Inflation Calculator
U.S. Inflation Rate, $50 in 1880 to 2018
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics consumer price index, prices in 2018 are 2,374.89% higher than prices in 1880. The dollar experienced an average inflation rate of 2.28% per year during this period.
In other words, $50 in 1880 is equivalent in purchasing power to $1,237.45 in 2018, a difference of $1,187.45 over 138 years.
The 1880 inflation rate was 2.00%. The current inflation rate (2017 to 2018) is now 2.28%1. If this number holds, $50 today will be equivalent to $51.14 next year. The current inflation rate page gives more detail on the latest official inflation rates.
Contents
⌃
| Cumulative price change | 2,374.89% |
| Average inflation rate | 2.28% |
| Converted amount ($50 base) | $1,237.45 |
| Price difference ($50 base) | $1,187.45 |
| CPI in 1880 | 10.200 |
| CPI in 2018 | 252.439 |
| Inflation in 1880 | 2.00% |
| Inflation in 2018 | 2.28% |
Buying power of $50 since 1880
This chart shows calculations of buying power equivalence over time for $50 in 1880 (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 |
|---|---|---|
| 1880 | $50.00 | 2.00% |
| 1881 | $50.00 | 0.00% |
| 1882 | $50.00 | 0.00% |
| 1883 | $49.51 | -0.98% |
| 1884 | $48.04 | -2.97% |
| 1885 | $47.55 | -1.02% |
| 1886 | $46.08 | -3.09% |
| 1887 | $46.57 | 1.06% |
| 1888 | $46.57 | 0.00% |
| 1889 | $45.10 | -3.16% |
| 1890 | $44.61 | -1.09% |
| 1891 | $44.61 | 0.00% |
| 1892 | $44.61 | 0.00% |
| 1893 | $44.12 | -1.10% |
| 1894 | $42.16 | -4.44% |
| 1895 | $41.18 | -2.33% |
| 1896 | $41.18 | 0.00% |
| 1897 | $40.69 | -1.19% |
| 1898 | $40.69 | 0.00% |
| 1899 | $40.69 | 0.00% |
| 1900 | $41.18 | 1.20% |
| 1901 | $41.67 | 1.19% |
| 1902 | $42.16 | 1.18% |
| 1903 | $43.14 | 2.33% |
| 1904 | $43.63 | 1.14% |
| 1905 | $43.14 | -1.12% |
| 1906 | $44.12 | 2.27% |
| 1907 | $46.08 | 4.44% |
| 1908 | $45.10 | -2.13% |
| 1909 | $44.61 | -1.09% |
| 1910 | $46.57 | 4.40% |
| 1911 | $46.57 | 0.00% |
| 1912 | $47.55 | 2.11% |
| 1913 | $48.53 | 2.06% |
| 1914 | $49.02 | 1.01% |
| 1915 | $49.51 | 1.00% |
| 1916 | $53.43 | 7.92% |
| 1917 | $62.75 | 17.43% |
| 1918 | $74.02 | 17.97% |
| 1919 | $84.80 | 14.57% |
| 1920 | $98.04 | 15.61% |
| 1921 | $87.75 | -10.50% |
| 1922 | $82.35 | -6.15% |
| 1923 | $83.82 | 1.79% |
| 1924 | $83.82 | 0.00% |
| 1925 | $85.78 | 2.34% |
| 1926 | $86.76 | 1.14% |
| 1927 | $85.29 | -1.69% |
| 1928 | $83.82 | -1.72% |
| 1929 | $83.82 | 0.00% |
| 1930 | $81.86 | -2.34% |
| 1931 | $74.51 | -8.98% |
| 1932 | $67.16 | -9.87% |
| 1933 | $63.73 | -5.11% |
| 1934 | $65.69 | 3.08% |
| 1935 | $67.16 | 2.24% |
| 1936 | $68.14 | 1.46% |
| 1937 | $70.59 | 3.60% |
| 1938 | $69.12 | -2.08% |
| 1939 | $68.14 | -1.42% |
| 1940 | $68.63 | 0.72% |
| 1941 | $72.06 | 5.00% |
| 1942 | $79.90 | 10.88% |
| 1943 | $84.80 | 6.13% |
| 1944 | $86.27 | 1.73% |
| 1945 | $88.24 | 2.27% |
| 1946 | $95.59 | 8.33% |
| 1947 | $109.31 | 14.36% |
| 1948 | $118.14 | 8.07% |
| 1949 | $116.67 | -1.24% |
| 1950 | $118.14 | 1.26% |
| 1951 | $127.45 | 7.88% |
| 1952 | $129.90 | 1.92% |
| 1953 | $130.88 | 0.75% |
| 1954 | $131.86 | 0.75% |
| 1955 | $131.37 | -0.37% |
| 1956 | $133.33 | 1.49% |
| 1957 | $137.75 | 3.31% |
| 1958 | $141.67 | 2.85% |
| 1959 | $142.65 | 0.69% |
| 1960 | $145.10 | 1.72% |
| 1961 | $146.57 | 1.01% |
| 1962 | $148.04 | 1.00% |
| 1963 | $150.00 | 1.32% |
| 1964 | $151.96 | 1.31% |
| 1965 | $154.41 | 1.61% |
| 1966 | $158.82 | 2.86% |
| 1967 | $163.73 | 3.09% |
| 1968 | $170.59 | 4.19% |
| 1969 | $179.90 | 5.46% |
| 1970 | $190.20 | 5.72% |
| 1971 | $198.53 | 4.38% |
| 1972 | $204.90 | 3.21% |
| 1973 | $217.65 | 6.22% |
| 1974 | $241.67 | 11.04% |
| 1975 | $263.73 | 9.13% |
| 1976 | $278.92 | 5.76% |
| 1977 | $297.06 | 6.50% |
| 1978 | $319.61 | 7.59% |
| 1979 | $355.88 | 11.35% |
| 1980 | $403.92 | 13.50% |
| 1981 | $445.59 | 10.32% |
| 1982 | $473.04 | 6.16% |
| 1983 | $488.24 | 3.21% |
| 1984 | $509.31 | 4.32% |
| 1985 | $527.45 | 3.56% |
| 1986 | $537.25 | 1.86% |
| 1987 | $556.86 | 3.65% |
| 1988 | $579.90 | 4.14% |
| 1989 | $607.84 | 4.82% |
| 1990 | $640.69 | 5.40% |
| 1991 | $667.65 | 4.21% |
| 1992 | $687.75 | 3.01% |
| 1993 | $708.33 | 2.99% |
| 1994 | $726.47 | 2.56% |
| 1995 | $747.06 | 2.83% |
| 1996 | $769.12 | 2.95% |
| 1997 | $786.76 | 2.29% |
| 1998 | $799.02 | 1.56% |
| 1999 | $816.67 | 2.21% |
| 2000 | $844.12 | 3.36% |
| 2001 | $868.14 | 2.85% |
| 2002 | $881.86 | 1.58% |
| 2003 | $901.96 | 2.28% |
| 2004 | $925.98 | 2.66% |
| 2005 | $957.35 | 3.39% |
| 2006 | $988.24 | 3.23% |
| 2007 | $1,016.38 | 2.85% |
| 2008 | $1,055.41 | 3.84% |
| 2009 | $1,051.65 | -0.36% |
| 2010 | $1,068.90 | 1.64% |
| 2011 | $1,102.64 | 3.16% |
| 2012 | $1,125.46 | 2.07% |
| 2013 | $1,141.95 | 1.46% |
| 2014 | $1,160.47 | 1.62% |
| 2015 | $1,161.85 | 0.12% |
| 2016 | $1,176.50 | 1.26% |
| 2017 | $1,201.57 | 2.13% |
| 2018 | $1,237.45 | 2.99%* |
Inflation by Country
Inflation can also vary widely by country. For comparison, in the UK £50.00 in 1880 would be equivalent to £5,841.87 in 2018, an absolute change of £5,791.87 and a cumulative change of 11,583.74%.
Compare these numbers to the US's overall absolute change of $1,187.45 and total percent change of 2,374.89%.
Inflation by Spending Category
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 1880 and 2018.
Compare these values to the overall average of 2.28% per year:
| Category | Avg Inflation (%) | Total Inflation (%) | $50 in 1880 → 2018 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food | 3.13 | 6,962.32 | 3,531.16 |
| Shelter | 4.10 | 25,534.98 | 12,817.49 |
| Energy | 3.88 | 19,142.10 | 9,621.05 |
| Apparel | 2.05 | 1,552.82 | 826.41 |
| New vehicles | 1.05 | 324.92 | 212.46 |
| Used cars and trucks | 0.61 | 132.75 | 116.37 |
| Transportation services | 3.35 | 9,274.71 | 4,687.35 |
| Medical care services | 5.11 | 96,583.87 | 48,341.93 |
| Medical care commodities | 4.29 | 32,653.25 | 16,376.62 |
It's important to note that not all categories may be tracked since 1880. This table and visualization use the earliest available data for each category.
Inflation rates for specific categories
Wireless telephone services · College tuition and fees · Gasoline (all types) · MoreHow to Calculate Inflation Rate for $50 since 1880
This inflation calculator uses the following inflation rate formula:
CPI in 2018CPI in 1880
×
1880 USD value
=
2018 USD value
Then plug in historical CPI values. The U.S. CPI was 10.2 in the year 1880 and 252.439 in 2018:
252.43910.2
×
$50
=
$1,237.45
$50 in 1880 has the same "purchasing power" or "buying power" as $1,237.45 in 2018.
To get the total inflation rate for the 138 years between 1880 and 2018, we use the following formula:
CPI in 2018 - CPI in 1880CPI in 1880
×
100
=
Cumulative inflation rate (138 years)
Plugging in the values to this equation, we get:
252.439 - 10.210.2
×
100
=
2,375%
Comparison to S&P 500 Index
The average inflation rate of 2.28% has a compounding effect between 1880 and 2018. As noted above, this yearly inflation rate compounds to produce an overall price difference of 2,374.89% over 138 years.
To help put this inflation into perspective, if we had invested $50 in the S&P 500 index in 1880, our investment would be nominally worth approximately $9,010,660.72 in 2018. This is a return on investment of 18,021,221.44%, with an absolute return of $9,010,610.72.
These numbers are not inflation adjusted, so they are considered nominal. In order to evaluate the real return on our investment, we must calculate the return with inflation taken into account.
The compounding effect of inflation would account for 95.96% of returns ($8,646,529.78) during this period. This means the inflation-adjusted real return of our $50 investment is $364,080.94.
| Original Amount | Final Amount | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nominal | $50 | $9,010,660.72 | 18,021,221.44% |
| Real Inflation Adjusted |
$50 | $364,080.94 | 728,161.89% |
News headlines from 1880
Politics and news often influence economic performance. Here's what was happening at the time:
- Construction begins on the Panama Canal.
- The United States constructs its first dedicated sewage system in Memphis, Tennessee.
- The Salvation Army is formed in London.
Data Source & Citation
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: “$50 in 1880 → 2018 | Inflation Calculator.” U.S. Official Inflation Data, Alioth Finance, 13 Nov. 2018, https://www.officialdata.org/1880-dollars?amount=50.
in2013dollars.com is a reference website maintained by the Official Data Foundation.