$

Value of 1942 US Dollars today

$100 in 1942
$1,932.53 in 2024

The inflation rate in the United States between 1942 and today has been 1,832.53%, which translates into a total increase of $1,832.53. This means that 100 dollars in 1942 are equivalent to 1,932.53 dollars in 2024. In other words, the purchasing power of $100 in 1942 equals $1,932.53 today. The average annual inflation rate between these periods has been 3.68%.

Inflation timeline in the United States (1942 - 2024)

The following chart depicts the equivalence of $100 due to compound inflation and CPI changes. All values are equivalent in terms of purchasing power, which means that for each year the same goods or services could be bought with the indicated amount of money.

All calculations are performed in the local currency (USD) and using 6 decimal digits. Results show only up to 2 decimal digits to favour readability. Inflation data is provided by governments and international institutions on a monthly basis. Today's values were extrapolated from the latest 12-month rolling average official data.

The following table contains relevant indicators:

Indicator Value
Cumulative inflation 1942-2023 1,765.52%
Cumulative inflation 1942-today 1,832.53%
Avg. Annual inflation 1942-2023 3.68%
CPI 1942 16.33
CPI 2023 304.7
CPI 2024-08 (latest official data) 314.8
CPI today 315.65

How to calculate today's value of money after inflation?

There are several ways to calculate the time value of money. Depending on the data available, results can be obtained by using the Consumer Price Index (CPI) formula or the compound interest formula.

Using the CPI formula

When we have both the start and end years, we can use the following formula:

Valuet =Value0 ×
CPIt/CPI0

To obtain the values equivalent in buying power between 1942 and 2023, use the corresponding CPI values:

Value2023
=Value1942 ×
CPI2023/CPI1942
=$ 100 ×
304.7/16.33
$1,865.52

To obtain the equivalent value today (present value), plug in the CPI for today, which is estimated as 315.65:

Valuetoday
=Value1942 ×
CPItoday/CPI1942
=$ 100 ×
315.65/16.33
$1,932.53

Alternative: Using the compound interest formula

Given that money changes with time as a result of an inflation rate that acts as compound interest, we can use the following formula: FV = PV × (1 + i)n, where:

  • FV: Future Value
  • PV: Present Value
  • i: Interest rate (inflation)
  • n: Number of times the interest is compounded (i.e. # of years)

In this case, the future value represents the final amount obtained after applying the inflation rate to our initial value. In other words, it indicates how much are $100 worth today. There are 81 years between 1942 and 2023 and the average inflation rate was 3.6785%. Therefore, we can resolve the formula like this:

Value2023
=PV × (1 + i)n
=$100 × (1 + 0.036785)81
$1,865.52

US inflation - Conversion table

Initial Value Equivalent value
$1 dollar in 1942 $18.66 dollars in 2023
$5 dollars in 1942 $93.28 dollars in 2023
$10 dollars in 1942 $186.55 dollars in 2023
$50 dollars in 1942 $932.76 dollars in 2023
$100 dollars in 1942 $1,865.52 dollars in 2023
$500 dollars in 1942 $9,327.6 dollars in 2023
$1,000 dollars in 1942 $18,655.2 dollars in 2023
$5,000 dollars in 1942 $93,275.99 dollars in 2023
$10,000 dollars in 1942 $186,551.99 dollars in 2023
$50,000 dollars in 1942 $932,759.95 dollars in 2023
$100,000 dollars in 1942 $1,865,519.9 dollars in 2023
$500,000 dollars in 1942 $9,327,599.49 dollars in 2023
$1,000,000 dollars in 1942 $18,655,198.98 dollars in 2023
Cumulative inflation From 1942 1,832.53%
Avg. annual inflation From 1942 3.68%
CPI 1942 16.33
CPI today 315.65

Value of Dollar over time (by year)

Period Value
1942 100
1943 105.97
1944 107.7
1945 110.15
1946 119.49
1947 136.68
1948 147.19
1949 145.77
1950 147.35
1951 158.93
1952 162.55
1953 163.88
1954 164.39
1955 163.93
1956 166.43
1957 171.99
1958 176.68
1959 178.47
1960 181.07
1961 183.01
1962 185.2
1963 187.5
1964 189.9
1965 192.91
1966 198.72
1967 204.23
1968 212.96
1969 224.59
1970 237.7
1971 247.91
1972 256.02
1973 271.84
1974 301.89
1975 329.49
1976 348.42
1977 371.07
1978 399.39
1979 444.34
1980 504.54
1981 556.68
1982 590.82
1983 609.8
1984 636.02
1985 658.57
1986 671.07
1987 695.66
1988 724.03
1989 758.98
1990 799.95
1991 833.83
1992 859.08
1993 884.44
1994 907.5
1995 932.96
1996 960.31
1997 982.76
1998 998.01
1999 1,019.85
2000 1,054.29
2001 1,084.08
2002 1,101.28
2003 1,126.28
2004 1,156.43
2005 1,195.66
2006 1,234.23
2007 1,269.44
2008 1,318.18
2009 1,313.49
2010 1,335.03
2011 1,377.18
2012 1,405.68
2013 1,426.27
2014 1,449.41
2015 1,451.12
2016 1,469.43
2017 1,500.73
2018 1,537.39
2019 1,565.25
2020 1,584.56
2021 1,659
2022 1,791.76
2023 1,865.52
2024-08 1,927.32
Today 1,932.53

All available years

Today's value of US dollars by year:

1913 | 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 |

Other currencies: