According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for apparel are 205.92% higher in 2026 versus 1920 (a $3,294,789,222.24 difference in value).
Between 1920 and 2026:Apparel experienced an average inflation rate of 1.06% per year. In other words, apparel costing $1,600,000,000 in the year 1920 would cost $4,894,789,222.24 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 $1,600,000,000 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 | $1,600,000,000.00 | 28.26% |
| 1921 | $1,279,877,699.22 | -20.01% |
| 1922 | $996,445,633.48 | -22.15% |
| 1923 | $990,636,346.26 | -0.58% |
| 1924 | $986,355,818.84 | -0.43% |
| 1925 | $968,010,701.32 | -1.86% |
| 1926 | $954,251,863.18 | -1.42% |
| 1927 | $935,600,993.69 | -1.95% |
| 1928 | $918,478,884.01 | -1.83% |
| 1929 | $909,000,573.28 | -1.03% |
| 1930 | $897,381,998.85 | -1.28% |
| 1931 | $829,505,064.02 | -7.56% |
| 1932 | $729,524,173.51 | -12.05% |
| 1933 | $679,992,356.20 | -6.79% |
| 1934 | $751,149,175.69 | 10.46% |
| 1935 | $762,310,191.24 | 1.49% |
| 1936 | $770,800,687.94 | 1.11% |
| 1937 | $806,267,915.15 | 4.60% |
| 1938 | $806,573,667.11 | 0.04% |
| 1939 | $793,426,332.89 | -1.63% |
| 1940 | $800,152,875.98 | 0.85% |
| 1941 | $837,148,862.98 | 4.62% |
| 1942 | $979,629,275.75 | 17.02% |
| 1943 | $1,022,128,798.01 | 4.34% |
| 1944 | $1,093,674,756.35 | 7.00% |
| 1945 | $1,149,933,116.76 | 5.14% |
| 1946 | $1,261,838,333.65 | 9.73% |
| 1947 | $1,462,411,618.57 | 15.90% |
| 1948 | $1,559,640,741.45 | 6.65% |
| 1949 | $1,498,184,597.75 | -3.94% |
| 1950 | $1,478,004,968.47 | -1.35% |
| 1951 | $1,611,618,574.43 | 9.04% |
| 1952 | $1,594,190,712.78 | -1.08% |
| 1953 | $1,584,100,898.15 | -0.63% |
| 1954 | $1,578,291,610.93 | -0.37% |
| 1955 | $1,573,399,579.59 | -0.31% |
| 1956 | $1,605,197,783.30 | 2.02% |
| 1957 | $1,632,715,459.58 | 1.71% |
| 1958 | $1,639,136,250.72 | 0.39% |
| 1959 | $1,651,977,832.98 | 0.78% |
| 1960 | $1,676,743,741.64 | 1.50% |
| 1961 | $1,689,891,075.86 | 0.78% |
| 1962 | $1,699,369,386.59 | 0.56% |
| 1963 | $1,720,160,519.78 | 1.22% |
| 1964 | $1,734,836,613.80 | 0.85% |
| 1965 | $1,751,347,219.57 | 0.95% |
| 1966 | $1,798,433,021.21 | 2.69% |
| 1967 | $1,871,813,491.31 | 4.08% |
| 1968 | $1,971,794,381.81 | 5.34% |
| 1969 | $2,085,228,358.49 | 5.75% |
| 1970 | $2,171,144,658.90 | 4.12% |
| 1971 | $2,241,467,609.40 | 3.24% |
| 1972 | $2,287,941,907.13 | 2.07% |
| 1973 | $2,371,717,943.82 | 3.66% |
| 1974 | $2,547,525,320.08 | 7.41% |
| 1975 | $2,660,959,296.77 | 4.45% |
| 1976 | $2,760,634,435.31 | 3.75% |
| 1977 | $2,884,158,226.64 | 4.47% |
| 1978 | $2,985,362,124.98 | 3.51% |
| 1979 | $3,116,223,963.31 | 4.38% |
| 1980 | $3,336,671,125.55 | 7.07% |
| 1981 | $3,495,662,144.09 | 4.76% |
| 1982 | $3,587,387,731.70 | 2.62% |
| 1983 | $3,676,055,799.73 | 2.47% |
| 1984 | $3,743,626,982.61 | 1.84% |
| 1985 | $3,853,391,935.79 | 2.93% |
| 1986 | $3,886,107,395.38 | 0.85% |
| 1987 | $4,057,022,740.30 | 4.40% |
| 1988 | $4,233,135,868.53 | 4.34% |
| 1989 | $4,350,850,372.64 | 2.78% |
| 1990 | $4,552,646,665.39 | 4.64% |
| 1991 | $4,722,339,002.48 | 3.73% |
| 1992 | $4,838,524,746.80 | 2.46% |
| 1993 | $4,903,955,665.97 | 1.35% |
| 1994 | $4,894,477,355.25 | -0.19% |
| 1995 | $4,841,582,266.39 | -1.08% |
| 1996 | $4,832,103,955.67 | -0.20% |
| 1997 | $4,874,297,725.97 | 0.87% |
| 1998 | $4,880,718,517.10 | 0.13% |
| 1999 | $4,817,122,109.69 | -1.30% |
| 2000 | $4,754,137,206.19 | -1.31% |
| 2001 | $4,669,443,913.63 | -1.78% |
| 2002 | $4,550,506,401.68 | -2.55% |
| 2003 | $4,434,932,161.28 | -2.54% |
| 2004 | $4,418,727,307.47 | -0.37% |
| 2005 | $4,386,011,847.89 | -0.74% |
| 2006 | $4,382,648,576.34 | -0.08% |
| 2007 | $4,366,073,762.66 | -0.38% |
| 2008 | $4,362,722,721.19 | -0.08% |
| 2009 | $4,405,696,158.99 | 0.99% |
| 2010 | $4,384,596,216.32 | -0.48% |
| 2011 | $4,480,269,061.72 | 2.18% |
| 2012 | $4,632,677,240.59 | 3.40% |
| 2013 | $4,674,751,767.63 | 0.91% |
| 2014 | $4,678,527,804.32 | 0.08% |
| 2015 | $4,619,392,317.98 | -1.26% |
| 2016 | $4,624,632,906.55 | 0.11% |
| 2017 | $4,608,733,804.70 | -0.34% |
| 2018 | $4,610,290,082.17 | 0.03% |
| 2019 | $4,551,484,807.95 | -1.28% |
| 2020 | $4,332,334,034.01 | -4.81% |
| 2021 | $4,439,249,378.94 | 2.47% |
| 2022 | $4,662,622,587.43 | 5.03% |
| 2023 | $4,790,961,972.10 | 2.75% |
| 2024 | $4,824,129,944.58 | 0.69% |
| 2025 | $4,830,400,917.26 | 0.13% |
| 2026 | $4,894,789,222.24 | 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 |