Inflation Calculator
Prices roughly double every 20–25 years at typical inflation. See what a past amount is worth in today's dollars, or vice versa.
$182.17 has the buying power of 2000 → 2024
- Cumulative inflation
- 82.2%
- Annualised rate
- 2.53%
CPI-U data covers 1970–2024 (U.S. BLS).
How it works
The amount is scaled by the ratio of the two years' Consumer Price Index values. The annualised rate is the constant yearly rate that produces the same total change.
Explain it to a kid
A candy bar that cost a quarter a long time ago costs way more today — prices slowly creep up every year, which is called inflation. It's why saving money for a long time isn't quite as simple as it sounds: your savings need to grow faster than prices do.
Frequently asked questions
How is the adjustment calculated?
The amount is scaled by the ratio of the Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) between the two years — the same government data used to track official U.S. inflation. If prices doubled between the two years, $100 becomes $200.
What's the difference between cumulative and annualised inflation?
Cumulative is the total price change over the whole span. Annualised is the constant yearly rate that, compounded over the same number of years, produces that same total change — useful for comparing periods of different lengths.
Can I convert either direction — past to present or present to past?
Yes. Pick any two years in either order; the calculator scales the amount by the ratio between them, so converting from an earlier year to a later one shows what it's worth in today's (or that later year's) dollars, and vice versa.
Why does 'a dollar buys less over time' matter for financial planning?
It's why retirement and savings goals need to be set in future dollars, not today's — the Retirement Calculator inflates your spending target forward using the same CPI-driven logic, so a spending number that feels comfortable today doesn't undershoot what you'll actually need.