$1 in 2017 is worth $1.38 today
A dollar in January 2017 had the same buying power as $1.38 in Aug 2026. Prices have risen 38% since then. Change the amount or the months below.
US CPI data through Aug 2026, updated monthly. How we calculate$1 in Jan 2017 is worth, in Aug 2026
Prices rose 37.9% in total, about 3.41% a year. Cash kept under the mattress since Jan 2017 now buys only 72% 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 2017 is worth now
Prices in the US have risen 38% since 2017, so it takes $1.38 today to buy what $1 bought then. Put the other way, $1 kept in cash since 2017 now buys only 72% of what it did.
That is an average of 3.4% a year over 10 years. Inflation was mostly moderate, around 2% to 3% a year, until the jump of 2021 and 2022.
For contrast, $1 put into the S&P 500 in January 2017, with dividends reinvested, would be worth about $3.92 today, 2.8× what inflation alone requires. Cash loses buying power; invested money has historically outgrown it.
| Year | Same buying power |
|---|---|
| 2017 | $1.00 |
| 2020 | $1.06 |
| Aug 2026 | $1.38 |
CPI in January of each year; the last row uses the latest month.
Other years
Common questions
How much is $1 from 2017 worth today?
About $1.38 in Aug 2026 dollars, based on the US Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) from January 2017.
How much have prices gone up since 2017?
38% in total, or about 3.4% a year on average.
What would $1 in 2017 buy today?
It buys about 72% of what it bought in 2017. You would need $1.38 to buy the same things.
How is this calculated?
Today's value = $1 × (latest CPI ÷ CPI in January 2017). 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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