Airfare priced at $100 in 1979 $530.40 in 2024

Airfare Inflation Calculator

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Prices for Airfare, 1979-2024 ($100)

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for airline fares are 430.40% higher in 2024 versus 1979 (a $430.40 difference in value).

Between 1979 and 2024: Airfare experienced an average inflation rate of 3.78% per year. This rate of change indicates significant inflation. In other words, airfare costing $100 in the year 1979 would cost $530.40 in 2024 for an equivalent purchase. Compared to the overall inflation rate of 3.30% during this same period, inflation for airfare was higher.

In the year 1979: Pricing changed by 7.94%, which is significantly above the average yearly change for airfare during the 1979-2024 time period. Compared to inflation for all items in 1979 (11.26%), inflation for airfare was much lower.

Price Inflation for Airline fares since 1963

Consumer Price Index, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Years with the largest changes in pricing: 1980 (38.39%), 2022 (30.15%), and 1981 (25.87%).

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Buying power of $100.00 since 1979

Below are calculations of equivalent buying power for Airfare, over time, for $100 beginning in 1979. Each of the amounts below is equivalent in terms of what it could buy at the time:

YearUSD ValueInflation Rate
1979$100.007.94%
1980$138.3938.39%
1981$174.1925.87%
1982$191.9910.22%
1983$203.085.78%
1984$215.326.03%
1985$228.916.31%
1986$238.274.09%
1987$249.904.88%
1988$252.781.15%
1989$267.855.96%
1990$301.8812.70%
1991$315.754.59%
1992$315.870.04%
1993$363.6615.13%
1994$377.413.78%
1995$385.982.27%
1996$391.591.46%
1997$405.373.52%
1998$417.693.04%
1999$445.126.57%
2000$487.179.44%
2001$487.13-0.01%
2002$471.18-3.27%
2003$470.62-0.12%
2004$462.31-1.77%
2005$481.454.14%
2006$503.154.51%
2007$512.121.78%
2008$573.8012.04%
2009$524.91-8.52%
2010$566.047.84%
2011$618.629.29%
2012$620.500.30%
2013$636.282.54%
2014$626.11-1.60%
2015$594.61-5.03%
2016$574.93-3.31%
2017$561.15-2.40%
2018$539.02-3.94%
2019$540.020.19%
2020$442.65-18.03%
2021$442.660.00%
2022$576.1230.15%
2023$543.73-5.62%
2024$530.40-2.45%*

* Not final. See inflation summary for latest details.
** Extended periods of 0% inflation usually indicate incomplete underlying data. This can manifest as a sharp increase in inflation later on.


Raw Consumer Price Index data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics for Airline fares:

Year19631964196519661967196819691970197119721973197419751976197719781979198019811982198319841985198619871988198919901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024
CPI23.70023.66723.83323.82023.90024.44026.20028.26230.33131.14632.20834.85437.98541.15443.50045.53149.14668.01585.60894.35499.808105.823112.500117.100122.815124.231131.638148.362155.177155.238178.723185.485189.692192.454199.223205.277218.762239.423239.408231.569231.292227.208236.615247.277251.686281.998257.971278.186304.026304.950312.709307.708292.227282.557275.783264.909265.401217.546217.549283.143267.221260.671

Adjust airfare prices for inflation

Start with the inflation rate formula:

CPI in 2024 / CPI in 1979 * 1979 USD value = 2024 USD value

Then plug in historical CPI values from above. The CPI for Airline fares was 49.146 in the year 1979 and 260.671 in 2024:

260.671 / 49.146 * $100 = $530.40

Therefore, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, $100 in 1979 has the same "purchasing power" as $530.40 in 2024 (in the CPI category of Airline fares).


Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics began tracking the Consumer Price Index for Airline fares in 1963. In addition to airfare, the index produces monthly data on changes in prices paid by urban consumers for a variety of goods and services.

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