According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for apparel are 205.92% higher in 2026 versus 1920 (a $4,036,116,797.25 difference in value).
Between 1920 and 2026:Apparel experienced an average inflation rate of 1.06% per year. In other words, apparel costing $1,960,000,000 in the year 1920 would cost $5,996,116,797.25 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 $1,960,000,000 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 | $1,960,000,000.00 | 28.26% |
| 1921 | $1,567,850,181.54 | -20.01% |
| 1922 | $1,220,645,901.01 | -22.15% |
| 1923 | $1,213,529,524.17 | -0.58% |
| 1924 | $1,208,285,878.08 | -0.43% |
| 1925 | $1,185,813,109.12 | -1.86% |
| 1926 | $1,168,958,532.39 | -1.42% |
| 1927 | $1,146,111,217.27 | -1.95% |
| 1928 | $1,125,136,632.91 | -1.83% |
| 1929 | $1,113,525,702.27 | -1.03% |
| 1930 | $1,099,292,948.60 | -1.28% |
| 1931 | $1,016,143,703.42 | -7.56% |
| 1932 | $893,667,112.55 | -12.05% |
| 1933 | $832,990,636.35 | -6.79% |
| 1934 | $920,157,740.22 | 10.46% |
| 1935 | $933,829,984.27 | 1.49% |
| 1936 | $944,230,842.73 | 1.11% |
| 1937 | $987,678,196.06 | 4.60% |
| 1938 | $988,052,742.21 | 0.04% |
| 1939 | $971,947,257.79 | -1.63% |
| 1940 | $980,187,273.07 | 0.85% |
| 1941 | $1,025,507,357.16 | 4.62% |
| 1942 | $1,200,045,862.79 | 17.02% |
| 1943 | $1,252,107,777.57 | 4.34% |
| 1944 | $1,339,751,576.53 | 7.00% |
| 1945 | $1,408,668,068.03 | 5.14% |
| 1946 | $1,545,751,958.72 | 9.73% |
| 1947 | $1,791,454,232.75 | 15.90% |
| 1948 | $1,910,559,908.27 | 6.65% |
| 1949 | $1,835,276,132.24 | -3.94% |
| 1950 | $1,810,556,086.37 | -1.35% |
| 1951 | $1,974,232,753.68 | 9.04% |
| 1952 | $1,952,883,623.16 | -1.08% |
| 1953 | $1,940,523,600.23 | -0.63% |
| 1954 | $1,933,407,223.39 | -0.37% |
| 1955 | $1,927,414,485.00 | -0.31% |
| 1956 | $1,966,367,284.54 | 2.02% |
| 1957 | $2,000,076,437.99 | 1.71% |
| 1958 | $2,007,941,907.13 | 0.39% |
| 1959 | $2,023,672,845.40 | 0.78% |
| 1960 | $2,054,011,083.51 | 1.50% |
| 1961 | $2,070,116,567.93 | 0.78% |
| 1962 | $2,081,727,498.57 | 0.56% |
| 1963 | $2,107,196,636.73 | 1.22% |
| 1964 | $2,125,174,851.90 | 0.85% |
| 1965 | $2,145,400,343.97 | 0.95% |
| 1966 | $2,203,080,450.98 | 2.69% |
| 1967 | $2,292,971,526.85 | 4.08% |
| 1968 | $2,415,448,117.71 | 5.34% |
| 1969 | $2,554,404,739.16 | 5.75% |
| 1970 | $2,659,652,207.15 | 4.12% |
| 1971 | $2,745,797,821.52 | 3.24% |
| 1972 | $2,802,728,836.23 | 2.07% |
| 1973 | $2,905,354,481.18 | 3.66% |
| 1974 | $3,120,718,517.10 | 7.41% |
| 1975 | $3,259,675,138.54 | 4.45% |
| 1976 | $3,381,777,183.26 | 3.75% |
| 1977 | $3,533,093,827.63 | 4.47% |
| 1978 | $3,657,068,603.10 | 3.51% |
| 1979 | $3,817,374,355.05 | 4.38% |
| 1980 | $4,087,422,128.80 | 7.07% |
| 1981 | $4,282,186,126.50 | 4.76% |
| 1982 | $4,394,549,971.34 | 2.62% |
| 1983 | $4,503,168,354.67 | 2.47% |
| 1984 | $4,585,943,053.70 | 1.84% |
| 1985 | $4,720,405,121.35 | 2.93% |
| 1986 | $4,760,481,559.33 | 0.85% |
| 1987 | $4,969,852,856.87 | 4.40% |
| 1988 | $5,185,591,438.95 | 4.34% |
| 1989 | $5,329,791,706.48 | 2.78% |
| 1990 | $5,576,992,165.11 | 4.64% |
| 1991 | $5,784,865,278.04 | 3.73% |
| 1992 | $5,927,192,814.83 | 2.46% |
| 1993 | $6,007,345,690.81 | 1.35% |
| 1994 | $5,995,734,760.18 | -0.19% |
| 1995 | $5,930,938,276.32 | -1.08% |
| 1996 | $5,919,327,345.69 | -0.20% |
| 1997 | $5,971,014,714.31 | 0.87% |
| 1998 | $5,978,880,183.45 | 0.13% |
| 1999 | $5,900,974,584.37 | -1.30% |
| 2000 | $5,823,818,077.58 | -1.31% |
| 2001 | $5,720,068,794.19 | -1.78% |
| 2002 | $5,574,370,342.06 | -2.55% |
| 2003 | $5,432,791,897.57 | -2.54% |
| 2004 | $5,412,940,951.65 | -0.37% |
| 2005 | $5,372,864,513.66 | -0.74% |
| 2006 | $5,368,744,506.02 | -0.08% |
| 2007 | $5,348,440,359.26 | -0.38% |
| 2008 | $5,344,335,333.46 | -0.08% |
| 2009 | $5,396,977,794.76 | 0.99% |
| 2010 | $5,371,130,364.99 | -0.48% |
| 2011 | $5,488,329,600.61 | 2.18% |
| 2012 | $5,675,029,619.72 | 3.40% |
| 2013 | $5,726,570,915.34 | 0.91% |
| 2014 | $5,731,196,560.29 | 0.08% |
| 2015 | $5,658,755,589.53 | -1.26% |
| 2016 | $5,665,175,310.53 | 0.11% |
| 2017 | $5,645,698,910.76 | -0.34% |
| 2018 | $5,647,605,350.66 | 0.03% |
| 2019 | $5,575,568,889.74 | -1.28% |
| 2020 | $5,307,109,191.67 | -4.81% |
| 2021 | $5,438,080,489.20 | 2.47% |
| 2022 | $5,711,712,669.60 | 5.03% |
| 2023 | $5,868,928,415.82 | 2.75% |
| 2024 | $5,909,559,182.11 | 0.69% |
| 2025 | $5,917,241,123.64 | 0.13% |
| 2026 | $5,996,116,797.25 | 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 |