$1 in 1974 is worth $8 in 2017

Value of $1 from 1974 to 2017

$1 in 1974 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $8 in 2017, an increase of $7.00 over 43 years. The dollar had an average inflation rate of 4.95% per year between 1974 and 2017, producing a cumulative price increase of 700.00%.

This means that prices in 2017 are 8.00 times as high as average prices since 1974, according to the Bureau of Statistics consumer price index.

The inflation rate in 1974 was 15.83%. The inflation rate in 2017 was 1.92%. The 2017 inflation rate is lower compared to the average inflation rate of 2.84% per year between 2017 and 2024.


Inflation from 1974 to 2017
Cumulative price change700.00%
Average inflation rate4.95%
Converted amount
$1 base
$8
Price difference
$1 base
$7.00
CPI in 197413.900
CPI in 2017111.200
Inflation in 197415.83%
Inflation in 20171.92%
$1 in 1974$8 in 2017

AUD inflation since 1974
Annual Rate, the Bureau of Statistics CPI
Download

Buying power of $1 in 1974

This chart shows a calculation of buying power equivalence for $1 in 1974 (price index tracking began in 1922).

For example, if you started with $1, you would need to end with $8 in order to "adjust" for inflation (sometimes refered to as "beating inflation").

When $1 is equivalent to $8 over time, that means that the "real value" of a single Australian dollar decreases over time. In other words, a dollar will pay for fewer items at the store.

This effect explains how inflation erodes the value of a dollar over time. By calculating the value in 1974 dollars, the chart below shows how $1 is worth less over 43 years.

According to the Bureau of Statistics, each of these AUD amounts below is equal in terms of what it could buy at the time:

Dollar inflation: 1974-2017
YearDollar ValueInflation Rate
1974$1.0015.83%
1975$1.1515.11%
1976$1.3013.13%
1977$1.4612.15%
1978$1.587.88%
1979$1.729.13%
1980$1.9010.46%
1981$2.089.47%
1982$2.3111.07%
1983$2.5510.28%
1984$2.653.95%
1985$2.826.52%
1986$3.089.18%
1987$3.348.41%
1988$3.587.33%
1989$3.857.43%
1990$4.147.48%
1991$4.273.13%
1992$4.311.01%
1993$4.381.67%
1994$4.471.97%
1995$4.684.67%
1996$4.802.62%
1997$4.810.30%
1998$4.850.75%
1999$4.921.48%
2000$5.144.53%
2001$5.374.34%
2002$5.533.08%
2003$5.682.73%
2004$5.812.28%
2005$5.972.72%
2006$6.183.49%
2007$6.322.33%
2008$6.604.44%
2009$6.721.74%
2010$6.912.89%
2011$7.143.33%
2012$7.271.71%
2013$7.452.48%
2014$7.632.51%
2015$7.751.51%
2016$7.851.30%
2017$8.001.92%
2018$8.151.89%
2019$8.281.59%
2020$8.350.87%
2021$8.592.84%
2022$9.166.62%
2023$9.635.18%
2024$9.731.05%*
* Compared to previous annual rate. Not final. See inflation summary for latest 12-month trailing value.
Click to show 37 more rows

This conversion table shows various other 1974 amounts in 2017 dollars, based on the 700.00% change in prices:

Conversion: 1974 dollars in 2017
Initial valueEquivalent value
$1 dollar in 1974$8.00 dollars in 2017
$5 dollars in 1974$40.00 dollars in 2017
$10 dollars in 1974$80.00 dollars in 2017
$50 dollars in 1974$400.00 dollars in 2017
$100 dollars in 1974$800.00 dollars in 2017
$500 dollars in 1974$4,000.00 dollars in 2017
$1,000 dollars in 1974$8,000.00 dollars in 2017
$5,000 dollars in 1974$40,000.00 dollars in 2017
$10,000 dollars in 1974$80,000.00 dollars in 2017
$50,000 dollars in 1974$400,000.00 dollars in 2017
$100,000 dollars in 1974$800,000.00 dollars in 2017
$500,000 dollars in 1974$4,000,000.00 dollars in 2017
$1,000,000 dollars in 1974$8,000,000.00 dollars in 2017

How to calculate inflation rate for $1, 1974 to 2017

Our calculations use the following inflation rate formula to calculate the change in value between 1974 and 2017:

CPI in 2017 CPI in 1974
×
1974 AUD value
=
2017 AUD value

Then plug in historical CPI values. The Australian CPI was 13.9 in the year 1974 and 111.2 in 2017:

111.213.9
×
$1
=
$8

$1 in 1974 has the same "purchasing power" or "buying power" as $8 in 2017.

To get the total inflation rate for the 43 years between 1974 and 2017, we use the following formula:

CPI in 2017 - CPI in 1974CPI in 1974
×
100
=
Cumulative inflation rate (43 years)

Plugging in the values to this equation, we get:

111.2 - 13.913.9
×
100
=
700%

Data source & citation

Raw data for these calculations comes from the government of Australia's annual (CPI) as provided by the Reserve Bank of Australia. The consumer price index was established in 1922 and is tracked by Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

You may use the following MLA citation for this page: “$1 in 1974 → 2017 | Australia Inflation Calculator.” Official Inflation Data, Alioth Finance, 18 Mar. 2024, https://www.officialdata.org/1974-AUD-in-2017?amount=1.

Special thanks to QuickChart for their chart image API, which is used for chart downloads.

in2013dollars.com is a reference website maintained by the Official Data Foundation.


Ian Webster

About the author

Ian Webster is an engineer and data expert based in San Mateo, California. He has worked for Google, NASA, and consulted for governments around the world on data pipelines and data analysis. Disappointed by the lack of clear resources on the impacts of inflation on economic indicators, Ian believes this website serves as a valuable public tool. Ian earned his degree in Computer Science from Dartmouth College.

Email · LinkedIn · Twitter


» Read more about inflation and investment.

Inflation from 1974 to 2017
Cumulative price change700.00%
Average inflation rate4.95%
Converted amount
$1 base
$8
Price difference
$1 base
$7.00
CPI in 197413.900
CPI in 2017111.200
Inflation in 197415.83%
Inflation in 20171.92%
$1 in 1974$8 in 2017