According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for apparel are 430.55% higher in 2026 versus 1930 (a $65,025,111,422.15 difference in value).
Between 1930 and 2026: Apparel experienced an average inflation rate of 1.75% per year. In other words, apparel costing $15,102,900,000 in the year 1930 would cost $80,128,011,422.15 in 2026 for an equivalent purchase. Compared to the overall inflation rate of 3.14% during this same period, inflation for apparel was lower.
In the year 1930: Pricing changed by -1.28%, which is significantly below the average yearly change for apparel during the 1930-2026 time period. Compared to inflation for all items in 1930 (-2.67%), inflation for apparel was higher.
Below are calculations of equivalent buying power for Apparel, over time, for $15,102,900,000 beginning in 1930. Each of the amounts below is equivalent in terms of what it could buy at the time:
| Year | USD Value | Inflation Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 1930 | $15,102,900,000.00 | -1.28% |
| 1931 | $13,960,534,139.69 | -7.56% |
| 1932 | $12,277,860,102.21 | -12.05% |
| 1933 | $11,444,241,771.72 | -6.79% |
| 1934 | $12,641,807,947.96 | 10.46% |
| 1935 | $12,829,647,354.21 | 1.49% |
| 1936 | $12,972,542,044.29 | 1.11% |
| 1937 | $13,569,453,935.26 | 4.60% |
| 1938 | $13,574,599,727.43 | 0.04% |
| 1939 | $13,353,330,664.40 | -1.63% |
| 1940 | $13,466,538,091.99 | 0.85% |
| 1941 | $14,089,178,943.78 | 4.62% |
| 1942 | $16,487,118,091.99 | 17.02% |
| 1943 | $17,202,383,202.73 | 4.34% |
| 1944 | $18,406,498,568.99 | 7.00% |
| 1945 | $19,353,324,327.09 | 5.14% |
| 1946 | $21,236,684,258.94 | 9.73% |
| 1947 | $24,612,323,918.23 | 15.90% |
| 1948 | $26,248,685,826.24 | 6.65% |
| 1949 | $25,214,381,601.36 | -3.94% |
| 1950 | $24,874,759,318.57 | -1.35% |
| 1951 | $27,123,470,494.04 | 9.04% |
| 1952 | $26,830,160,340.72 | -1.08% |
| 1953 | $26,660,349,199.32 | -0.63% |
| 1954 | $26,562,579,148.21 | -0.37% |
| 1955 | $26,480,246,473.59 | -0.31% |
| 1956 | $27,015,408,858.60 | 2.02% |
| 1957 | $27,478,530,153.32 | 1.71% |
| 1958 | $27,586,591,788.76 | 0.39% |
| 1959 | $27,802,715,059.63 | 0.78% |
| 1960 | $28,219,524,224.87 | 1.50% |
| 1961 | $28,440,793,287.90 | 0.78% |
| 1962 | $28,600,312,844.97 | 0.56% |
| 1963 | $28,950,226,712.10 | 1.22% |
| 1964 | $29,197,224,735.95 | 0.85% |
| 1965 | $29,475,097,512.78 | 0.95% |
| 1966 | $30,267,549,505.96 | 2.69% |
| 1967 | $31,502,539,625.21 | 4.08% |
| 1968 | $33,185,213,662.69 | 5.34% |
| 1969 | $35,094,302,555.37 | 5.75% |
| 1970 | $36,540,270,153.32 | 4.12% |
| 1971 | $37,723,802,350.94 | 3.24% |
| 1972 | $38,505,962,759.80 | 2.07% |
| 1973 | $39,915,909,812.61 | 3.66% |
| 1974 | $42,874,740,306.64 | 7.41% |
| 1975 | $44,783,829,199.32 | 4.45% |
| 1976 | $46,461,357,444.63 | 3.75% |
| 1977 | $48,540,257,478.71 | 4.47% |
| 1978 | $50,243,514,684.84 | 3.51% |
| 1979 | $52,445,913,730.83 | 4.38% |
| 1980 | $56,156,029,880.75 | 7.07% |
| 1981 | $58,831,841,805.79 | 4.76% |
| 1982 | $60,375,579,454.86 | 2.62% |
| 1983 | $61,867,859,182.28 | 2.47% |
| 1984 | $63,005,079,250.43 | 1.84% |
| 1985 | $64,852,418,637.14 | 2.93% |
| 1986 | $65,403,018,398.64 | 0.85% |
| 1987 | $68,279,516,218.06 | 4.40% |
| 1988 | $71,243,492,504.26 | 4.34% |
| 1989 | $73,224,622,487.22 | 2.78% |
| 1990 | $76,620,845,315.16 | 4.64% |
| 1991 | $79,476,759,965.93 | 3.73% |
| 1992 | $81,432,160,988.07 | 2.46% |
| 1993 | $82,533,360,511.07 | 1.35% |
| 1994 | $82,373,840,954.00 | -0.19% |
| 1995 | $81,483,618,909.71 | -1.08% |
| 1996 | $81,324,099,352.64 | -0.20% |
| 1997 | $82,034,218,671.21 | 0.87% |
| 1998 | $82,142,280,306.64 | 0.13% |
| 1999 | $81,071,955,536.63 | -1.30% |
| 2000 | $80,011,922,350.94 | -1.31% |
| 2001 | $78,586,537,921.64 | -1.78% |
| 2002 | $76,584,824,770.02 | -2.55% |
| 2003 | $74,639,715,332.20 | -2.54% |
| 2004 | $74,366,988,347.53 | -0.37% |
| 2005 | $73,816,388,586.03 | -0.74% |
| 2006 | $73,759,784,872.23 | -0.08% |
| 2007 | $73,480,831,479.05 | -0.38% |
| 2008 | $73,424,433,596.93 | -0.08% |
| 2009 | $74,147,674,685.52 | 0.99% |
| 2010 | $73,792,563,568.31 | -0.48% |
| 2011 | $75,402,733,394.21 | 2.18% |
| 2012 | $77,967,756,413.97 | 3.40% |
| 2013 | $78,675,868,873.59 | 0.91% |
| 2014 | $78,739,419,406.81 | 0.08% |
| 2015 | $77,744,171,744.46 | -1.26% |
| 2016 | $77,832,370,622.15 | 0.11% |
| 2017 | $77,564,789,429.64 | -0.34% |
| 2018 | $77,590,981,511.75 | 0.03% |
| 2019 | $76,601,291,304.94 | -1.28% |
| 2020 | $72,912,993,313.80 | -4.81% |
| 2021 | $74,712,373,917.55 | 2.47% |
| 2022 | $78,471,735,298.47 | 5.03% |
| 2023 | $80,631,681,559.11 | 2.75% |
| 2024 | $81,189,897,093.02 | 0.69% |
| 2025 | $81,493,685,950.38 | 0.37% |
| 2026 | $80,128,011,422.15 | -1.68%* |
* Not final. See inflation summary for latest details.
** Extended periods of 0% inflation usually indicate incomplete underlying data. This can manifest as a sharp increase in inflation later on.
Raw Consumer Price Index data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics for Apparel:
| Year | 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 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
| CPI | 15.000 | 15.050 | 15.792 | 18.258 | 23.000 | 34.000 | 43.608 | 34.883 | 27.158 | 27.000 | 26.883 | 26.383 | 26.008 | 25.500 | 25.033 | 24.775 | 24.458 | 22.608 | 19.883 | 18.533 | 20.473 | 20.777 | 21.008 | 21.975 | 21.983 | 21.625 | 21.808 | 22.817 | 26.700 | 27.858 | 29.808 | 31.342 | 34.392 | 39.858 | 42.508 | 40.833 | 40.283 | 43.925 | 43.450 | 43.175 | 43.017 | 42.883 | 43.750 | 44.500 | 44.675 | 45.025 | 45.700 | 46.058 | 46.317 | 46.883 | 47.283 | 47.733 | 49.017 | 51.017 | 53.742 | 56.833 | 59.175 | 61.092 | 62.358 | 64.642 | 69.433 | 72.525 | 75.242 | 78.608 | 81.367 | 84.933 | 90.942 | 95.275 | 97.775 | 100.192 | 102.033 | 105.025 | 105.917 | 110.575 | 115.375 | 118.583 | 124.083 | 128.708 | 131.875 | 133.658 | 133.400 | 131.958 | 131.700 | 132.850 | 133.025 | 131.292 | 129.575 | 127.267 | 124.025 | 120.875 | 120.433 | 119.542 | 119.450 | 118.998 | 118.907 | 120.078 | 119.503 | 122.111 | 126.265 | 127.411 | 127.514 | 125.902 | 126.045 | 125.612 | 125.654 | 124.052 | 118.079 | 120.993 | 127.081 | 130.579 | 131.483 | 131.975 | 129.763 |