The complete historical CPI record.
Annual U.S. CPI-U index values back to 1913, the first year the Bureau of Labor Statistics began publishing the series. Year-over-year changes, the seven major inflation eras, and what the long record actually shows about the U.S. price level.
The Consumer Price Index is one of the longest continuous economic time series the U.S. government produces. Its 110-plus-year span lets us put any current inflation episode in context — the post-COVID surge, the disinflation that followed, the volatility of the 1970s, the long quiet stretch of the 1990s and 2000s.
The table below shows the annual average CPI-U index value and the resulting year-over-year inflation rate for every year since 1913. The reference base is 1982–84 = 100, the standard BLS base. Read the index value as a multiplier: 313 means the price level is 3.13× the early-1980s baseline.
U.S. CPI index, 1913 to today
FRED:FPCPITOTLZGUSA · U.S. CPI YoY (% change, SA, Monthly)
MonthlyYear-by-year CPI table
| Year | CPI-U Index (annual avg) | YoY change |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 313.689 | +2.9% |
| 2023 | 304.702 | +4.1% |
| 2022 | 292.655 | +8.0% |
| 2021 | 270.97 | +4.7% |
| 2020 | 258.811 | +1.2% |
| 2019 | 255.657 | +1.8% |
| 2018 | 251.107 | +2.4% |
| 2017 | 245.12 | +2.1% |
| 2016 | 240.007 | +1.3% |
| 2015 | 237.017 | +0.1% |
| 2014 | 236.736 | +1.6% |
| 2013 | 232.957 | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 229.594 | +2.1% |
| 2011 | 224.939 | +3.2% |
| 2010 | 218.056 | +1.6% |
| 2009 | 214.537 | -0.4% |
| 2008 | 215.303 | +3.8% |
| 2007 | 207.342 | +2.8% |
| 2006 | 201.6 | +3.2% |
| 2005 | 195.3 | +3.4% |
| 2004 | 188.9 | +2.7% |
| 2003 | 184.0 | +2.3% |
| 2002 | 179.9 | +1.6% |
| 2001 | 177.1 | +2.8% |
| 2000 | 172.2 | +3.4% |
| 1999 | 166.6 | +2.2% |
| 1998 | 163.0 | +1.6% |
| 1997 | 160.5 | +2.3% |
| 1996 | 156.9 | +3.0% |
| 1995 | 152.4 | +2.8% |
| 1994 | 148.2 | +2.6% |
| 1993 | 144.5 | +3.0% |
| 1992 | 140.3 | +3.0% |
| 1991 | 136.2 | +4.2% |
| 1990 | 130.7 | +5.4% |
| 1989 | 124.0 | +4.8% |
| 1988 | 118.3 | +4.1% |
| 1987 | 113.6 | +3.6% |
| 1986 | 109.6 | +1.9% |
| 1985 | 107.6 | +3.6% |
| 1984 | 103.9 | +4.3% |
| 1983 | 99.6 | +3.2% |
| 1982 | 96.5 | +6.2% |
| 1981 | 90.9 | +10.3% |
| 1980 | 82.4 | +13.5% |
| 1979 | 72.6 | +11.3% |
| 1978 | 65.2 | +7.6% |
| 1977 | 60.6 | +6.5% |
| 1976 | 56.9 | +5.8% |
| 1975 | 53.8 | +9.1% |
| 1974 | 49.3 | +11.0% |
| 1973 | 44.4 | +6.2% |
| 1972 | 41.8 | +3.2% |
| 1971 | 40.5 | +4.4% |
| 1970 | 38.8 | +5.7% |
| 1969 | 36.7 | +5.5% |
| 1968 | 34.8 | +4.2% |
| 1967 | 33.4 | +3.1% |
| 1966 | 32.4 | +2.9% |
| 1965 | 31.5 | +1.6% |
| 1964 | 31.0 | +1.3% |
| 1963 | 30.6 | +1.3% |
| 1962 | 30.2 | +1.0% |
| 1961 | 29.9 | +1.0% |
| 1960 | 29.6 | +1.7% |
| 1959 | 29.1 | +0.7% |
| 1958 | 28.9 | +2.8% |
| 1957 | 28.1 | +3.3% |
| 1956 | 27.2 | +1.5% |
| 1955 | 26.8 | -0.4% |
| 1954 | 26.9 | +0.7% |
| 1953 | 26.7 | +0.8% |
| 1952 | 26.5 | +1.9% |
| 1951 | 26.0 | +7.9% |
| 1950 | 24.1 | +1.3% |
| 1949 | 23.8 | -1.2% |
| 1948 | 24.1 | +8.1% |
| 1947 | 22.3 | +14.4% |
| 1946 | 19.5 | +8.3% |
| 1945 | 18.0 | +2.3% |
| 1944 | 17.6 | +1.7% |
| 1943 | 17.3 | +6.1% |
| 1942 | 16.3 | +10.9% |
| 1941 | 14.7 | +5.0% |
| 1940 | 14.0 | +0.7% |
| 1939 | 13.9 | -1.4% |
| 1938 | 14.1 | -2.1% |
| 1937 | 14.4 | +3.6% |
| 1936 | 13.9 | +1.5% |
| 1935 | 13.7 | +2.2% |
| 1934 | 13.4 | +3.1% |
| 1933 | 13.0 | -5.1% |
| 1932 | 13.7 | -9.9% |
| 1931 | 15.2 | -9.0% |
| 1930 | 16.7 | -2.3% |
| 1929 | 17.1 | +0.0% |
| 1928 | 17.1 | -1.7% |
| 1927 | 17.4 | -1.7% |
| 1926 | 17.7 | +1.1% |
| 1925 | 17.5 | +2.3% |
| 1924 | 17.1 | +0.0% |
| 1923 | 17.1 | +1.8% |
| 1922 | 16.8 | -6.1% |
| 1921 | 17.9 | -10.5% |
| 1920 | 20.0 | +15.6% |
| 1919 | 17.3 | +14.6% |
| 1918 | 15.1 | +18.0% |
| 1917 | 12.8 | +17.4% |
| 1916 | 10.9 | +7.9% |
| 1915 | 10.1 | +1.0% |
| 1914 | 10.0 | +1.0% |
| 1913 | 9.9 | — |
Annual averages. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Reference base 1982–84 = 100. Most recent years subject to small revisions.
Seven moments that shaped the U.S. price level
World War I and after
CPI roughly doubled in four years as wartime spending overwhelmed production capacity. The 1920 peak was followed by the sharp 1921 deflation, the deepest single-year price decline in modern U.S. history.
Great Depression deflation
The price level fell about 24% over four years as demand collapsed. Hoarding of cash, bank failures, and a contracting money supply produced the most sustained deflation since the 1870s.
Wartime & post-war surge
Price controls held official CPI down through World War II, but the immediate post-war removal of controls produced double-digit inflation in 1947. The Korean War lifted prices again in 1951.
The Great Inflation
Two oil shocks (1973, 1979) and persistently accommodative Fed policy pushed CPI above 13% by 1980. Volcker's rate hikes finally broke the back of inflation expectations, at the cost of a deep early-1980s recession.
The Great Moderation
CPI averaged about 3% per year with low volatility. Globalization, productivity gains, and credible Fed policy combined to produce the most stable inflation regime in the historical record.
Crisis and brief deflation
Oil collapsed from $147 to $35 in six months. CPI briefly went negative year-over-year in 2009 — the first negative annual print since 1955. Core inflation never followed and remained near 2%.
Post-COVID surge
CPI peaked at 9.1% in June 2022, the highest reading since 1981. A combination of fiscal stimulus, supply-chain disruptions, the Russia-Ukraine war, and post-pandemic demand normalization drove the spike. Disinflation through 2023 brought headline back below 4% by year-end, though core proved stickier.
What 110 years of CPI actually shows
Three observations dominate the long historical record. First, the U.S. price level has risen roughly 30-fold since 1913 — a dollar in that year has the purchasing power of about 3 cents today. The bulk of the rise occurred in two episodes: the World War II–through–1980s buildup and the post-COVID burst.
Second, deflation is rare. Outside the Depression and a handful of brief episodes, the U.S. price level has only moved one direction. The structural shift from a gold-anchored system to a fiat regime in 1971 effectively eliminated the prospect of sustained deflation in normal times.
Third, inflation regimes are persistent. The 1970s inflation didn't appear and disappear in a year — it built over a decade and required another decade to break. The post-2021 episode followed a similar arc on a compressed timeline. Inflation expectations, once they become embedded, are slow to reverse, which is why central banks treat anchoring expectations as their core function.
For analytical tools that put any historical period in today's-dollar terms, see our inflation calculator and purchasing power tool.
Frequently asked questions
How far back does U.S. CPI data go?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics began calculating CPI in 1913. Quarterly data is available from that year and monthly data from 1947. Some pre-1913 estimates exist from academic reconstructions but are not official.
What is the CPI base year?
The current reference base is 1982 to 1984, where the average index equals 100. A reading of 313 means urban consumer prices have risen by 213% since the early 1980s on average.
Has CPI ever fallen year-over-year?
Yes, several times. The deflations of 1921 and 1932 were the deepest, around -10% in each case. CPI also briefly fell in 1949, 1955, 2009 (post-financial-crisis), and 2015 (oil-led).
Has CPI methodology changed?
Yes. Major revisions include rental equivalence replacing mortgage costs (1983), introduction of the geometric mean formula at the lower level (1999), expanded hedonic adjustment, and the move to annual reweighting in 2023.
What was the highest annual CPI inflation rate?
The peak year-over-year change in modern data was 13.5% in 1980, during the second oil shock. Annual averages above 10% occurred in 1942 (wartime), 1947 (post-war), 1974, 1979, and 1980.
Can I download the historical data?
Yes. BLS offers full historical CPI series on its website at bls.gov/cpi. Annual and monthly index values, all standard derivatives, and unrevised vintages are freely available.