$

Value of 1955 US Dollars today

$100 in 1955
$1,178.62 in 2024

The inflation rate in the United States between 1955 and today has been 1,078.62%, which translates into a total increase of $1,078.62. This means that 100 dollars in 1955 are equivalent to 1,178.62 dollars in 2024. In other words, the purchasing power of $100 in 1955 equals $1,178.62 today. The average annual inflation rate between these periods has been 3.64%.

Inflation timeline in the United States (1955 - 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 1955-2023 1,038.01%
Cumulative inflation 1955-today 1,078.62%
Avg. Annual inflation 1955-2023 3.64%
CPI 1955 26.78
CPI 2023 304.7
CPI 2024-09 (latest official data) 315.3
CPI today 315.58

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 1955 and 2023, use the corresponding CPI values:

Value2023
=Value1955 ×
CPI2023/CPI1955
=$ 100 ×
304.7/26.78
$1,138.01

To obtain the equivalent value today (present value), plug in the CPI for today, which is estimated as 315.58:

Valuetoday
=Value1955 ×
CPItoday/CPI1955
=$ 100 ×
315.58/26.78
$1,178.62

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 68 years between 1955 and 2023 and the average inflation rate was 3.641%. Therefore, we can resolve the formula like this:

Value2023
=PV × (1 + i)n
=$100 × (1 + 0.03641)68
$1,138.01

US inflation - Conversion table

Initial Value Equivalent value
$1 dollar in 1955 $11.38 dollars in 2023
$5 dollars in 1955 $56.9 dollars in 2023
$10 dollars in 1955 $113.8 dollars in 2023
$50 dollars in 1955 $569 dollars in 2023
$100 dollars in 1955 $1,138.01 dollars in 2023
$500 dollars in 1955 $5,690.04 dollars in 2023
$1,000 dollars in 1955 $11,380.08 dollars in 2023
$5,000 dollars in 1955 $56,900.39 dollars in 2023
$10,000 dollars in 1955 $113,800.78 dollars in 2023
$50,000 dollars in 1955 $569,003.89 dollars in 2023
$100,000 dollars in 1955 $1,138,007.78 dollars in 2023
$500,000 dollars in 1955 $5,690,038.9 dollars in 2023
$1,000,000 dollars in 1955 $11,380,077.81 dollars in 2023
Cumulative inflation From 1955 1,078.62%
Avg. annual inflation From 1955 3.64%
CPI 1955 26.78
CPI today 315.58

Value of Dollar over time (by year)

Period Value
1955 100
1956 101.53
1957 104.92
1958 107.78
1959 108.87
1960 110.46
1961 111.64
1962 112.98
1963 114.38
1964 115.84
1965 117.68
1966 121.23
1967 124.59
1968 129.91
1969 137.01
1970 145
1971 151.23
1972 156.18
1973 165.83
1974 184.16
1975 201
1976 212.54
1977 226.36
1978 243.64
1979 271.06
1980 307.78
1981 339.59
1982 360.41
1983 371.99
1984 387.99
1985 401.74
1986 409.37
1987 424.37
1988 441.67
1989 462.99
1990 487.99
1991 508.65
1992 524.06
1993 539.53
1994 553.59
1995 569.13
1996 585.81
1997 599.5
1998 608.81
1999 622.13
2000 643.14
2001 661.31
2002 671.8
2003 687.05
2004 705.45
2005 729.38
2006 752.91
2007 774.39
2008 804.12
2009 801.26
2010 814.4
2011 840.11
2012 857.49
2013 870.05
2014 884.17
2015 885.22
2016 896.39
2017 915.48
2018 937.84
2019 954.84
2020 966.62
2021 1,012.03
2022 1,093.02
2023 1,138.01
2024-09 1,177.59
Today 1,178.62

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: