Cell service priced at $50 in 2014 $42.27 in 2023

Cell Service Inflation Calculator

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Prices for Cell Service, 2014-2023 ($50)

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for wireless telephone services are 15.46% lower in 2023 versus 2014 (a $7.73 difference in value).

Between 2014 and 2023: Cell service experienced an average inflation rate of -1.85% per year. In other words, cell service costing $50 in the year 2014 would cost $42.27 in 2023 for an equivalent purchase. Compared to the overall inflation rate of 2.72% during this same period, inflation for cell service was significantly lower.

In the year 2014: Pricing changed by -2.11%, which is below the average yearly change for cell service during the 2014-2023 time period. Compared to inflation for all items in 2014 (1.62%), inflation for cell service was much lower.

Price Inflation for Wireless telephone services since 1997

Consumer Price Index, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Years with the largest changes in pricing: 1999 (-10.71%), 2017 (-10.68%), and 2000 (-10.54%).

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Buying power of $50.00 since 2014

Below are calculations of equivalent buying power for Cell service, over time, for $50 beginning in 2014. Each of the amounts below is equivalent in terms of what it could buy at the time:

YearUSD ValueInflation Rate
2014$50.00-2.11%
2015$48.12-3.77%
2016$47.65-0.97%
2017$42.56-10.68%
2018$41.48-2.55%
2019$40.43-2.53%
2020$41.242.02%
2021$41.961.75%
2022$41.77-0.45%
2023$42.271.18%*

* 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 Wireless telephone services:

Year199719981999200020012002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014201520162017201820192020202120222023
CPI100.00095.12384.93875.98568.13167.37766.82366.21564.97764.55464.38364.24064.25762.39560.14759.67858.61757.37855.21654.67948.84047.59646.39347.32948.15647.93748.505

Adjust cell service prices for inflation

Start with the inflation rate formula:

CPI in 2023 / CPI in 2014 * 2014 USD value = 2023 USD value

Then plug in historical CPI values from above. The CPI for Wireless telephone services was 57.378 in the year 2014 and 48.505 in 2023:

48.505 / 57.378 * $50 = $42.27

Therefore, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, $50 in 2014 has the same "purchasing power" as $42.27 in 2023 (in the CPI category of Wireless telephone services).


Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics began tracking the Consumer Price Index for Wireless telephone services in 1997. In addition to cell service, the index produces monthly data on changes in prices paid by urban consumers for a variety of goods and services.

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