$100 in 1937 is worth $5,412 today

$

The Australian dollar has lost 98% its value since 1937

Updated: November 13, 2024

$100 in 1937 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $5,412 today, an increase of $5,312.00 over 87 years. The dollar had an average inflation rate of 4.69% per year between 1937 and today, producing a cumulative price increase of 5,312.00%.

This means that today's prices are 54.12 times as high as average prices since 1937, according to the Bureau of Statistics consumer price index. A dollar today only buys 1.848% of what it could buy back then.

The inflation rate in 1937 was 4.17%. The current inflation rate compared to the end of last year is now 1.05%. If this number holds, $100 today will be equivalent in buying power to $101.05 next year.

⌃
Inflation from 1937 to 2024
Cumulative price change5,312.00%
Average inflation rate4.69%
Converted amount
$100 base		$5,412
Price difference
$100 base		$5,312.00
CPI in 19372.500
CPI in 2024135.300
Inflation in 19374.17%
Inflation in 20241.05%
$100 in 1937$5,412 in 2024
AUD inflation since 1937
Annual Rate, the Bureau of Statistics CPI
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Buying power of $100 in 1937

This chart shows a calculation of buying power equivalence for $100 in 1937 (price index tracking began in 1922).

For example, if you started with $100, you would need to end with $5,412 in order to "adjust" for inflation (sometimes refered to as "beating inflation").

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When $100 is equivalent to $5,412 over time, that means that the "real value" of a single Australian dollar decreases over time. In other words, a dollar will pay for fewer items at the store.

This effect explains how inflation erodes the value of a dollar over time. By calculating the value in 1937 dollars, the chart below shows how $100 is worth less over 87 years.

Download

According to the Bureau of Statistics, each of these AUD amounts below is equal in terms of what it could buy at the time:

Dollar inflation: 1937-2024
YearDollar ValueInflation Rate
1937$100.004.17%
1938$104.004.00%
1939$104.000.00%
1940$108.003.85%
1941$112.003.70%
1942$124.0010.71%
1943$128.003.23%
1944$128.000.00%
1945$128.000.00%
1946$128.000.00%
1947$136.006.25%
1948$148.008.82%
1949$160.008.11%
1950$176.0010.00%
1951$208.0018.18%
1952$244.0017.31%
1953$256.004.92%
1954$260.001.56%
1955$264.001.54%
1956$280.006.06%
1957$288.002.86%
1958$288.000.00%
1959$296.002.78%
1960$308.004.05%
1961$312.001.30%
1962$312.000.00%
1963$316.001.28%
1964$324.002.53%
1965$336.003.70%
1966$344.002.38%
1967$356.003.49%
1968$368.003.37%
1969$380.003.26%
1970$392.003.16%
1971$416.006.12%
1972$440.005.77%
1973$480.009.09%
1974$556.0015.83%
1975$640.0015.11%
1976$724.0013.13%
1977$812.0012.15%
1978$876.007.88%
1979$956.009.13%
1980$1,056.0010.46%
1981$1,156.009.47%
1982$1,284.0011.07%
1983$1,416.0010.28%
1984$1,472.003.95%
1985$1,568.006.52%
1986$1,712.009.18%
1987$1,856.008.41%
1988$1,992.007.33%
1989$2,140.007.43%
1990$2,300.007.48%
1991$2,372.003.13%
1992$2,396.001.01%
1993$2,436.001.67%
1994$2,484.001.97%
1995$2,600.004.67%
1996$2,668.002.62%
1997$2,676.000.30%
1998$2,696.000.75%
1999$2,736.001.48%
2000$2,860.004.53%
2001$2,984.004.34%
2002$3,076.003.08%
2003$3,160.002.73%
2004$3,232.002.28%
2005$3,320.002.72%
2006$3,436.003.49%
2007$3,516.002.33%
2008$3,672.004.44%
2009$3,736.001.74%
2010$3,844.002.89%
2011$3,972.003.33%
2012$4,040.001.71%
2013$4,140.002.48%
2014$4,244.002.51%
2015$4,308.001.51%
2016$4,364.001.30%
2017$4,448.001.92%
2018$4,532.001.89%
2019$4,604.001.59%
2020$4,644.000.87%
2021$4,776.002.84%
2022$5,092.006.62%
2023$5,356.005.18%
2024$5,412.001.05%*
* Compared to previous annual rate. Not final. See inflation summary for latest 12-month trailing value.
Click to show 81 more rows

This conversion table shows various other 1937 amounts in today's dollars, based on the 5,312.00% change in prices:

Conversion: 1937 dollars today
Initial valueEquivalent value
$1 dollar in 1937$54.12 dollars today
$5 dollars in 1937$270.60 dollars today
$10 dollars in 1937$541.20 dollars today
$50 dollars in 1937$2,706.00 dollars today
$100 dollars in 1937$5,412.00 dollars today
$500 dollars in 1937$27,060.00 dollars today
$1,000 dollars in 1937$54,120.00 dollars today
$5,000 dollars in 1937$270,600.00 dollars today
$10,000 dollars in 1937$541,200.00 dollars today
$50,000 dollars in 1937$2,706,000.00 dollars today
$100,000 dollars in 1937$5,412,000.00 dollars today
$500,000 dollars in 1937$27,060,000.00 dollars today
$1,000,000 dollars in 1937$54,120,000.00 dollars today

How to calculate inflation rate for $100 since 1937

Our calculations use the following inflation rate formula to calculate the change in value between 1937 and today:

CPI today CPI in 1937
×
1937 AUD value
=
Today's value

Then plug in historical CPI values. The Australian CPI was 2.5 in the year 1937 and 135.3 in 2024:

135.32.5
×
$100
=
$5,412

$100 in 1937 has the same "purchasing power" or "buying power" as $5,412 in 2024.

To get the total inflation rate for the 87 years between 1937 and 2024, we use the following formula:

CPI in 2024 - CPI in 1937CPI in 1937
×
100
=
Cumulative inflation rate (87 years)

Plugging in the values to this equation, we get:

135.3 - 2.52.5
×
100
=
5,312%

Data source & citation

Raw data for these calculations comes from the government of Australia's annual (CPI) as provided by the Reserve Bank of Australia. The consumer price index was established in 1922 and is tracked by Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

You may use the following MLA citation for this page: “Value of 1937 Australian dollars today | Australia Inflation Calculator.” Official Inflation Data, Alioth Finance, 30 Nov. 2024, https://www.officialdata.org/australia/inflation/1937.

Special thanks to QuickChart for their chart image API, which is used for chart downloads.

in2013dollars.com is a reference website maintained by the Official Data Foundation.

Ian Webster

About the author

Ian Webster is an engineer and data expert based in San Mateo, California. He has worked for Google, NASA, and consulted for governments around the world on data pipelines and data analysis. Disappointed by the lack of clear resources on the impacts of inflation on economic indicators, Ian believes this website serves as a valuable public tool. Ian earned his degree in Computer Science from Dartmouth College.

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Inflation from 1937 to 2024
Cumulative price change5,312.00%
Average inflation rate4.69%
Converted amount
$100 base		$5,412
Price difference
$100 base		$5,312.00
CPI in 19372.500
CPI in 2024135.300
Inflation in 19374.17%
Inflation in 20241.05%
$100 in 1937$5,412 in 2024