According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for apparel are 205.92% higher in 2026 versus 1920 (a $2,637,483,471.60 difference in value).
Between 1920 and 2026:Apparel experienced an average inflation rate of 1.06% per year. In other words, apparel costing $1,280,802,282 in the year 1920 would cost $3,918,285,753.60 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 $1,280,802,282 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 | $1,280,802,282.00 | 28.26% |
| 1921 | $1,024,543,923.65 | -20.01% |
| 1922 | $797,656,150.78 | -22.15% |
| 1923 | $793,005,808.08 | -0.58% |
| 1924 | $789,579,239.77 | -0.43% |
| 1925 | $774,893,947.03 | -1.86% |
| 1926 | $763,879,977.47 | -1.42% |
| 1927 | $748,949,929.85 | -1.95% |
| 1928 | $735,243,656.63 | -1.83% |
| 1929 | $727,656,255.38 | -1.03% |
| 1930 | $718,355,569.97 | -1.28% |
| 1931 | $664,019,986.83 | -7.56% |
| 1932 | $583,985,141.38 | -12.05% |
| 1933 | $544,334,850.98 | -6.79% |
| 1934 | $601,295,986.46 | 10.46% |
| 1935 | $610,230,395.33 | 1.49% |
| 1936 | $617,027,050.05 | 1.11% |
| 1937 | $645,418,616.02 | 4.60% |
| 1938 | $645,663,370.90 | 0.04% |
| 1939 | $635,138,911.10 | -1.63% |
| 1940 | $640,523,518.44 | 0.85% |
| 1941 | $670,138,858.80 | 4.62% |
| 1942 | $784,194,632.43 | 17.02% |
| 1943 | $818,215,560.62 | 4.34% |
| 1944 | $875,488,202.31 | 7.00% |
| 1945 | $920,523,100.06 | 5.14% |
| 1946 | $1,010,103,385.79 | 9.73% |
| 1947 | $1,170,662,586.43 | 15.90% |
| 1948 | $1,248,494,637.97 | 6.65% |
| 1949 | $1,199,298,907.28 | -3.94% |
| 1950 | $1,183,145,085.26 | -1.35% |
| 1951 | $1,290,102,967.40 | 9.04% |
| 1952 | $1,276,151,939.30 | -1.08% |
| 1953 | $1,268,075,028.29 | -0.63% |
| 1954 | $1,263,424,685.59 | -0.37% |
| 1955 | $1,259,508,607.52 | -0.31% |
| 1956 | $1,284,963,114.94 | 2.02% |
| 1957 | $1,306,991,054.06 | 1.71% |
| 1958 | $1,312,130,906.52 | 0.39% |
| 1959 | $1,322,410,611.44 | 0.78% |
| 1960 | $1,342,235,756.64 | 1.50% |
| 1961 | $1,352,760,216.44 | 0.78% |
| 1962 | $1,360,347,617.69 | 0.56% |
| 1963 | $1,376,990,949.46 | 1.22% |
| 1964 | $1,388,739,183.66 | 0.85% |
| 1965 | $1,401,955,947.12 | 0.95% |
| 1966 | $1,439,648,198.49 | 2.69% |
| 1967 | $1,498,389,369.46 | 4.08% |
| 1968 | $1,578,424,214.91 | 5.34% |
| 1969 | $1,669,228,275.03 | 5.75% |
| 1970 | $1,738,004,396.04 | 4.12% |
| 1971 | $1,794,298,018.22 | 3.24% |
| 1972 | $1,831,500,759.83 | 2.07% |
| 1973 | $1,898,563,596.69 | 3.66% |
| 1974 | $2,039,297,652.14 | 7.41% |
| 1975 | $2,130,101,712.26 | 4.45% |
| 1976 | $2,209,891,802.82 | 3.75% |
| 1977 | $2,308,772,773.95 | 4.47% |
| 1978 | $2,389,786,638.92 | 3.51% |
| 1979 | $2,494,541,727.14 | 4.38% |
| 1980 | $2,671,009,994.93 | 7.07% |
| 1981 | $2,798,282,532.03 | 4.76% |
| 1982 | $2,871,708,995.74 | 2.62% |
| 1983 | $2,942,687,910.66 | 2.47% |
| 1984 | $2,996,778,738.93 | 1.84% |
| 1985 | $3,084,645,740.50 | 2.93% |
| 1986 | $3,110,834,512.56 | 0.85% |
| 1987 | $3,247,652,489.94 | 4.40% |
| 1988 | $3,388,631,300.27 | 4.34% |
| 1989 | $3,482,861,928.69 | 2.78% |
| 1990 | $3,644,400,148.86 | 4.64% |
| 1991 | $3,780,239,106.72 | 3.73% |
| 1992 | $3,873,245,960.76 | 2.46% |
| 1993 | $3,925,623,504.87 | 1.35% |
| 1994 | $3,918,036,103.62 | -0.19% |
| 1995 | $3,875,693,509.55 | -1.08% |
| 1996 | $3,868,106,108.30 | -0.20% |
| 1997 | $3,901,882,281.61 | 0.87% |
| 1998 | $3,907,022,134.07 | 0.13% |
| 1999 | $3,856,113,119.23 | -1.30% |
| 2000 | $3,805,693,614.14 | -1.31% |
| 2001 | $3,737,896,512.65 | -1.78% |
| 2002 | $3,642,686,864.71 | -2.55% |
| 2003 | $3,550,169,520.43 | -2.54% |
| 2004 | $3,537,197,511.84 | -0.37% |
| 2005 | $3,511,008,739.78 | -0.74% |
| 2006 | $3,508,316,436.11 | -0.08% |
| 2007 | $3,495,048,274.12 | -0.38% |
| 2008 | $3,492,365,760.65 | -0.08% |
| 2009 | $3,526,766,058.90 | 0.99% |
| 2010 | $3,509,875,524.69 | -0.48% |
| 2011 | $3,586,461,773.89 | 2.18% |
| 2012 | $3,708,464,738.45 | 3.40% |
| 2013 | $3,742,145,457.35 | 0.91% |
| 2014 | $3,745,168,180.11 | 0.08% |
| 2015 | $3,697,830,138.95 | -1.26% |
| 2016 | $3,702,025,237.58 | 0.11% |
| 2017 | $3,689,297,983.87 | -0.34% |
| 2018 | $3,690,543,786.20 | 0.03% |
| 2019 | $3,643,470,080.32 | -1.28% |
| 2020 | $3,468,039,573.22 | -4.81% |
| 2021 | $3,553,625,459.32 | 2.47% |
| 2022 | $3,732,436,031.30 | 5.03% |
| 2023 | $3,835,171,891.78 | 2.75% |
| 2024 | $3,861,722,901.05 | 0.69% |
| 2025 | $3,866,742,823.62 | 0.13% |
| 2026 | $3,918,285,753.60 | 1.33%* |
* 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 | 133.409 |