$100 in 1949 is worth $1,389 today
What US dollars from 1949 are worth in 2026 money, adjusted for inflation with the official price index from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
1949 money in 2026 money
- Prices since
- +1289.1%
- Per year
- +3.48% compounded
- Multiplier
- ×13.891
| In 1949 | Worth in 2026 |
|---|---|
| $1 | $13.89 |
| $5 | $69.46 |
| $10 | $139 |
| $20 | $278 |
| $50 | $695 |
| $100 | $1,389 |
| $1,000 | $13,891 |
| $10,000 | $138,913 |
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 1949
Prices in the US fell 1.0% during 1949 — deflation, which this series records in 13 of its 112 years. 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 1949
An US dollar in 2026 buys about 7.2% of what one bought in 1949, a loss of 92.8% of its buying power. Prices had doubled from their 1949 level by 1974, 25 years later. Read the other way, here is what today's money would have been in 1949:
| In 2026 | Same as, in 1949 |
|---|---|
| $10 | $0.72 |
| $20 | $1.44 |
| $50 | $3.60 |
| $100 | $7.20 |
| $1,000 | $71.99 |
| $10,000 | $720 |
What these numbers can and cannot tell you
The figures compare the price index in 1949 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 1949 US dollars into another currency.
Common questions
How much is $100 from 1949 worth today?
$100 in 1949 is worth about $1,389 in 2026 money, adjusted with the official price index published by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Prices have risen 1,289.1% over that span, an average of 3.48% 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 1949?
Prices in the US fell 1.0% during 1949 — deflation, which this series records in 13 of its 112 years. That is the change in the annual average of the index from 1948 to 1949, which is the basis statistics agencies use for long-run comparison; a news headline quoting a twelve-month change at a particular point in 1949 may differ.
How much buying power has the US dollar lost since 1949?
About 92.8%. Put the other way round, $100 in 2026 would have bought what $7.20 bought in 1949. Prices had doubled from their 1949 level by 1974, 25 years later.
1949 in other countries: United Kingdom , Canada , Australia .