Value of $1 from 1800 to 2020

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics consumer price index, today's prices in 2020 are 1,962.84% higher than average prices since 1800. The U.S. dollar experienced an average inflation rate of 1.39% per year during this period, causing the real value of a dollar to decrease.

In other words, $1 in 1800 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $20.63 in 2020, a difference of $19.63 over 220 years.

The 1800 inflation rate was 2.44%. The current year-over-year inflation rate (2019 to 2020) is now 1.31%1. If this number holds, $1 today will be equivalent in buying power to $1.01 next year. The current inflation rate page gives more detail on the latest official inflation rates.

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Inflation from 1800 to 2020 Cumulative price change 1,962.84% Average inflation rate 1.39% Converted amount ($1 base) $20.63 Price difference ($1 base) $19.63 CPI in 1800 12.600 CPI in 2020 259.918 Inflation in 1800 2.44% Inflation in 2020 1.31%

USD Inflation since 1635 Annual Rate, the Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI Download

Buying power of $1 in 1800 This chart shows a calculation of buying power equivalence for $1 in 1800 (price index tracking began in 1635). For example, if you started with $1, you would need to end with $20.63 in order to "adjust" for inflation (sometimes refered to as "beating inflation"). Download When $1 is equivalent to $20.63 over time, that means that the "real value" of a single U.S. 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 1800 dollars, the chart below shows how $1 is worth less over 220 years. Download According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, each of these USD amounts below is equal in terms of what it could buy at the time: Dollar inflation: 1800-2020 Year Dollar Value Inflation Rate 1800 $1.00 2.44% 1801 $1.01 0.79% 1802 $0.85 -15.75% 1803 $0.90 5.61% 1804 $0.94 4.42% 1805 $0.93 -0.85% 1806 $0.97 4.27% 1807 $0.92 -4.92% 1808 $1.00 8.62% 1809 $0.98 -2.38% 1810 $0.98 0.00% 1811 $1.04 6.50% 1812 $1.06 1.53% 1813 $1.27 20.30% 1814 $1.40 10.00% 1815 $1.22 -12.50% 1816 $1.12 -8.44% 1817 $1.06 -5.67% 1818 $1.01 -4.51% 1819 $1.01 0.00% 1820 $0.93 -7.87% 1821 $0.90 -3.42% 1822 $0.93 3.54% 1823 $0.83 -10.26% 1824 $0.77 -7.62% 1825 $0.79 2.06% 1826 $0.79 0.00% 1827 $0.79 1.01% 1828 $0.75 -5.00% 1829 $0.74 -2.11% 1830 $0.73 -1.08% 1831 $0.69 -5.43% 1832 $0.68 -1.15% 1833 $0.67 -2.33% 1834 $0.68 2.38% 1835 $0.70 2.33% 1836 $0.74 5.68% 1837 $0.76 3.23% 1838 $0.74 -3.12% 1839 $0.74 0.00% 1840 $0.69 -6.45% 1841 $0.69 0.00% 1842 $0.65 -5.75% 1843 $0.59 -9.76% 1844 $0.60 1.35% 1845 $0.60 1.33% 1846 $0.61 1.32% 1847 $0.65 6.49% 1848 $0.63 -3.66% 1849 $0.61 -2.53% 1850 $0.62 1.30% 1851 $0.61 -1.28% 1852 $0.61 0.00% 1853 $0.61 0.00% 1854 $0.67 9.09% 1855 $0.69 3.57% 1856 $0.67 -2.30% 1857 $0.69 2.35% 1858 $0.65 -5.75% 1859 $0.66 1.22% 1860 $0.66 0.00% 1861 $0.70 6.02% 1862 $0.80 14.77% 1863 $1.00 24.75% 1864 $1.25 24.60% 1865 $1.29 3.82% 1866 $1.26 -2.45% 1867 $1.17 -6.92% 1868 $1.13 -4.05% 1869 $1.08 -4.23% 1870 $1.04 -3.68% 1871 $0.97 -6.87% 1872 $0.97 0.00% 1873 $0.95 -1.64% 1874 $0.90 -5.00% 1875 $0.87 -3.51% 1876 $0.85 -2.73% 1877 $0.83 -1.87% 1878 $0.79 -4.76% 1879 $0.79 0.00% 1880 $0.81 2.00% 1881 $0.81 0.00% 1882 $0.81 0.00% 1883 $0.80 -0.98% 1884 $0.78 -2.97% 1885 $0.77 -1.02% 1886 $0.75 -3.09% 1887 $0.75 1.06% 1888 $0.75 0.00% 1889 $0.73 -3.16% 1890 $0.72 -1.09% 1891 $0.72 0.00% 1892 $0.72 0.00% 1893 $0.71 -1.10% 1894 $0.68 -4.44% 1895 $0.67 -2.33% 1896 $0.67 0.00% 1897 $0.66 -1.19% 1898 $0.66 0.00% 1899 $0.66 0.00% 1900 $0.67 1.20% 1901 $0.67 1.19% 1902 $0.68 1.18% 1903 $0.70 2.33% 1904 $0.71 1.14% 1905 $0.70 -1.12% 1906 $0.71 2.27% 1907 $0.75 4.44% 1908 $0.73 -2.13% 1909 $0.72 -1.09% 1910 $0.75 4.40% 1911 $0.75 0.00% 1912 $0.77 2.11% 1913 $0.79 2.06% 1914 $0.79 1.01% 1915 $0.80 1.00% 1916 $0.87 7.92% 1917 $1.02 17.43% 1918 $1.20 17.97% 1919 $1.37 14.57% 1920 $1.59 15.61% 1921 $1.42 -10.50% 1922 $1.33 -6.15% 1923 $1.36 1.79% 1924 $1.36 0.00% 1925 $1.39 2.34% 1926 $1.40 1.14% 1927 $1.38 -1.69% 1928 $1.36 -1.72% 1929 $1.36 0.00% 1930 $1.33 -2.34% 1931 $1.21 -8.98% 1932 $1.09 -9.87% 1933 $1.03 -5.11% 1934 $1.06 3.08% 1935 $1.09 2.24% 1936 $1.10 1.46% 1937 $1.14 3.60% 1938 $1.12 -2.08% 1939 $1.10 -1.42% 1940 $1.11 0.72% 1941 $1.17 5.00% 1942 $1.29 10.88% 1943 $1.37 6.13% 1944 $1.40 1.73% 1945 $1.43 2.27% 1946 $1.55 8.33% 1947 $1.77 14.36% 1948 $1.91 8.07% 1949 $1.89 -1.24% 1950 $1.91 1.26% 1951 $2.06 7.88% 1952 $2.10 1.92% 1953 $2.12 0.75% 1954 $2.13 0.75% 1955 $2.13 -0.37% 1956 $2.16 1.49% 1957 $2.23 3.31% 1958 $2.29 2.85% 1959 $2.31 0.69% 1960 $2.35 1.72% 1961 $2.37 1.01% 1962 $2.40 1.00% 1963 $2.43 1.32% 1964 $2.46 1.31% 1965 $2.50 1.61% 1966 $2.57 2.86% 1967 $2.65 3.09% 1968 $2.76 4.19% 1969 $2.91 5.46% 1970 $3.08 5.72% 1971 $3.21 4.38% 1972 $3.32 3.21% 1973 $3.52 6.22% 1974 $3.91 11.04% 1975 $4.27 9.13% 1976 $4.52 5.76% 1977 $4.81 6.50% 1978 $5.17 7.59% 1979 $5.76 11.35% 1980 $6.54 13.50% 1981 $7.21 10.32% 1982 $7.66 6.16% 1983 $7.90 3.21% 1984 $8.25 4.32% 1985 $8.54 3.56% 1986 $8.70 1.86% 1987 $9.02 3.65% 1988 $9.39 4.14% 1989 $9.84 4.82% 1990 $10.37 5.40% 1991 $10.81 4.21% 1992 $11.13 3.01% 1993 $11.47 2.99% 1994 $11.76 2.56% 1995 $12.10 2.83% 1996 $12.45 2.95% 1997 $12.74 2.29% 1998 $12.94 1.56% 1999 $13.22 2.21% 2000 $13.67 3.36% 2001 $14.06 2.85% 2002 $14.28 1.58% 2003 $14.60 2.28% 2004 $14.99 2.66% 2005 $15.50 3.39% 2006 $16.00 3.23% 2007 $16.46 2.85% 2008 $17.09 3.84% 2009 $17.03 -0.36% 2010 $17.31 1.64% 2011 $17.85 3.16% 2012 $18.22 2.07% 2013 $18.49 1.46% 2014 $18.79 1.62% 2015 $18.81 0.12% 2016 $19.05 1.26% 2017 $19.45 2.13% 2018 $19.94 2.49% 2019 $20.29 1.76% 2020 $20.63 1.67%* * Compared to previous annual rate. Not final. See * Compared to previous annual rate. Not final. See inflation summary for latest 12-month trailing value. Click to show 214 more rows Download as CSV/Excel This conversion table shows various other 1800 amounts in today's dollars, based on the 1,962.84% change in prices: Conversion Table: Value of a dollar today Initial value Equivalent value $1 dollar in 1800 $20.63 dollars today $5 dollars in 1800 $103.14 dollars today $10 dollars in 1800 $206.28 dollars today $50 dollars in 1800 $1,031.42 dollars today $100 dollars in 1800 $2,062.84 dollars today $500 dollars in 1800 $10,314.21 dollars today $1,000 dollars in 1800 $20,628.41 dollars today $5,000 dollars in 1800 $103,142.06 dollars today $10,000 dollars in 1800 $206,284.13 dollars today $50,000 dollars in 1800 $1,031,420.63 dollars today $100,000 dollars in 1800 $2,062,841.27 dollars today $500,000 dollars in 1800 $10,314,206.35 dollars today $1,000,000 dollars in 1800 $20,628,412.70 dollars today

Inflation by Country Inflation can also vary widely by country. For comparison, in the UK £1.00 in 1800 would be equivalent to £84.31 in 2020, an absolute change of £83.31 and a cumulative change of 8,331.43%. Compare these numbers to the US's overall absolute change of $19.63 and total percent change of 1,962.84%.

Inflation by Spending Category CPI is the weighted combination of many categories of spending that are tracked by the government. Breaking down these categories helps explain the main drivers behind price changes. This chart shows the average rate of inflation for select CPI categories between 1800 and 2020. Compare these values to the overall average of 1.39% per year: Category Avg Inflation (%) Total Inflation (%) $1 in 1800 → 2020 Food and beverages 3.90 449,469.32 4,495.69 Housing 4.19 831,478.56 8,315.79 Apparel 1.96 6,995.43 70.95 Transportation 3.16 94,500.97 946.01 Medical care 5.12 5,871,667.27 58,717.67 Recreation 1.10 1,000.19 11.00 Education and communication 1.84 5,378.29 54.78 Other goods and services 4.98 4,421,826.38 44,219.26 The graph below compares inflation in categories of goods over time. Click on a category such as "Food" to toggle it on or off: For all these visualizations, it's important to note that not all categories may have been tracked since 1800. This table and charts use the earliest available data for each category.

How to Calculate Inflation Rate for $1 since 1800 Our calculations use the following inflation rate formula to calculate the change in value between 1800 and today: CPI today CPI in 1800 × 1800 USD value = Today's value Then plug in historical CPI values. The U.S. CPI was 12.6 in the year 1800 and 259.918 in 2020: 259.918 12.6 × $1 = $20.63 $1 in 1800 has the same "purchasing power" or "buying power" as $20.63 in 2020. To get the total inflation rate for the 220 years between 1800 and 2020, we use the following formula: CPI in 2020 - CPI in 1800 CPI in 1800 × 100 = Cumulative inflation rate (220 years) Plugging in the values to this equation, we get: 259.918 - 12.6 12.6 × 100 = 1,963%

News headlines from 1800 Politics and news often influence economic performance. Here's what was happening at the time: First session of Congress held at under-construction Capitol building in Washington D.C.

First cowpox vaccination (for smallpox prevention) in the United States. The vaccine was given by Dr Benjamin Waterhouse to his son.

The free African American community of Philadelphia submits its first petition to US Congress for the abolition of slavery.

Barnaba Niccoclo Maria Luigi Chiaramonti elected pope, taking the name Pope Pius VII.

A Smallpox vaccine is invented by Doctor Benjamin Waterhouse leading to the first immunization against the disease.

Congress holds its first session in the, at the time, still incomplete Capitol building in Washington D.C.

The French army defeats the Turks at Helipolis, after which they advanced on to Cairo.

Data Source & Citation

Raw data for these calculations comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer Price Index (CPI), established in 1913. Inflation data from 1665 to 1912 is sourced from a historical study conducted by political science professor Robert Sahr at Oregon State University.

You may use the following MLA citation for this page: “$1 in 1800 → 2020 | Inflation Calculator.” Official Inflation Data, Alioth Finance, 12 Sep. 2020, https://www.officialdata.org/us/inflation/1800?amount=1.

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