$

Value of 1970 US Dollars today

$85,000 in 1970
$691,596.78 in 2024

The inflation rate in the United States between 1970 and today has been 713.64%, which translates into a total increase of $606,596.78. This means that 85,000 dollars in 1970 are equivalent to 691,596.78 dollars in 2024. In other words, the purchasing power of $85,000 in 1970 equals $691,596.78 today. The average annual inflation rate between these periods has been 3.96%.

Inflation timeline in the United States (1970 - 2024)

The following chart depicts the equivalence of $85,000 due to compound inflation and CPI changes. All values are equivalent in terms of purchasing power, which means that for each year the same goods or services could be bought with the indicated amount of money.

All calculations are performed in the local currency (USD) and using 6 decimal digits. Results show only up to 2 decimal digits to favour readability. Inflation data is provided by governments and international institutions on a monthly basis. Today's values were extrapolated from the latest 12-month rolling average official data.

The following table contains relevant indicators:

Indicator Value
Cumulative inflation 1970-2023 684.81%
Cumulative inflation 1970-today 713.64%
Avg. Annual inflation 1970-2023 3.96%
CPI 1970 38.83
CPI 2023 304.7
CPI 2024-11 (latest official data) 315.49
CPI today 315.9

How to calculate today's value of money after inflation?

There are several ways to calculate the time value of money. Depending on the data available, results can be obtained by using the Consumer Price Index (CPI) formula or the compound interest formula.

Using the CPI formula

When we have both the start and end years, we can use the following formula:

Valuet =Value0 ×
CPIt/CPI0

To obtain the values equivalent in buying power between 1970 and 2023, use the corresponding CPI values:

Value2023
=Value1970 ×
CPI2023/CPI1970
=$ 85,000 ×
304.7/38.83
$667,086.53

To obtain the equivalent value today (present value), plug in the CPI for today, which is estimated as 315.9:

Valuetoday
=Value1970 ×
CPItoday/CPI1970
=$ 85,000 ×
315.9/38.83
$691,596.78

Alternative: Using the compound interest formula

Given that money changes with time as a result of an inflation rate that acts as compound interest, we can use the following formula: FV = PV × (1 + i)n, where:

  • FV: Future Value
  • PV: Present Value
  • i: Interest rate (inflation)
  • n: Number of times the interest is compounded (i.e. # of years)

In this case, the future value represents the final amount obtained after applying the inflation rate to our initial value. In other words, it indicates how much are $85,000 worth today. There are 53 years between 1970 and 2023 and the average inflation rate was 3.9638%. Therefore, we can resolve the formula like this:

Value2023
=PV × (1 + i)n
=$85,000 × (1 + 0.039638)53
$667,086.53

US inflation - Conversion table

Initial Value Equivalent value
$1 dollar in 1970 $7.85 dollars in 2023
$5 dollars in 1970 $39.24 dollars in 2023
$10 dollars in 1970 $78.48 dollars in 2023
$50 dollars in 1970 $392.4 dollars in 2023
$100 dollars in 1970 $784.81 dollars in 2023
$500 dollars in 1970 $3,924.04 dollars in 2023
$1,000 dollars in 1970 $7,848.08 dollars in 2023
$5,000 dollars in 1970 $39,240.38 dollars in 2023
$10,000 dollars in 1970 $78,480.77 dollars in 2023
$50,000 dollars in 1970 $392,403.84 dollars in 2023
$100,000 dollars in 1970 $784,807.68 dollars in 2023
$500,000 dollars in 1970 $3,924,038.42 dollars in 2023
$1,000,000 dollars in 1970 $7,848,076.84 dollars in 2023
Cumulative inflation From 1970 713.64%
Avg. annual inflation From 1970 3.96%
CPI 1970 38.83
CPI today 315.9

Value of Dollar over time (by year)

Period Value
1970 85,000
1971 88,648.85
1972 91,549.69
1973 97,205.41
1974 107,951.28
1975 117,821.42
1976 124,590.04
1977 132,690.49
1978 142,816.05
1979 158,889.25
1980 180,417.47
1981 199,063.1
1982 211,268.51
1983 218,055.38
1984 227,432.93
1985 235,496.89
1986 239,966.73
1987 248,760.46
1988 258,904.27
1989 271,401.59
1990 286,051.73
1991 298,165.92
1992 307,196.82
1993 316,264.22
1994 324,510.62
1995 333,614.51
1996 343,393.43
1997 351,420.91
1998 356,875.94
1999 364,684.48
2000 376,999.36
2001 387,654
2002 393,802.32
2003 402,742
2004 413,524.36
2005 427,554.2
2006 441,346.86
2007 453,937.04
2008 471,364.13
2009 469,688.22
2010 477,391.31
2011 492,461.79
2012 502,652.49
2013 510,015.51
2014 518,289.1
2015 518,903.93
2016 525,450.33
2017 536,643
2018 549,750.96
2019 559,713.6
2020 566,618.14
2021 593,237.06
2022 640,712.63
2023 667,086.53
2024-11 690,712.3
Today 691,596.78

All available years

Today's value of US dollars by year:

1913 | 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 |

Other currencies: