According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics consumer price index, prices in 2017 are 1,403.80% higher than average prices throughout 1865. The dollar experienced an average inflation rate of 1.80% per year during this period.
In other words, $75 in 1865 is equivalent in purchasing power to $1,127.85 in 2017, a difference of $1,052.85 over 152 years.
The 1865 inflation rate was 3.82%. The inflation rate in 2017 was 2.13%. The 2017 inflation rate is higher compared to the average inflation rate of 1.34% per year between 2017 and 2019.
Cumulative price change | 1,403.80% |
Average inflation rate | 1.80% |
Converted amount ($75 base) | $1,127.85 |
Price difference ($75 base) | $1,052.85 |
CPI in 1865 | 16.300 |
CPI in 2017 | 245.120 |
Inflation in 1865 | 3.82% |
Inflation in 2017 | 2.13% |
This chart shows calculations of buying power equivalence over time for $75 in 1865 (price index tracking began in 1635).
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, each of these USD amounts below is equal in terms of what it could buy at the time:
Year | USD Value | Inflation Rate |
---|---|---|
1865 | $75.00 | 3.82% |
1866 | $73.16 | -2.45% |
1867 | $68.10 | -6.92% |
1868 | $65.34 | -4.05% |
1869 | $62.58 | -4.23% |
1870 | $60.28 | -3.68% |
1871 | $56.13 | -6.87% |
1872 | $56.13 | 0.00% |
1873 | $55.21 | -1.64% |
1874 | $52.45 | -5.00% |
1875 | $50.61 | -3.51% |
1876 | $49.23 | -2.73% |
1877 | $48.31 | -1.87% |
1878 | $46.01 | -4.76% |
1879 | $46.01 | 0.00% |
1880 | $46.93 | 2.00% |
1881 | $46.93 | 0.00% |
1882 | $46.93 | 0.00% |
1883 | $46.47 | -0.98% |
1884 | $45.09 | -2.97% |
1885 | $44.63 | -1.02% |
1886 | $43.25 | -3.09% |
1887 | $43.71 | 1.06% |
1888 | $43.71 | 0.00% |
1889 | $42.33 | -3.16% |
1890 | $41.87 | -1.09% |
1891 | $41.87 | 0.00% |
1892 | $41.87 | 0.00% |
1893 | $41.41 | -1.10% |
1894 | $39.57 | -4.44% |
1895 | $38.65 | -2.33% |
1896 | $38.65 | 0.00% |
1897 | $38.19 | -1.19% |
1898 | $38.19 | 0.00% |
1899 | $38.19 | 0.00% |
1900 | $38.65 | 1.20% |
1901 | $39.11 | 1.19% |
1902 | $39.57 | 1.18% |
1903 | $40.49 | 2.33% |
1904 | $40.95 | 1.14% |
1905 | $40.49 | -1.12% |
1906 | $41.41 | 2.27% |
1907 | $43.25 | 4.44% |
1908 | $42.33 | -2.13% |
1909 | $41.87 | -1.09% |
1910 | $43.71 | 4.40% |
1911 | $43.71 | 0.00% |
1912 | $44.63 | 2.11% |
1913 | $45.55 | 2.06% |
1914 | $46.01 | 1.01% |
1915 | $46.47 | 1.00% |
1916 | $50.15 | 7.92% |
1917 | $58.90 | 17.43% |
1918 | $69.48 | 17.97% |
1919 | $79.60 | 14.57% |
1920 | $92.02 | 15.61% |
1921 | $82.36 | -10.50% |
1922 | $77.30 | -6.15% |
1923 | $78.68 | 1.79% |
1924 | $78.68 | 0.00% |
1925 | $80.52 | 2.34% |
1926 | $81.44 | 1.14% |
1927 | $80.06 | -1.69% |
1928 | $78.68 | -1.72% |
1929 | $78.68 | 0.00% |
1930 | $76.84 | -2.34% |
1931 | $69.94 | -8.98% |
1932 | $63.04 | -9.87% |
1933 | $59.82 | -5.11% |
1934 | $61.66 | 3.08% |
1935 | $63.04 | 2.24% |
1936 | $63.96 | 1.46% |
1937 | $66.26 | 3.60% |
1938 | $64.88 | -2.08% |
1939 | $63.96 | -1.42% |
1940 | $64.42 | 0.72% |
1941 | $67.64 | 5.00% |
1942 | $75.00 | 10.88% |
1943 | $79.60 | 6.13% |
1944 | $80.98 | 1.73% |
1945 | $82.82 | 2.27% |
1946 | $89.72 | 8.33% |
1947 | $102.61 | 14.36% |
1948 | $110.89 | 8.07% |
1949 | $109.51 | -1.24% |
1950 | $110.89 | 1.26% |
1951 | $119.63 | 7.88% |
1952 | $121.93 | 1.92% |
1953 | $122.85 | 0.75% |
1954 | $123.77 | 0.75% |
1955 | $123.31 | -0.37% |
1956 | $125.15 | 1.49% |
1957 | $129.29 | 3.31% |
1958 | $132.98 | 2.85% |
1959 | $133.90 | 0.69% |
1960 | $136.20 | 1.72% |
1961 | $137.58 | 1.01% |
1962 | $138.96 | 1.00% |
1963 | $140.80 | 1.32% |
1964 | $142.64 | 1.31% |
1965 | $144.94 | 1.61% |
1966 | $149.08 | 2.86% |
1967 | $153.68 | 3.09% |
1968 | $160.12 | 4.19% |
1969 | $168.87 | 5.46% |
1970 | $178.53 | 5.72% |
1971 | $186.35 | 4.38% |
1972 | $192.33 | 3.21% |
1973 | $204.29 | 6.22% |
1974 | $226.84 | 11.04% |
1975 | $247.55 | 9.13% |
1976 | $261.81 | 5.76% |
1977 | $278.83 | 6.50% |
1978 | $300.00 | 7.59% |
1979 | $334.05 | 11.35% |
1980 | $379.14 | 13.50% |
1981 | $418.25 | 10.32% |
1982 | $444.02 | 6.16% |
1983 | $458.28 | 3.21% |
1984 | $478.07 | 4.32% |
1985 | $495.09 | 3.56% |
1986 | $504.29 | 1.86% |
1987 | $522.70 | 3.65% |
1988 | $544.33 | 4.14% |
1989 | $570.55 | 4.82% |
1990 | $601.38 | 5.40% |
1991 | $626.69 | 4.21% |
1992 | $645.55 | 3.01% |
1993 | $664.88 | 2.99% |
1994 | $681.90 | 2.56% |
1995 | $701.23 | 2.83% |
1996 | $721.93 | 2.95% |
1997 | $738.50 | 2.29% |
1998 | $750.00 | 1.56% |
1999 | $766.56 | 2.21% |
2000 | $792.33 | 3.36% |
2001 | $814.88 | 2.85% |
2002 | $827.76 | 1.58% |
2003 | $846.63 | 2.28% |
2004 | $869.17 | 2.66% |
2005 | $898.62 | 3.39% |
2006 | $927.61 | 3.23% |
2007 | $954.03 | 2.85% |
2008 | $990.66 | 3.84% |
2009 | $987.13 | -0.36% |
2010 | $1,003.33 | 1.64% |
2011 | $1,035.00 | 3.16% |
2012 | $1,056.41 | 2.07% |
2013 | $1,071.89 | 1.46% |
2014 | $1,089.28 | 1.62% |
2015 | $1,090.57 | 0.12% |
2016 | $1,104.33 | 1.26% |
2017 | $1,127.85 | 2.13% |
2018 | $1,155.40 | 2.44% |
2019 | $1,158.18 | 0.24%* |
Inflation can also vary widely by country. For comparison, in the UK £75.00 in 1865 would be equivalent to £8,957.50 in 2017, an absolute change of £8,882.50 and a cumulative change of 11,843.33%.
Compare these numbers to the US's overall absolute change of $1,052.85 and total percent change of 1,403.80%.
CPI is the weighted combination of many categories of spending that are tracked by the government. This chart shows the average rate of inflation for select CPI categories between 1865 and 2017.
Compare these values to the overall average of 1.80% per year:
Category | Avg Inflation (%) | Total Inflation (%) | $75 in 1865 → 2017 |
---|---|---|---|
Food | 3.15 | 11,074.02 | 8,380.51 |
Shelter | 4.12 | 46,097.66 | 34,648.25 |
Energy | 3.83 | 30,122.27 | 22,666.70 |
Apparel | 2.07 | 2,155.06 | 1,691.29 |
New vehicles | 1.09 | 423.09 | 392.32 |
Used cars and trucks | 0.63 | 158.48 | 193.86 |
Transportation services | 4.07 | 42,657.14 | 32,067.86 |
Medical care services | 5.15 | 205,310.11 | 154,057.58 |
Medical care commodities | 3.07 | 9,746.59 | 7,384.94 |
It's important to note that not all categories may be tracked since 1865. This table and visualization use the earliest available data for each category.
This inflation calculator uses the following inflation rate formula:
Then plug in historical CPI values. The U.S. CPI was 16.3 in the year 1865 and 245.12 in 2017:
$75 in 1865 has the same "purchasing power" or "buying power" as $1,127.85 in 2017.
To get the total inflation rate for the 152 years between 1865 and 2017, we use the following formula:
Plugging in the values to this equation, we get:
Politics and news often influence economic performance. Here's what was happening at the time:
Raw data for these calculations comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer Price Index (CPI), established in 1913. Inflation data from 1665 to 1912 is sourced from a historical study conducted by political science professor Robert Sahr at Oregon State University.
You may use the following MLA citation for this page: “$75 in 1865 → 2017 | Inflation Calculator.” U.S. Official Inflation Data, Alioth Finance, 21 Feb. 2019, https://www.officialdata.org/1865-dollars-in-2017?amount=75.
in2013dollars.com is a reference website maintained by the Official Data Foundation.