$100 in 1948 is worth $1,376 today
What US dollars from 1948 are worth in 2026 money, adjusted for inflation with the official price index from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
1948 money in 2026 money
- Prices since
- +1275.6%
- Per year
- +3.42% compounded
- Multiplier
- ×13.756
| In 1948 | Worth in 2026 |
|---|---|
| $1 | $13.76 |
| $5 | $68.78 |
| $10 | $138 |
| $20 | $275 |
| $50 | $688 |
| $100 | $1,376 |
| $1,000 | $13,756 |
| $10,000 | $137,561 |
US Bureau of Labor Statistics — CPI-U, US city average, all items, not seasonally adjusted, 1982-84 = 100. Retrieved 2026-08-06. 2026 figures are the January–June average so far and will shift slightly as the year completes. Open in the calculator to compare any two years.
Inflation in 1948
Prices in the US rose 7.7% during 1948 — a higher rate than most years in this series, 15th highest of 112. Across the 1940s, prices rose an average of 5.6% a year, peaking at 14.4% in 1947.
| Year | Rate | Bar |
|---|---|---|
| 1940 | +0.7% | |
| 1941 | +5.1% | |
| 1942 | +10.9% | |
| 1943 | +6.0% | |
| 1944 | +1.6% | |
| 1945 | +2.3% | |
| 1946 | +8.5% | |
| 1947 | +14.4% | |
| 1948 | +7.7% | |
| 1949 | −1.0% |
How far the US dollar has fallen since 1948
An US dollar in 2026 buys about 7.3% of what one bought in 1948, a loss of 92.7% of its buying power. Prices had doubled from their 1948 level by 1974, 26 years later. Read the other way, here is what today's money would have been in 1948:
| In 2026 | Same as, in 1948 |
|---|---|
| $10 | $0.73 |
| $20 | $1.45 |
| $50 | $3.63 |
| $100 | $7.27 |
| $1,000 | $72.70 |
| $10,000 | $727 |
What these numbers can and cannot tell you
The figures compare the price index in 1948 with 2026: the cost of the same broad basket of goods and services, averaged across each year. That is the right measure for "what would this amount be in today's money" — a wage, a price, an inheritance. It is not a measure of what any particular thing cost: housing, education, and healthcare have mostly risen faster than the average, while electronics and clothing have risen far slower or fallen. And it says nothing about exchange rates, so it cannot turn 1948 US dollars into another currency.
Common questions
How much is $100 from 1948 worth today?
$100 in 1948 is worth about $1,376 in 2026 money, adjusted with the official price index published by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Prices have risen 1,275.6% over that span, an average of 3.42% a year compounded. 2026 figures are the January–June average so far and will shift slightly as the year completes.
What was the inflation rate in 1948?
Prices in the US rose 7.7% during 1948 — a higher rate than most years in this series, 15th highest of 112. That is the change in the annual average of the index from 1947 to 1948, which is the basis statistics agencies use for long-run comparison; a news headline quoting a twelve-month change at a particular point in 1948 may differ.
How much buying power has the US dollar lost since 1948?
About 92.7%. Put the other way round, $100 in 2026 would have bought what $7.27 bought in 1948. Prices had doubled from their 1948 level by 1974, 26 years later.
1948 in other countries: United Kingdom , Canada , Australia .