Inflation Rate between 1986-2024 | Inflation Calculator (2024)

Value of $800 from 1986 to 2024

$800 in 1986 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $2,297.78 today, an increase of $1,497.78 over 38 years. The dollar had an average inflation rate of 2.82% per year between 1986 and today, producing a cumulative price increase of 187.22%.

This means that today's prices are 2.87 times as high as average prices since 1986, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics consumer price index. A dollar today only buys 34.816% of what it could buy back then.

The inflation rate in 1986 was 1.86%. The current inflation rate compared to the end of last year is now 2.53%. If this number holds, $800 today will be equivalent in buying power to $820.25 next year. The current inflation rate page gives more detail on the latest inflation rates.

Contents

  1. Overview
  2. Buying Power of $800
  3. Inflation by City / Country
  4. Inflation by Spending Category
  5. Alternate Measurements
  6. Data Source

Inflation from 1986 to 2024
Cumulative price change187.22%
Average inflation rate2.82%
Converted amount
$800 base
$2,297.78
Price difference
$800 base
$1,497.78
CPI in 1986109.600
CPI in 2024314.796
Inflation in 19861.86%
Inflation in 20242.53%
$800 in 1986$2,297.78 in 2024

USD inflation since 1986

Annual Rate, the Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI

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Buying power of $800 in 1986

This chart shows a calculation of buying power equivalence for $800 in 1986 (price index tracking began in 1635).

For example, if you started with $800, you would need to end with $2,297.78 in order to "adjust" for inflation (sometimes refered to as "beating inflation").

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When $800 is equivalent to $2,297.78 over time, that means that the "real value" of a single U.S. dollar decreases over time. In other words, a dollar will pay for fewer items at the store.

This effect explains how inflation erodes the value of a dollar over time. By calculating the value in 1986 dollars, the chart below shows how $800 is worth less over 38 years.

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According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, each of these USD amounts below is equal in terms of what it could buy at the time:

Dollar inflation: 1986-2024
YearDollar ValueInflation Rate
1986$800.001.86%
1987$829.203.65%
1988$863.504.14%
1989$905.114.82%
1990$954.015.40%
1991$994.164.21%
1992$1,024.093.01%
1993$1,054.742.99%
1994$1,081.752.56%
1995$1,112.412.83%
1996$1,145.262.95%
1997$1,171.532.29%
1998$1,189.781.56%
1999$1,216.062.21%
2000$1,256.933.36%
2001$1,292.702.85%
2002$1,313.141.58%
2003$1,343.072.28%
2004$1,378.832.66%
2005$1,425.553.39%
2006$1,471.533.23%
2007$1,513.452.85%
2008$1,571.553.84%
2009$1,565.96-0.36%
2010$1,591.651.64%
2011$1,641.893.16%
2012$1,675.872.07%
2013$1,700.421.46%
2014$1,728.001.62%
2015$1,730.050.12%
2016$1,751.881.26%
2017$1,789.202.13%
2018$1,833.802.49%
2019$1,866.111.76%
2020$1,889.141.23%
2021$1,977.884.70%
2022$2,136.178.00%
2023$2,224.104.12%
2024$2,297.783.31%*

* Compared to previous annual rate. Not final. See inflation summary for latest 12-month trailing value.

Click to show 32 more rows

This conversion table shows various other 1986 amounts in today's dollars, based on the 187.22% change in prices:

Conversion: 1986 dollars today
Initial valueEquivalent value
$1 dollar in 1986$2.87 dollars today
$5 dollars in 1986$14.36 dollars today
$10 dollars in 1986$28.72 dollars today
$50 dollars in 1986$143.61 dollars today
$100 dollars in 1986$287.22 dollars today
$500 dollars in 1986$1,436.11 dollars today
$1,000 dollars in 1986$2,872.23 dollars today
$5,000 dollars in 1986$14,361.13 dollars today
$10,000 dollars in 1986$28,722.26 dollars today
$50,000 dollars in 1986$143,611.31 dollars today
$100,000 dollars in 1986$287,222.63 dollars today
$500,000 dollars in 1986$1,436,113.14 dollars today
$1,000,000 dollars in 1986$2,872,226.28 dollars today

Inflation by City

Inflation can vary widely by city, even within the United States. Here's how some cities fared in 1986 to 2024 (figures shown are purchasing power equivalents of $800):

  • San Diego, California: 3.66% average rate, $800 → $3,026.24, cumulative change of 278.28%
  • Seattle, Washington: 3.19% average rate, $800 → $2,639.22, cumulative change of 229.90%
  • Miami-Fort Lauderdale, Florida: 3.12% average rate, $800 → $2,567.32, cumulative change of 220.91%
  • San Francisco, California: 3.04% average rate, $800 → $2,495.48, cumulative change of 211.94%
  • Denver, Colorado: 2.98% average rate, $800 → $2,374.79, cumulative change of 196.85%
  • Boston, Massachusetts: 2.92% average rate, $800 → $2,389.19, cumulative change of 198.65%
  • New York: 2.90% average rate, $800 → $2,366.78, cumulative change of 195.85%
  • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: 2.75% average rate, $800 → $2,243.33, cumulative change of 180.42%
  • Minneapolis-St Paul, Minnesota: 2.72% average rate, $800 → $2,160.30, cumulative change of 170.04%
  • Atlanta, Georgia: 2.72% average rate, $800 → $2,218.99, cumulative change of 177.37%
  • Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas: 2.67% average rate, $800 → $2,175.59, cumulative change of 171.95%
  • Detroit, Michigan: 2.63% average rate, $800 → $2,146.44, cumulative change of 168.30%
  • Chicago, Illinois: 2.59% average rate, $800 → $2,115.51, cumulative change of 164.44%
  • Houston, Texas: 2.58% average rate, $800 → $2,105.33, cumulative change of 163.17%
  • St Louis, Missouri: 2.55% average rate, $800 → $2,081.93, cumulative change of 160.24%

San Diego, California experienced the highest rate of inflation during the 38 years between 1986 and 2024 (3.66%).

St Louis, Missouri experienced the lowest rate of inflation during the 38 years between 1986 and 2024 (2.55%).

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 £800.00 in 1986 would be equivalent to £2,937.83 in 2024, an absolute change of £2,137.83 and a cumulative change of 267.23%.

In Canada, CA$800.00 in 1986 would be equivalent to CA$1,936.09 in 2024, an absolute change of CA$1,136.09 and a cumulative change of 142.01%.

Compare these numbers to the US's overall absolute change of $1,497.78 and total percent change of 187.22%.

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.

Between 1986 and 2024:

  • Gas prices increased from $1.19 per gallon to $3.52
  • Bread prices increased from $0.57 per loaf to $1.95
  • Egg prices increased from $0.90 per carton to $3.20
  • Chicken prices increased from $0.77 per per 1 lb of whole chicken to $1.99
  • Electricity prices increased from $0.08 per KwH to $0.18

This chart shows the average rate of inflation for select CPI categories between 1986 and 2024.

Compare these values to the overall average of 2.82% per year:

CategoryAvg Inflation (%)Total Inflation (%)$800 in 1986 → 2024
Food and beverages2.93199.282,394.23
Housing2.93199.632,397.06
Apparel0.5724.18993.42
Transportation2.60165.462,123.67
Medical care4.10360.313,682.44
Recreation1.3767.511,340.06
Education and communication1.7492.751,542.02
Other goods and services4.09358.283,666.27

The graph below compares inflation in categories of goods over time. Click on a category such as "Food" to toggle it on or off:

For all these visualizations, it's important to note that not all categories may have been tracked since 1986. This table and charts use the earliest available data for each category.

Inflation rates of specific categories

Medical Care · Housing · Rent · Food · More

Inflation-adjusted measures

· · Shiller P/E

How to calculate inflation rate for $800 since 1986

Our calculations use the following inflation rate formula to calculate the change in value between 1986 and today:

CPI today CPI in 1986

×

1986 USD value

=

Today's value

Then plug in historical CPI values. The U.S. CPI was 109.6 in the year 1986 and 314.796 in 2024:

314.796109.6

×

$800

=

$2,297.78

$800 in 1986 has the same "purchasing power" or "buying power" as $2,297.78 in 2024.

To get the total inflation rate for the 38 years between 1986 and 2024, we use the following formula:

CPI in 2024 - CPI in 1986CPI in 1986

×

100

=

Cumulative inflation rate (38 years)

Plugging in the values to this equation, we get:

314.796 - 109.6109.6

×

100

=

187%

Alternate Measurements of Inflation

There are multiple ways to measure inflation. Published rates of inflation will vary depending on methodology. The Consumer Price Index, used above, is the most common standard used globally.

Alternative measurements are sometimes used based on context and economic/political circ*mstances. Below are a few examples of alternative measurements.

Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Inflation

The PCE Price Index is the U.S. Federal Reserve's preferred measure of inflation, compiled by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. It measures the change in prices of goods and services purchased by consumers.

The PCE Price Index changed by 2.33% per year on average between 1986 and 2024. The total PCE inflation between these dates was 139.84%. In 1986, PCE inflation was 2.18%.

This means that the PCE Index equates $800 in 1986 with $1,918.70 in 2024, a difference of $1,118.70. Compare this to the standard CPI measurement, which equates $800 with $2,297.78. The PCE measured -47.39% inflation compared to standard CPI.

For more information on the difference between PCE and CPI, see this analysis provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Core Inflation

Also of note is the Core CPI, which uses the standard CPI but omits the more volatile categories of food and energy.

Core inflation averaged 2.74% per year between 1986 and 2024 (vs all-CPI inflation of 2.82%), for an inflation total of 179.79%. In 1986, core inflation was 4.04%.

When using the core inflation measurement, $800 in 1986 is equivalent in buying power to $2,238.29 in 2024, a difference of $1,438.29. Recall that the converted amount is $2,297.78 when all items including food and energy are measured.

Comparison to S&P 500 Index

The average inflation rate of 2.82% has a compounding effect between 1986 and 2024. As noted above, this yearly inflation rate compounds to produce an overall price difference of 187.22% over 38 years.

To help put this inflation into perspective, if we had invested $800 in the S&P 500 index in 1986, our investment would be nominally worth approximately $47,908.81 in 2024. This is a return on investment of 5,888.60%, with an absolute return of $47,108.81 on top of the original $800.

These numbers are not inflation adjusted, so they are considered nominal. In order to evaluate the real return on our investment, we must calculate the return with inflation taken into account.

The compounding effect of inflation would account for 65.18% of returns ($31,228.79) during this period. This means the inflation-adjusted real return of our $800 investment is $15,880.03. You may also want to account for capital gains tax, which would take your real return down to around $13,498 for most people.

Investment in S&P 500 Index, 1986-2024
Original AmountFinal AmountChange
Nominal$800$47,908.815,888.60%
Real
Inflation Adjusted
$800$16,680.031,985.00%

Information displayed above may differ slightly from other S&P 500 calculators. Minor discrepancies can occur because we use the latest CPI data for inflation, annualized inflation numbers for previous years, and we compute S&P price and dividends from January of 1986 to latest available data for 2024 using average monthly close price.

For more details on the S&P 500 between 1986 and 2024, see the stock market returns calculator.

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.

You may use the following MLA citation for this page: “$800 in 1986 → 2024 | Inflation Calculator.” Official Inflation Data, Alioth Finance, 12 Sep. 2024, https://www.officialdata.org/us/inflation/1986?amount=800.

Special thanks to QuickChart for their chart image API, which is used for chart downloads.

in2013dollars.com is a reference website maintained by the Official Data Foundation.

Inflation Rate between 1986-2024 | Inflation Calculator (1)

About the author

Ian Webster is an engineer and data expert based in San Mateo, California. He has worked for Google, NASA, and consulted for governments around the world on data pipelines and data analysis. Disappointed by the lack of clear resources on the impacts of inflation on economic indicators, Ian believes this website serves as a valuable public tool. Ian earned his degree in Computer Science from Dartmouth College.

Email · LinkedIn · Twitter

» Read more about inflation and investment.

Other resources:

  • U.S. Economy
  • Canada Inflation
  • U.K. Inflation
  • Australia Inflation
  • Euro Inflation
  • Venezuela Inflation
Inflation Rate between 1986-2024 | Inflation Calculator (2024)
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