According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for apparel are 524.55% higher in 2026 versus 1935 (a $4,720,981,488,337.65 difference in value).
Between 1935 and 2026: Apparel experienced an average inflation rate of 2.03% per year. This rate of change indicates significant inflation. In other words, apparel costing $900,000,000,000 in the year 1935 would cost $5,620,981,488,337.65 in 2026 for an equivalent purchase. Compared to the overall inflation rate of 3.54% during this same period, inflation for apparel was lower.
In the year 1935: Pricing changed by 1.49%, which is below the average yearly change for apparel during the 1935-2026 time period. Compared to inflation for all items in 1935 (2.55%), inflation for apparel was lower.
Below are calculations of equivalent buying power for Apparel, over time, for $900,000,000,000 beginning in 1935. Each of the amounts below is equivalent in terms of what it could buy at the time:
| Year | USD Value | Inflation Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 1935 | $900,000,000,000.00 | 1.49% |
| 1936 | $910,024,065,161.05 | 1.11% |
| 1937 | $951,897,445,390.60 | 4.60% |
| 1938 | $952,258,422,806.37 | 0.04% |
| 1939 | $936,736,393,928.17 | -1.63% |
| 1940 | $944,677,897,075.16 | 0.85% |
| 1941 | $988,356,164,383.56 | 4.62% |
| 1942 | $1,156,571,640,133.28 | 17.02% |
| 1943 | $1,206,747,500,925.58 | 4.34% |
| 1944 | $1,291,216,216,216.22 | 7.00% |
| 1945 | $1,357,636,060,718.25 | 5.14% |
| 1946 | $1,489,753,794,890.78 | 9.73% |
| 1947 | $1,726,554,979,637.17 | 15.90% |
| 1948 | $1,841,345,797,852.65 | 6.65% |
| 1949 | $1,768,789,337,282.49 | -3.94% |
| 1950 | $1,744,964,827,841.54 | -1.35% |
| 1951 | $1,902,711,958,533.88 | 9.04% |
| 1952 | $1,882,136,245,834.88 | -1.08% |
| 1953 | $1,870,223,991,114.40 | -0.63% |
| 1954 | $1,863,365,420,214.74 | -0.37% |
| 1955 | $1,857,589,781,562.38 | -0.31% |
| 1956 | $1,895,131,432,802.67 | 2.02% |
| 1957 | $1,927,619,400,222.14 | 1.71% |
| 1958 | $1,935,199,925,953.35 | 0.39% |
| 1959 | $1,950,360,977,415.77 | 0.78% |
| 1960 | $1,979,600,148,093.30 | 1.50% |
| 1961 | $1,995,122,176,971.49 | 0.78% |
| 1962 | $2,006,312,476,860.42 | 0.56% |
| 1963 | $2,030,858,941,132.91 | 1.22% |
| 1964 | $2,048,185,857,089.97 | 0.85% |
| 1965 | $2,067,678,637,541.65 | 0.95% |
| 1966 | $2,123,269,159,570.53 | 2.69% |
| 1967 | $2,209,903,739,355.79 | 4.08% |
| 1968 | $2,327,943,354,313.22 | 5.34% |
| 1969 | $2,461,865,975,564.61 | 5.75% |
| 1970 | $2,563,300,629,396.52 | 4.12% |
| 1971 | $2,646,325,435,024.07 | 3.24% |
| 1972 | $2,701,194,002,221.40 | 2.07% |
| 1973 | $2,800,101,814,142.91 | 3.66% |
| 1974 | $3,007,663,828,211.77 | 7.41% |
| 1975 | $3,141,586,449,463.16 | 4.45% |
| 1976 | $3,259,265,087,004.81 | 3.75% |
| 1977 | $3,405,099,962,976.68 | 4.47% |
| 1978 | $3,524,583,487,597.19 | 3.51% |
| 1979 | $3,679,081,821,547.58 | 4.38% |
| 1980 | $3,939,346,538,319.14 | 7.07% |
| 1981 | $4,127,054,794,520.55 | 4.76% |
| 1982 | $4,235,348,019,252.13 | 2.62% |
| 1983 | $4,340,031,469,825.99 | 2.47% |
| 1984 | $4,419,807,478,711.59 | 1.84% |
| 1985 | $4,549,398,370,973.71 | 2.93% |
| 1986 | $4,588,022,954,461.31 | 0.85% |
| 1987 | $4,789,809,329,877.82 | 4.40% |
| 1988 | $4,997,732,321,362.46 | 4.34% |
| 1989 | $5,136,708,626,434.65 | 2.78% |
| 1990 | $5,374,953,720,844.13 | 4.64% |
| 1991 | $5,575,296,186,597.56 | 3.73% |
| 1992 | $5,712,467,604,590.89 | 2.46% |
| 1993 | $5,789,716,771,566.09 | 1.35% |
| 1994 | $5,778,526,471,677.16 | -0.19% |
| 1995 | $5,716,077,378,748.61 | -1.08% |
| 1996 | $5,704,887,078,859.68 | -0.20% |
| 1997 | $5,754,701,962,236.21 | 0.87% |
| 1998 | $5,762,282,487,967.42 | 0.13% |
| 1999 | $5,687,199,185,486.86 | -1.30% |
| 2000 | $5,612,837,837,837.84 | -1.31% |
| 2001 | $5,512,847,093,669.01 | -1.78% |
| 2002 | $5,372,426,878,933.73 | -2.55% |
| 2003 | $5,235,977,415,771.94 | -2.54% |
| 2004 | $5,216,845,612,736.02 | -0.37% |
| 2005 | $5,178,221,029,248.43 | -0.74% |
| 2006 | $5,174,250,277,674.94 | -0.08% |
| 2007 | $5,154,681,691,965.94 | -0.38% |
| 2008 | $5,150,725,379,489.08 | -0.08% |
| 2009 | $5,201,460,755,275.82 | 0.99% |
| 2010 | $5,176,549,703,813.40 | -0.48% |
| 2011 | $5,289,503,146,982.60 | 2.18% |
| 2012 | $5,469,439,559,422.44 | 3.40% |
| 2013 | $5,519,113,661,606.81 | 0.91% |
| 2014 | $5,523,571,732,691.60 | 0.08% |
| 2015 | $5,453,755,090,707.15 | -1.26% |
| 2016 | $5,459,942,243,613.48 | 0.11% |
| 2017 | $5,441,171,417,993.34 | -0.34% |
| 2018 | $5,443,008,793,039.62 | 0.03% |
| 2019 | $5,373,582,006,664.20 | -1.28% |
| 2020 | $5,114,847,834,135.51 | -4.81% |
| 2021 | $5,241,074,416,882.64 | 2.47% |
| 2022 | $5,504,793,687,523.14 | 5.03% |
| 2023 | $5,656,313,957,793.41 | 2.75% |
| 2024 | $5,695,472,787,856.35 | 0.69% |
| 2025 | $5,716,783,581,838.38 | 0.37% |
| 2026 | $5,620,981,488,337.65 | -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 |