Inflation by City

Inflation can vary widely by city, even within the United States. Here's how some cities fared in 1940 to 1939 (figures shown are purchasing power equivalents of $100):

• New York: 1.03% average rate, $100 → $101.03, cumulative change of 1.03%
• Boston, Massachusetts: 0.94% average rate, $100 → $100.94, cumulative change of 0.94%
• Detroit, Michigan: 0.59% average rate, $100 → $100.59, cumulative change of 0.59%
• Chicago, Illinois: 0.55% average rate, $100 → $100.55, cumulative change of 0.55%
• Houston, Texas: 0.25% average rate, $100 → $100.25, cumulative change of 0.25%
• Seattle, Washington: 0.19% average rate, $100 → $100.19, cumulative change of 0.19%
• Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: 0.12% average rate, $100 → $100.12, cumulative change of 0.12%
• San Francisco, California: -0.20% average rate, $100 → $99.80, cumulative change of -0.20%
• Atlanta, Georgia: -0.31% average rate, $100 → $99.69, cumulative change of -0.31%

New York experienced the highest rate of inflation during the 1 years between 1939 and 1940 (1.03%).

Atlanta, Georgia experienced the lowest rate of inflation during the 1 years between 1939 and 1940 (-0.31%).

Note that some locations showing 0% inflation may have not yet reported latest data.

Inflation by Country

Inflation can also vary widely by country. For comparison, in the UK £100.00 in 1940 would be equivalent to £85.64 in 1939, an absolute change of £-14.36 and a cumulative change of -14.36%.

In Canada, CA$100.00 in 1940 would be equivalent to CA$95.92 in 1939, an absolute change of CA$-4.08 and a cumulative change of -4.08%.

Compare these numbers to the US's overall absolute change of $-0.71 and total percent change of -0.71%.

Inflation by Spending Category

CPI is the weighted combination of many categories of spending that are tracked by the government. Breaking down these categories helps explain the main drivers behind price changes.

This chart shows the average rate of inflation for select CPI categories between 1940 and 1939.

Compare these values to the overall average of 0.72% per year:

For all these visualizations, it's important to note that not all categories may have been tracked since 1940. This table and charts use the earliest available data for each category.

How to calculate inflation rate for $100, 1939 to 1940

Our calculations use the following inflation rate formula to calculate the change in value between 1939 and 1940:

Then plug in historical CPI values. The U.S. CPI was 14 in the year 1940 and 13.9 in 1939:

$100 in 1940 has the same "purchasing power" or "buying power" as $99.29 in 1939.

To get the total inflation rate for the 1 years between 1939 and 1940, we use the following formula:

Plugging in the values to this equation, we get:

Data source & citation

Raw data for these calculations comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer Price Index (CPI), established in 1913. Price index data from 1774 to 1912 is sourced from a historical study conducted by political science professor Robert Sahr at Oregon State University and from the American Antiquarian Society. Price index data from 1634 to 1773 is from the American Antiquarian Society, using British pound equivalents.

» Read more about inflation and investment.