November 2025, so results for that month are an estimate.
How can I protect savings from inflation?
Cash loses buying power every year prices rise. Common ways to keep up include high-yield savings accounts and CDs whose rates beat inflation, inflation-protected bonds such as TIPS and I Bonds, and, for money you can leave for many years, a broad stock index fund, which has historically grown faster than prices over long periods.
See our Methodology page for how the figures are calculated, or all calculators. For education only, not investment, tax or legal advice. Past performance does not guarantee future results.