Inflation Record$100 in 1988 → 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)
$296.68
+196.7% cumulative inflation · 1988–2026
Your $100 in 1988 would have the purchasing power of $296.68 in Australia today.
What this means
- Purchasing power: $100 in 1988 had the same average buying power as $296.68 in 2026.
- Price level change: the overall consumer price level rose by 196.7% across this 38-year span; the purchasing power of a dollar changed by -66.3%.
- 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 1988 | Worth in 2026 |
|---|---|
| $1 | $2.97 |
| $5 | $14.83 |
| $10 | $29.67 |
| $20 | $59.34 |
| $50 | $148.34 |
| $100 | $296.68 |
| $500 | $1,483.39 |
| $1,000 | $2,966.78 |
| $10,000 | $29,667.76 |
| $100,000 | $296,677.56 |
Key facts about 1988
- Consumer prices rose 7.2% in 1988 — the 19th-largest annual increase in the 1949–2026 record.
- 1988 is in the quarterly-CPI era: its annual average is the mean of the year's four quarterly indexes.
- In the decade after 1988, prices rose 35.5% in total.
$100 in 1988, decade by decade
| Year | Worth | Cumulative price change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | $135.46 | +35.5% |
| 2008 | $184.33 | +84.3% |
| 2018 | $227.62 | +127.6% |
| 2026 | $296.68 | +196.7% |
Quarterly CPI in 1988
| Period | Index | Change vs same period, prior year |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 | 48.4 | 6.8% |
| Q2 | 49.3 | 7.2% |
| Q3 | 50.2 | 7.3% |
| Q4 | 51.2 | 7.6% |
Annual average for 1988: 49.775
Verify this calculation
Series: All groups CPI, weighted average of eight capital cities (6401.0); base 2011-12=100; not seasonally adjusted.
Index (1988 annual average): 49.775 · Index (2026 annual average): 147.671 · Ratio: 2.9668
Formula: amount × (indexend / indexstart). Formula v1.0 — annual-average CPI, NSA (per-country basis on each methodology page). Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics.