Inflation Record$100 in 1918 → Today
Official data verified · U.S. CPI-U · Annual average · NSA · Data through September 2026 (fetched 2026-11-02) · Series CUUR0000SA0
$2,208.81
+2108.8% cumulative inflation · 1918–2026
Your $100 in 1918 would have the purchasing power of $2,208.81 today.
What this means
- Purchasing power: $100 in 1918 had the same average buying power as $2,208.81 in 2026.
- Price level change: the overall consumer price level rose by 2108.8% across this 108-year span; the purchasing power of a dollar fell by 95.5%.
- This measures the broad basket of consumer goods and services (CPI-U). Individual expenses — housing, medical care, tuition — moved at different rates.
What this means in other amounts
| In 1918 | Worth in 2026 |
|---|---|
| $1 | $22.09 |
| $5 | $110.44 |
| $10 | $220.88 |
| $20 | $441.76 |
| $50 | $1,104.41 |
| $100 | $2,208.81 |
| $500 | $11,044.07 |
| $1,000 | $22,088.15 |
| $10,000 | $220,881.48 |
| $100,000 | $2,208,814.77 |
Key facts about 1918
- Consumer prices rose 17.3% in 1918 — the 2nd-largest annual increase in the 1913–2026 record.
- Among the major categories tracked since 1918, Food rose the most: 1763.6% cumulatively to 2025.
- In the decade after 1918, prices rose 14.1% in total.
$100 in 1918, decade by decade
| Year | Worth | Cumulative price change |
|---|---|---|
| 1928 | $114.07 | +14.1% |
| 1938 | $93.68 | -6.3% |
| 1948 | $159.83 | +59.8% |
| 1958 | $191.86 | +91.9% |
| 1968 | $231.25 | +131.2% |
| 1978 | $433.68 | +333.7% |
| 1988 | $786.20 | +686.2% |
| 1998 | $1,083.71 | +983.7% |
| 2008 | $1,431.37 | +1331.4% |
| 2018 | $1,669.41 | +1569.4% |
| 2026 | $2,208.81 | +2108.8% |
Monthly CPI in 1918
| Month | CPI-U index | Change vs same month, prior year |
|---|---|---|
| January | 14.000 | 19.7% |
| February | 14.100 | 17.5% |
| March | 14.000 | 16.7% |
| April | 14.200 | 12.7% |
| May | 14.500 | 13.3% |
| June | 14.700 | 13.1% |
| July | 15.100 | 18.0% |
| August | 15.400 | 18.5% |
| September | 15.700 | 18.0% |
| October | 16.000 | 18.5% |
| November | 16.300 | 20.7% |
| December | 16.500 | 20.4% |
Annual average CPI-U for 1918: 15.042.
Verify this calculation
Series: CUUR0000SA0 (Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, All Items, U.S. City Average; Not seasonally adjusted (NSA); base 1982-84=100).
Index (1918 annual average): 15.042 · Index (2026 annual average): 332.243 · Ratio: 22.0881
Formula: amount × (indexend / indexstart). Formula v1.0 — annual-average CPI, NSA (per-country basis on each methodology page). Source: BLS data finder.
Cite this page
← $100 in 1917 · All years · $100 in 1919 →
The same year elsewhere: Canada