According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for apparel are 205.92% higher in 2026 versus 1920 (a $3,674,163,608.75 difference in value).
Between 1920 and 2026:Apparel experienced an average inflation rate of 1.06% per year. In other words, apparel costing $1,784,230,000 in the year 1920 would cost $5,458,393,608.75 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 $1,784,230,000 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 | $1,784,230,000.00 | 28.26% |
| 1921 | $1,427,247,617.05 | -20.01% |
| 1922 | $1,111,180,120.39 | -22.15% |
| 1923 | $1,104,701,930.06 | -0.58% |
| 1924 | $1,099,928,526.66 | -0.43% |
| 1925 | $1,079,471,083.51 | -1.86% |
| 1926 | $1,064,128,001.15 | -1.42% |
| 1927 | $1,043,329,600.61 | -1.95% |
| 1928 | $1,024,235,987.01 | -1.83% |
| 1929 | $1,013,666,308.05 | -1.03% |
| 1930 | $1,000,709,927.38 | -1.28% |
| 1931 | $925,017,387.73 | -7.56% |
| 1932 | $813,524,322.57 | -12.05% |
| 1933 | $758,289,226.07 | -6.79% |
| 1934 | $837,639,308.58 | 10.46% |
| 1935 | $850,085,445.32 | 1.49% |
| 1936 | $859,553,569.65 | 1.11% |
| 1937 | $899,104,626.41 | 4.60% |
| 1938 | $899,445,583.80 | 0.04% |
| 1939 | $884,784,416.20 | -1.63% |
| 1940 | $892,285,478.69 | 0.85% |
| 1941 | $933,541,322.38 | 4.62% |
| 1942 | $1,092,427,464.17 | 17.02% |
| 1943 | $1,139,820,540.80 | 4.34% |
| 1944 | $1,219,604,569.08 | 7.00% |
| 1945 | $1,282,340,728.07 | 5.14% |
| 1946 | $1,407,131,131.28 | 9.73% |
| 1947 | $1,630,799,176.38 | 15.90% |
| 1948 | $1,739,223,625.07 | 6.65% |
| 1949 | $1,670,691,190.52 | -3.94% |
| 1950 | $1,648,188,003.06 | -1.35% |
| 1951 | $1,797,186,380.66 | 9.04% |
| 1952 | $1,777,751,809.67 | -1.08% |
| 1953 | $1,766,500,215.94 | -0.63% |
| 1954 | $1,760,022,025.61 | -0.37% |
| 1955 | $1,754,566,707.43 | -0.31% |
| 1956 | $1,790,026,275.56 | 2.02% |
| 1957 | $1,820,712,440.28 | 1.71% |
| 1958 | $1,827,872,545.39 | 0.39% |
| 1959 | $1,842,192,755.59 | 0.78% |
| 1960 | $1,869,810,303.84 | 1.50% |
| 1961 | $1,884,471,471.43 | 0.78% |
| 1962 | $1,895,041,150.39 | 0.56% |
| 1963 | $1,918,226,252.63 | 1.22% |
| 1964 | $1,934,592,207.15 | 0.85% |
| 1965 | $1,953,003,905.98 | 0.95% |
| 1966 | $2,005,511,343.40 | 2.69% |
| 1967 | $2,087,341,115.99 | 4.08% |
| 1968 | $2,198,834,181.16 | 5.34% |
| 1969 | $2,325,329,371.30 | 5.75% |
| 1970 | $2,421,138,396.71 | 4.12% |
| 1971 | $2,499,558,595.45 | 3.24% |
| 1972 | $2,551,384,118.10 | 2.07% |
| 1973 | $2,644,806,441.81 | 3.66% |
| 1974 | $2,840,856,938.66 | 7.41% |
| 1975 | $2,967,352,128.80 | 4.45% |
| 1976 | $3,078,504,236.58 | 3.75% |
| 1977 | $3,216,251,020.45 | 4.47% |
| 1978 | $3,329,107,915.15 | 3.51% |
| 1979 | $3,475,037,676.29 | 4.38% |
| 1980 | $3,720,867,951.46 | 7.07% |
| 1981 | $3,898,165,792.09 | 4.76% |
| 1982 | $4,000,453,007.83 | 2.62% |
| 1983 | $4,099,330,649.72 | 2.47% |
| 1984 | $4,174,682,231.99 | 1.84% |
| 1985 | $4,297,085,933.50 | 2.93% |
| 1986 | $4,333,568,373.78 | 0.85% |
| 1987 | $4,524,163,552.46 | 4.40% |
| 1988 | $4,720,555,006.69 | 4.34% |
| 1989 | $4,851,823,600.23 | 2.78% |
| 1990 | $5,076,855,474.87 | 4.64% |
| 1991 | $5,266,086,824.00 | 3.73% |
| 1992 | $5,395,650,630.61 | 2.46% |
| 1993 | $5,468,615,511.18 | 1.35% |
| 1994 | $5,458,045,832.22 | -0.19% |
| 1995 | $5,399,060,204.47 | -1.08% |
| 1996 | $5,388,490,525.51 | -0.20% |
| 1997 | $5,435,542,644.75 | 0.87% |
| 1998 | $5,442,702,749.86 | 0.13% |
| 1999 | $5,371,783,613.61 | -1.30% |
| 2000 | $5,301,546,392.13 | -1.31% |
| 2001 | $5,207,101,196.25 | -1.78% |
| 2002 | $5,074,468,773.17 | -2.55% |
| 2003 | $4,945,586,881.33 | -2.54% |
| 2004 | $4,927,516,139.88 | -0.37% |
| 2005 | $4,891,033,699.60 | -0.74% |
| 2006 | $4,887,283,168.35 | -0.08% |
| 2007 | $4,868,799,868.47 | -0.38% |
| 2008 | $4,865,062,975.52 | -0.08% |
| 2009 | $4,912,984,536.10 | 0.99% |
| 2010 | $4,889,455,066.90 | -0.48% |
| 2011 | $4,996,144,042.50 | 2.18% |
| 2012 | $5,166,101,070.61 | 3.40% |
| 2013 | $5,213,020,216.47 | 0.91% |
| 2014 | $5,217,231,040.19 | 0.08% |
| 2015 | $5,151,286,472.20 | -1.26% |
| 2016 | $5,157,130,481.79 | 0.11% |
| 2017 | $5,139,400,697.73 | -0.34% |
| 2018 | $5,141,136,170.82 | 0.03% |
| 2019 | $5,075,559,836.80 | -1.28% |
| 2020 | $4,831,175,220.94 | -4.81% |
| 2021 | $4,950,401,199.62 | 2.47% |
| 2022 | $5,199,494,436.98 | 5.03% |
| 2023 | $5,342,611,299.68 | 2.75% |
| 2024 | $5,379,598,356.89 | 0.69% |
| 2025 | $5,386,591,392.87 | 0.13% |
| 2026 | $5,458,393,608.75 | 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 |