Inflation Calculator
Convert any amount between 1980 and 2025 using US CPI-U annual averages — and see cumulative inflation and the average annual rate behind it.
| Year | CPI-U | Equivalent of $100 |
|---|
Source series: US Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U, annual averages (1982–84 = 100). Values for 2024–2025 are preliminary and may be revised. Annual averages differ slightly from monthly or seasonally adjusted figures, so results are close approximations rather than official conversions.
Frequently asked questions
Which inflation index does this calculator use?
It uses the US Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), annual averages, with the 1982–84 period indexed to 100. That is the same series the Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes monthly and the one most commonly cited for “inflation” in the US. Annual averages are used so every year is comparable.
Why does $100 in 1990 need about $240 today?
Prices roughly 2.4× over three and a half decades is an average inflation rate near 2.5% a year — close to the long-run US average. Small annual rates compound: 2.5% a year for 36 years multiplies prices by 1.025^36 ≈ 2.43.
Is CPI inflation the same as my personal inflation rate?
No. CPI tracks a national average basket of goods and services. If you spend a larger share on categories that rose faster — housing, childcare, healthcare, education — your personal rate will be higher than CPI. Conversely, if you own your home outright and spend little on services, yours may be lower.
Why do people say “inflation is cumulative”?
Because a rate applies to the already-inflated price. Two years of 10% inflation is not 20% — it is 1.10 × 1.10 = 1.21, or 21%. The 2020–2023 US episode illustrates this: annual rates of 1.2%, 4.7%, 8.0% and 4.1% compounded to about 19% cumulative price growth, even though the “inflation rate” never exceeded 8%.