Inflation Record$100 in 1979 → Today (Australia)
Official data verified · CPI (ABS) · Annual average · Not seasonally adjusted · Data through September 2026 (fetched 2026-11-02) · All groups CPI, weighted average of eight capital cities (6401.0)
$617.23
+517.2% cumulative inflation · 1979–2026
Your $100 in 1979 would have the purchasing power of $617.23 in Australia today.
What this means
- Purchasing power: $100 in 1979 had the same average buying power as $617.23 in 2026.
- Price level change: the overall consumer price level rose by 517.2% across this 47-year span; the purchasing power of a dollar changed by -83.8%.
- This measures the broad basket of consumer goods and services (CPI (ABS)). Individual expenses moved at different rates.
What this means in other amounts
| In 1979 | Worth in 2026 |
|---|---|
| $1 | $6.17 |
| $5 | $30.86 |
| $10 | $61.72 |
| $20 | $123.45 |
| $50 | $308.61 |
| $100 | $617.23 |
| $500 | $3,086.13 |
| $1,000 | $6,172.26 |
| $10,000 | $61,722.57 |
| $100,000 | $617,225.74 |
Key facts about 1979
- Consumer prices rose 9.1% in 1979 — the 11th-largest annual increase in the 1949–2026 record.
- 1979 is in the quarterly-CPI era: its annual average is the mean of the year's four quarterly indexes.
- In the decade after 1979, prices rose 123.7% in total.
$100 in 1979, decade by decade
| Year | Worth | Cumulative price change |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | $223.72 | +123.7% |
| 1999 | $286.00 | +186.0% |
| 2009 | $390.28 | +290.3% |
| 2019 | $481.19 | +381.2% |
| 2026 | $617.23 | +517.2% |
Quarterly CPI in 1979
| Period | Index | Change vs same period, prior year |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 | 23.0 | 8.0% |
| Q2 | 23.6 | 8.8% |
| Q3 | 24.2 | 9.5% |
| Q4 | 24.9 | 10.2% |
Annual average for 1979: 23.925
Verify this calculation
Series: All groups CPI, weighted average of eight capital cities (6401.0); base 2011-12=100; not seasonally adjusted.
Index (1979 annual average): 23.925 · Index (2026 annual average): 147.671 · Ratio: 6.1723
Formula: amount × (indexend / indexstart). Formula v1.0 — annual-average CPI, NSA (per-country basis on each methodology page). Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics.