According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for apparel are 205.92% higher in 2026 versus 1920 (a $65,895,784,444.87 difference in value).
Between 1920 and 2026:Apparel experienced an average inflation rate of 1.06% per year. In other words, apparel costing $32,000,000,000 in the year 1920 would cost $97,895,784,444.87 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 $32,000,000,000 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 | $32,000,000,000.00 | 28.26% |
| 1921 | $25,597,553,984.33 | -20.01% |
| 1922 | $19,928,912,669.60 | -22.15% |
| 1923 | $19,812,726,925.28 | -0.58% |
| 1924 | $19,727,116,376.84 | -0.43% |
| 1925 | $19,360,214,026.37 | -1.86% |
| 1926 | $19,085,037,263.52 | -1.42% |
| 1927 | $18,712,019,873.88 | -1.95% |
| 1928 | $18,369,577,680.11 | -1.83% |
| 1929 | $18,180,011,465.70 | -1.03% |
| 1930 | $17,947,639,977.07 | -1.28% |
| 1931 | $16,590,101,280.34 | -7.56% |
| 1932 | $14,590,483,470.28 | -12.05% |
| 1933 | $13,599,847,124.02 | -6.79% |
| 1934 | $15,022,983,513.72 | 10.46% |
| 1935 | $15,246,203,824.84 | 1.49% |
| 1936 | $15,416,013,758.84 | 1.11% |
| 1937 | $16,125,358,303.08 | 4.60% |
| 1938 | $16,131,473,342.25 | 0.04% |
| 1939 | $15,868,526,657.75 | -1.63% |
| 1940 | $16,003,057,519.59 | 0.85% |
| 1941 | $16,742,977,259.70 | 4.62% |
| 1942 | $19,592,585,515.00 | 17.02% |
| 1943 | $20,442,575,960.25 | 4.34% |
| 1944 | $21,873,495,127.08 | 7.00% |
| 1945 | $22,998,662,335.18 | 5.14% |
| 1946 | $25,236,766,673.04 | 9.73% |
| 1947 | $29,248,232,371.49 | 15.90% |
| 1948 | $31,192,814,828.97 | 6.65% |
| 1949 | $29,963,691,954.90 | -3.94% |
| 1950 | $29,560,099,369.39 | -1.35% |
| 1951 | $32,232,371,488.63 | 9.04% |
| 1952 | $31,883,814,255.69 | -1.08% |
| 1953 | $31,682,017,962.93 | -0.63% |
| 1954 | $31,565,832,218.61 | -0.37% |
| 1955 | $31,467,991,591.82 | -0.31% |
| 1956 | $32,103,955,665.97 | 2.02% |
| 1957 | $32,654,309,191.67 | 1.71% |
| 1958 | $32,782,725,014.33 | 0.39% |
| 1959 | $33,039,556,659.66 | 0.78% |
| 1960 | $33,534,874,832.79 | 1.50% |
| 1961 | $33,797,821,517.29 | 0.78% |
| 1962 | $33,987,387,731.70 | 0.56% |
| 1963 | $34,403,210,395.57 | 1.22% |
| 1964 | $34,696,732,275.94 | 0.85% |
| 1965 | $35,026,944,391.36 | 0.95% |
| 1966 | $35,968,660,424.23 | 2.69% |
| 1967 | $37,436,269,826.10 | 4.08% |
| 1968 | $39,435,887,636.16 | 5.34% |
| 1969 | $41,704,567,169.88 | 5.75% |
| 1970 | $43,422,893,177.91 | 4.12% |
| 1971 | $44,829,352,188.04 | 3.24% |
| 1972 | $45,758,838,142.56 | 2.07% |
| 1973 | $47,434,358,876.36 | 3.66% |
| 1974 | $50,950,506,401.68 | 7.41% |
| 1975 | $53,219,185,935.41 | 4.45% |
| 1976 | $55,212,688,706.29 | 3.75% |
| 1977 | $57,683,164,532.77 | 4.47% |
| 1978 | $59,707,242,499.52 | 3.51% |
| 1979 | $62,324,479,266.20 | 4.38% |
| 1980 | $66,733,422,510.99 | 7.07% |
| 1981 | $69,913,242,881.71 | 4.76% |
| 1982 | $71,747,754,634.05 | 2.62% |
| 1983 | $73,521,115,994.65 | 2.47% |
| 1984 | $74,872,539,652.21 | 1.84% |
| 1985 | $77,067,838,715.84 | 2.93% |
| 1986 | $77,722,147,907.51 | 0.85% |
| 1987 | $81,140,454,806.04 | 4.40% |
| 1988 | $84,662,717,370.53 | 4.34% |
| 1989 | $87,017,007,452.70 | 2.78% |
| 1990 | $91,052,933,307.85 | 4.64% |
| 1991 | $94,446,780,049.68 | 3.73% |
| 1992 | $96,770,494,935.98 | 2.46% |
| 1993 | $98,079,113,319.32 | 1.35% |
| 1994 | $97,889,547,104.91 | -0.19% |
| 1995 | $96,831,645,327.73 | -1.08% |
| 1996 | $96,642,079,113.32 | -0.20% |
| 1997 | $97,485,954,519.40 | 0.87% |
| 1998 | $97,614,370,342.06 | 0.13% |
| 1999 | $96,342,442,193.77 | -1.30% |
| 2000 | $95,082,744,123.83 | -1.31% |
| 2001 | $93,388,878,272.50 | -1.78% |
| 2002 | $91,010,128,033.63 | -2.55% |
| 2003 | $88,698,643,225.68 | -2.54% |
| 2004 | $88,374,546,149.44 | -0.37% |
| 2005 | $87,720,236,957.77 | -0.74% |
| 2006 | $87,652,971,526.85 | -0.08% |
| 2007 | $87,321,475,253.20 | -0.38% |
| 2008 | $87,254,454,423.85 | -0.08% |
| 2009 | $88,113,923,179.82 | 0.99% |
| 2010 | $87,691,924,326.39 | -0.48% |
| 2011 | $89,605,381,234.47 | 2.18% |
| 2012 | $92,653,544,811.77 | 3.40% |
| 2013 | $93,495,035,352.57 | 0.91% |
| 2014 | $93,570,556,086.37 | 0.08% |
| 2015 | $92,387,846,359.64 | -1.26% |
| 2016 | $92,492,658,131.09 | 0.11% |
| 2017 | $92,174,676,094.02 | -0.34% |
| 2018 | $92,205,801,643.42 | 0.03% |
| 2019 | $91,029,696,158.99 | -1.28% |
| 2020 | $86,646,680,680.30 | -4.81% |
| 2021 | $88,784,987,578.83 | 2.47% |
| 2022 | $93,252,451,748.52 | 5.03% |
| 2023 | $95,819,239,442.00 | 2.75% |
| 2024 | $96,482,598,891.65 | 0.69% |
| 2025 | $96,608,018,345.12 | 0.13% |
| 2026 | $97,895,784,444.87 | 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 |