$1 in 1960 is worth $11.43 today
A dollar in January 1960 had the same buying power as $11.43 in Aug 2026. Prices have risen 1043% since then. Change the amount or the months below.
US CPI data through Aug 2026, updated monthly. How we calculate$1 in Jan 1960 is worth, in Aug 2026
Prices rose 1043.3% in total, about 3.73% a year. Cash kept under the mattress since Jan 1960 now buys only 9% of what it used to.
US Consumer Price Index (CPI-U, all items, not seasonally adjusted), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Data through Aug 2026. Oct 2025 was not published and is estimated from the months around it.
What $1 from 1960 is worth now
Prices in the US have risen 1043% since 1960, so it takes $11.43 today to buy what $1 bought then. Put the other way, $1 kept in cash since 1960 now buys only 8.7% of what it did.
That is an average of 3.7% a year over 67 years. Inflation was mostly low in the 1950s and early 1960s, before speeding up later in the decade.
For contrast, $1 put into the S&P 500 in January 1960, with dividends reinvested, would be worth about $839 today, 73× what inflation alone requires. Cash loses buying power; invested money has historically outgrown it.
| Year | Same buying power |
|---|---|
| 1960 | $1.00 |
| 1970 | $1.29 |
| 1980 | $2.66 |
| 1990 | $4.35 |
| 2000 | $5.76 |
| 2010 | $7.40 |
| 2020 | $8.80 |
| Aug 2026 | $11.43 |
CPI in January of each year; the last row uses the latest month.
Other years
Common questions
How much is $1 from 1960 worth today?
About $11.43 in Aug 2026 dollars, based on the US Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) from January 1960.
How much have prices gone up since 1960?
1043% in total, or about 3.7% a year on average.
What would $1 in 1960 buy today?
It buys about 8.7% of what it bought in 1960. You would need $11.43 to buy the same things.
How is this calculated?
Today's value = $1 × (latest CPI ÷ CPI in January 1960). CPI is the Bureau of Labor Statistics measure of the prices US households pay.
Based on the US Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), all items, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Individual prices, such as homes, college or healthcare, rose faster or slower than the average.
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