According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices in Chicago, Illinois are 1,428.24% higher in 2026 versus 1920 (a $112,831,302,267 difference in value).
Between 1920 and 2026:Chicago experienced an average inflation rate of 2.61% per year. This rate of change indicates significant inflation. In other words, $7,900,000,000 in Chicago in the year 1920 would cost $120,731,302,267 in 2026 for an equivalent purchase. Compared to the overall inflation rate of 2.67% during this same period, inflation in Chicago was lower.
In the year 1920: Pricing changed by 19.10%, which is significantly above the average yearly change in Chicago during the 1920-2026 time period. Compared to inflation for all items in 1920 (15.63%), inflation in Chicago was much higher.
Below are calculations of equivalent buying power in Chicago, over time, for $7,900,000,000 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 | $7,900,000,000.00 | 19.10% |
| 1921 | $7,233,375,314.86 | -8.44% |
| 1922 | $6,832,073,887.49 | -5.55% |
| 1923 | $6,914,987,405.54 | 1.21% |
| 1924 | $7,050,965,575.15 | 1.97% |
| 1925 | $7,206,842,989.08 | 2.21% |
| 1926 | $7,332,871,536.52 | 1.75% |
| 1927 | $7,266,540,722.08 | -0.90% |
| 1928 | $7,041,015,952.98 | -3.10% |
| 1929 | $7,024,433,249.37 | -0.24% |
| 1930 | $6,948,152,812.76 | -1.09% |
| 1931 | $6,351,175,482.79 | -8.59% |
| 1932 | $5,604,953,820.32 | -11.75% |
| 1933 | $5,027,875,734.68 | -10.30% |
| 1934 | $5,061,041,141.90 | 0.66% |
| 1935 | $5,279,932,829.55 | 4.33% |
| 1936 | $5,386,062,132.66 | 2.01% |
| 1937 | $5,608,270,361.04 | 4.13% |
| 1938 | $5,568,471,872.38 | -0.71% |
| 1939 | $5,459,026,028.55 | -1.97% |
| 1940 | $5,488,874,895.05 | 0.55% |
| 1941 | $5,777,413,937.87 | 5.26% |
| 1942 | $6,351,175,482.79 | 9.93% |
| 1943 | $6,706,045,340.05 | 5.59% |
| 1944 | $6,808,858,102.43 | 1.53% |
| 1945 | $6,954,785,894.21 | 2.14% |
| 1946 | $7,574,979,009.24 | 8.92% |
| 1947 | $8,798,782,535.68 | 16.16% |
| 1948 | $9,564,903,442.49 | 8.71% |
| 1949 | $9,554,953,820.32 | -0.10% |
| 1950 | $9,651,133,501.26 | 1.01% |
| 1951 | $10,410,621,326.62 | 7.87% |
| 1952 | $10,636,146,095.72 | 2.17% |
| 1953 | $10,729,009,235.94 | 0.87% |
| 1954 | $10,888,203,190.60 | 1.48% |
| 1955 | $10,961,167,086.48 | 0.67% |
| 1956 | $11,113,727,959.70 | 1.39% |
| 1957 | $11,475,230,898.40 | 3.25% |
| 1958 | $11,823,467,674.22 | 3.03% |
| 1959 | $11,919,647,355.16 | 0.81% |
| 1960 | $12,085,474,391.27 | 1.39% |
| 1961 | $12,145,172,124.27 | 0.49% |
| 1962 | $12,271,200,671.70 | 1.04% |
| 1963 | $12,393,912,678.42 | 1.00% |
| 1964 | $12,443,660,789.25 | 0.40% |
| 1965 | $12,609,487,825.36 | 1.33% |
| 1966 | $12,987,573,467.67 | 3.00% |
| 1967 | $13,325,860,621.33 | 2.60% |
| 1968 | $13,889,672,544.08 | 4.23% |
| 1969 | $14,649,160,369.44 | 5.47% |
| 1970 | $15,488,245,172.12 | 5.73% |
| 1971 | $16,098,488,664.99 | 3.94% |
| 1972 | $16,556,171,284.63 | 2.84% |
| 1973 | $17,594,248,530.65 | 6.27% |
| 1974 | $19,454,827,875.73 | 10.57% |
| 1975 | $20,990,386,230.06 | 7.89% |
| 1976 | $21,995,298,068.85 | 4.79% |
| 1977 | $23,378,295,549.96 | 6.29% |
| 1978 | $25,411,335,012.59 | 8.70% |
| 1979 | $28,581,947,942.91 | 12.48% |
| 1980 | $32,704,408,060.45 | 14.42% |
| 1981 | $35,835,222,502.10 | 9.57% |
| 1982 | $38,279,513,014.27 | 6.82% |
| 1983 | $39,805,121,746.43 | 3.99% |
| 1984 | $41,307,514,693.53 | 3.77% |
| 1985 | $42,866,288,832.91 | 3.77% |
| 1986 | $43,761,754,827.88 | 2.09% |
| 1987 | $45,565,952,980.69 | 4.12% |
| 1988 | $47,346,935,348.45 | 3.91% |
| 1989 | $49,741,477,749.79 | 5.06% |
| 1990 | $52,414,609,571.79 | 5.37% |
| 1991 | $54,540,512,174.64 | 4.06% |
| 1992 | $56,139,084,802.69 | 2.93% |
| 1993 | $57,870,319,059.61 | 3.08% |
| 1994 | $59,137,237,615.45 | 2.19% |
| 1995 | $61,017,716,204.87 | 3.18% |
| 1996 | $62,649,454,240.13 | 2.67% |
| 1997 | $64,364,105,793.45 | 2.74% |
| 1998 | $65,660,873,215.79 | 2.01% |
| 1999 | $67,020,654,911.84 | 2.07% |
| 2000 | $69,173,089,840.47 | 3.21% |
| 2001 | $70,973,971,452.56 | 2.60% |
| 2002 | $72,104,911,838.79 | 1.59% |
| 2003 | $73,431,528,127.62 | 1.84% |
| 2004 | $75,073,215,785.05 | 2.24% |
| 2005 | $77,345,046,179.68 | 3.03% |
| 2006 | $78,930,352,644.84 | 2.05% |
| 2007 | $81,514,302,686.82 | 3.27% |
| 2008 | $84,585,950,041.98 | 3.77% |
| 2009 | $83,574,869,437.45 | -1.20% |
| 2010 | $84,719,208,648.19 | 1.37% |
| 2011 | $87,032,993,282.96 | 2.73% |
| 2012 | $88,354,535,264.48 | 1.52% |
| 2013 | $89,365,582,703.61 | 1.14% |
| 2014 | $90,926,711,586.90 | 1.75% |
| 2015 | $90,657,905,961.38 | -0.30% |
| 2016 | $91,258,630,982.37 | 0.66% |
| 2017 | $92,973,780,016.79 | 1.88% |
| 2018 | $94,603,494,962.22 | 1.75% |
| 2019 | $95,986,260,285.47 | 1.46% |
| 2020 | $97,057,668,765.74 | 1.12% |
| 2021 | $101,151,473,971.45 | 4.22% |
| 2022 | $108,791,589,840.47 | 7.55% |
| 2023 | $112,410,632,241.81 | 3.33% |
| 2024 | $116,301,133,501.26 | 3.46% |
| 2025 | $119,993,272,460.12 | 3.17% |
| 2026 | $120,731,302,267.00 | 0.62%* |
* 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 Chicago, Illinois:
| 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 | 10.000 | 10.017 | 10.317 | 11.758 | 13.733 | 16.667 | 19.850 | 18.175 | 17.167 | 17.375 | 17.717 | 18.108 | 18.425 | 18.258 | 17.692 | 17.650 | 17.458 | 15.958 | 14.083 | 12.633 | 12.717 | 13.267 | 13.533 | 14.092 | 13.992 | 13.717 | 13.792 | 14.517 | 15.958 | 16.850 | 17.108 | 17.475 | 19.033 | 22.108 | 24.033 | 24.008 | 24.250 | 26.158 | 26.725 | 26.958 | 27.358 | 27.542 | 27.925 | 28.833 | 29.708 | 29.950 | 30.367 | 30.517 | 30.833 | 31.142 | 31.267 | 31.683 | 32.633 | 33.483 | 34.900 | 36.808 | 38.917 | 40.450 | 41.600 | 44.208 | 48.883 | 52.742 | 55.267 | 58.742 | 63.850 | 71.817 | 82.175 | 90.042 | 96.183 | 100.017 | 103.792 | 107.708 | 109.958 | 114.492 | 118.967 | 124.983 | 131.700 | 137.042 | 141.058 | 145.408 | 148.592 | 153.317 | 157.417 | 161.725 | 164.983 | 168.400 | 173.808 | 178.333 | 181.175 | 184.508 | 188.633 | 194.342 | 198.325 | 204.818 | 212.536 | 209.995 | 212.870 | 218.684 | 222.005 | 224.545 | 228.468 | 227.792 | 229.302 | 233.611 | 237.706 | 241.181 | 243.873 | 254.159 | 273.356 | 282.450 | 292.225 | 301.502 | 303.356 |