Purchasing power decreased by 2.17% in 1791 compared to the previous year, 1790. On average, you would have to spend 2.17% more money in 1791 than in 1790 for the same item.
In other words, $1 in 1790 is equivalent in purchasing power to $1.02 in 1791.
The 1790 inflation rate was 4.55%. The inflation rate in 1791 was 2.17%. The 1791 inflation rate is higher compared to the average inflation rate of 1.45% per year between 1791 and 2019.
Inflation rate is calculated by change in the consumer price index (CPI). The CPI in 1791 was 9.4. It was 9.2 in the previous year, 1790. The difference in CPI between the years is used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics to officially determine inflation.
Average inflation rate | 2.17% |
Converted amount ($1 base) | $1.02 |
Price difference ($1 base) | $0.02 |
CPI in 1790 | 9.200 |
CPI in 1791 | 9.400 |
Inflation in 1790 | 4.55% |
Inflation in 1791 | 2.17% |
Inflation can also vary widely by country. For comparison, in the UK £1.00 in 1790 would be equivalent to £1.00 in 1791, an absolute change of £0.00 and a cumulative change of 0.00%.
Compare these numbers to the US's overall absolute change of $0.02 and total percent change of 2.17%.
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 1790 and 1791.
Compare these values to the overall average of 2.17% per year:
Category | Avg Inflation (%) | Total Inflation (%) | $1 in 1790 → 1791 |
---|---|---|---|
Food | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 |
Shelter | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 |
Energy | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 |
Apparel | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 |
New vehicles | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 |
Used cars and trucks | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 |
Transportation services | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 |
Medical care services | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 |
Medical care commodities | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 |
It's important to note that not all categories may be tracked since 1790. 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 9.2 in the year 1790 and 9.4 in 1791:
$1 in 1790 has the same "purchasing power" or "buying power" as $1.02 in 1791.
To get the total inflation rate for the 1 years between 1790 and 1791, 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: “Inflation Rate in 1791 | Inflation Calculator.” U.S. Official Inflation Data, Alioth Finance, 21 Feb. 2019, https://www.officialdata.org/inflation-rate-in-1791.
in2013dollars.com is a reference website maintained by the Official Data Foundation.