According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for apparel are 209.88% higher in 2026 versus 1920 (a $227,718,547,678.20 difference in value).
Between 1920 and 2026:Apparel experienced an average inflation rate of 1.07% per year. In other words, apparel costing $108,500,000,000 in the year 1920 would cost $336,218,547,678.20 in 2026 for an equivalent purchase. Compared to the overall inflation rate of 2.67% during this same period, inflation for apparel was lower.
In the year 1920: Pricing changed by 28.26%, which is significantly above the average yearly change for apparel during the 1920-2026 time period. Compared to inflation for all items in 1920 (15.63%), inflation for apparel was much higher.
Below are calculations of equivalent buying power for Apparel, over time, for $108,500,000,000 beginning in 1920. Each of the amounts below is equivalent in terms of what it could buy at the time:
| Year | USD Value | Inflation Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 1920 | $108,500,000,000.00 | 28.26% |
| 1921 | $86,791,706,478.12 | -20.01% |
| 1922 | $67,571,469,520.35 | -22.15% |
| 1923 | $67,177,527,231.03 | -0.58% |
| 1924 | $66,887,253,965.22 | -0.43% |
| 1925 | $65,643,225,683.16 | -1.86% |
| 1926 | $64,710,204,471.62 | -1.42% |
| 1927 | $63,445,442,384.87 | -1.95% |
| 1928 | $62,284,349,321.61 | -1.83% |
| 1929 | $61,641,601,375.88 | -1.03% |
| 1930 | $60,853,716,797.25 | -1.28% |
| 1931 | $56,250,812,153.64 | -7.56% |
| 1932 | $49,470,858,016.43 | -12.05% |
| 1933 | $46,111,981,654.88 | -6.79% |
| 1934 | $50,937,303,476.19 | 10.46% |
| 1935 | $51,694,159,843.60 | 1.49% |
| 1936 | $52,269,921,651.06 | 1.11% |
| 1937 | $54,675,042,996.37 | 4.60% |
| 1938 | $54,695,776,801.07 | 0.04% |
| 1939 | $53,804,223,198.93 | -1.63% |
| 1940 | $54,260,366,902.35 | 0.85% |
| 1941 | $56,769,157,271.16 | 4.62% |
| 1942 | $66,431,110,261.80 | 17.02% |
| 1943 | $69,313,109,115.23 | 4.34% |
| 1944 | $74,164,819,415.25 | 7.00% |
| 1945 | $77,979,839,480.22 | 5.14% |
| 1946 | $85,568,412,000.76 | 9.73% |
| 1947 | $99,169,787,884.58 | 15.90% |
| 1948 | $105,763,137,779.48 | 6.65% |
| 1949 | $101,595,643,034.59 | -3.94% |
| 1950 | $100,227,211,924.33 | -1.35% |
| 1951 | $109,287,884,578.64 | 9.04% |
| 1952 | $108,106,057,710.68 | -1.08% |
| 1953 | $107,421,842,155.55 | -0.63% |
| 1954 | $107,027,899,866.23 | -0.37% |
| 1955 | $106,696,158,991.02 | -0.31% |
| 1956 | $108,852,474,679.92 | 2.02% |
| 1957 | $110,718,517,103.00 | 1.71% |
| 1958 | $111,153,927,001.72 | 0.39% |
| 1959 | $112,024,746,799.16 | 0.78% |
| 1960 | $113,704,184,979.94 | 1.50% |
| 1961 | $114,595,738,582.08 | 0.78% |
| 1962 | $115,238,486,527.80 | 0.56% |
| 1963 | $116,648,385,247.47 | 1.22% |
| 1964 | $117,643,607,873.11 | 0.85% |
| 1965 | $118,763,233,326.96 | 0.95% |
| 1966 | $121,956,239,250.91 | 2.69% |
| 1967 | $126,932,352,379.13 | 4.08% |
| 1968 | $133,712,306,516.34 | 5.34% |
| 1969 | $141,404,548,060.39 | 5.75% |
| 1970 | $147,230,747,181.35 | 4.12% |
| 1971 | $151,999,522,262.56 | 3.24% |
| 1972 | $155,151,060,577.11 | 2.07% |
| 1973 | $160,832,123,065.16 | 3.66% |
| 1974 | $172,754,060,768.20 | 7.41% |
| 1975 | $180,446,302,312.25 | 4.45% |
| 1976 | $187,205,522,644.75 | 3.75% |
| 1977 | $195,581,979,743.93 | 4.47% |
| 1978 | $202,444,869,099.94 | 3.51% |
| 1979 | $211,318,937,511.94 | 4.38% |
| 1980 | $226,268,010,701.32 | 7.07% |
| 1981 | $237,049,589,145.81 | 4.76% |
| 1982 | $243,269,730,556.09 | 2.62% |
| 1983 | $249,282,533,919.36 | 2.47% |
| 1984 | $253,864,704,758.26 | 1.84% |
| 1985 | $261,308,140,645.90 | 2.93% |
| 1986 | $263,526,657,748.90 | 0.85% |
| 1987 | $275,116,854,576.72 | 4.40% |
| 1988 | $287,059,526,084.46 | 4.34% |
| 1989 | $295,042,040,894.32 | 2.78% |
| 1990 | $308,726,351,996.94 | 4.64% |
| 1991 | $320,233,613,605.96 | 3.73% |
| 1992 | $328,112,459,392.32 | 2.46% |
| 1993 | $332,549,493,598.32 | 1.35% |
| 1994 | $331,906,745,652.59 | -0.19% |
| 1995 | $328,319,797,439.33 | -1.08% |
| 1996 | $327,677,049,493.60 | -0.20% |
| 1997 | $330,538,314,542.33 | 0.87% |
| 1998 | $330,973,724,441.05 | 0.13% |
| 1999 | $326,661,093,063.25 | -1.30% |
| 2000 | $322,389,929,294.86 | -1.31% |
| 2001 | $316,646,665,392.70 | -1.78% |
| 2002 | $308,581,215,364.04 | -2.55% |
| 2003 | $300,743,837,187.08 | -2.54% |
| 2004 | $299,644,945,537.93 | -0.37% |
| 2005 | $297,426,428,434.93 | -0.74% |
| 2006 | $297,198,356,583.22 | -0.08% |
| 2007 | $296,074,377,030.38 | -0.38% |
| 2008 | $295,847,134,530.86 | -0.08% |
| 2009 | $298,761,270,781.58 | 0.99% |
| 2010 | $297,330,430,919.17 | -0.48% |
| 2011 | $303,818,245,748.14 | 2.18% |
| 2012 | $314,153,425,377.41 | 3.40% |
| 2013 | $317,006,604,242.31 | 0.91% |
| 2014 | $317,262,666,730.37 | 0.08% |
| 2015 | $313,252,541,563.16 | -1.26% |
| 2016 | $313,607,918,975.73 | 0.11% |
| 2017 | $312,529,761,131.28 | -0.34% |
| 2018 | $312,635,296,197.21 | 0.03% |
| 2019 | $308,647,563,539.08 | -1.28% |
| 2020 | $293,786,401,681.64 | -4.81% |
| 2021 | $301,036,598,509.46 | 2.47% |
| 2022 | $316,184,094,209.82 | 5.03% |
| 2023 | $324,887,108,733.04 | 2.75% |
| 2024 | $327,136,311,867.00 | 0.69% |
| 2025 | $327,561,562,201.41 | 0.13% |
| 2026 | $336,218,547,678.20 | 2.64%* |
* 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 Apparel:
| Year | 1914 | 1915 | 1916 | 1917 | 1918 | 1919 | 1920 | 1921 | 1922 | 1923 | 1924 | 1925 | 1926 | 1927 | 1928 | 1929 | 1930 | 1931 | 1932 | 1933 | 1934 | 1935 | 1936 | 1937 | 1938 | 1939 | 1940 | 1941 | 1942 | 1943 | 1944 | 1945 | 1946 | 1947 | 1948 | 1949 | 1950 | 1951 | 1952 | 1953 | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
| CPI | 15.000 | 15.050 | 15.792 | 18.258 | 23.000 | 34.000 | 43.608 | 34.883 | 27.158 | 27.000 | 26.883 | 26.383 | 26.008 | 25.500 | 25.033 | 24.775 | 24.458 | 22.608 | 19.883 | 18.533 | 20.473 | 20.777 | 21.008 | 21.975 | 21.983 | 21.625 | 21.808 | 22.817 | 26.700 | 27.858 | 29.808 | 31.342 | 34.392 | 39.858 | 42.508 | 40.833 | 40.283 | 43.925 | 43.450 | 43.175 | 43.017 | 42.883 | 43.750 | 44.500 | 44.675 | 45.025 | 45.700 | 46.058 | 46.317 | 46.883 | 47.283 | 47.733 | 49.017 | 51.017 | 53.742 | 56.833 | 59.175 | 61.092 | 62.358 | 64.642 | 69.433 | 72.525 | 75.242 | 78.608 | 81.367 | 84.933 | 90.942 | 95.275 | 97.775 | 100.192 | 102.033 | 105.025 | 105.917 | 110.575 | 115.375 | 118.583 | 124.083 | 128.708 | 131.875 | 133.658 | 133.400 | 131.958 | 131.700 | 132.850 | 133.025 | 131.292 | 129.575 | 127.267 | 124.025 | 120.875 | 120.433 | 119.542 | 119.450 | 118.998 | 118.907 | 120.078 | 119.503 | 122.111 | 126.265 | 127.411 | 127.514 | 125.902 | 126.045 | 125.612 | 125.654 | 124.052 | 118.079 | 120.993 | 127.081 | 130.579 | 131.483 | 131.654 | 135.133 |