Political Science

This site provides Inflation Conversion Factors for dollars of years 1774 to estimated 2028, based in dollars of recent years. 

Included on these pages are Consumer Price Index (CPI) conversion factors to determine the value of dollars of 1774 to estimated 2028 in dollars of estimated 2018 and final 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000, 1999, 1998, 1997, 1996, 1995, CPI (1982-84), and three special CPI measures, CPI-U-X1 (starting 1950), CPI-U-RS (starting 1947), and "chain-weighted" CPI for recent years.

by Robert Sahr  

Inflation conversion factor tables for 2017 have been revised to reflect final 2016 CPI (2.45120). Conversion factors in estimated dollars of 2018 have also been added. The tables have been revised to provide estimated inflation and price levels for 2018 through 2028, based on the average of inflation estimates by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in January 2018 and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) in May 2018.  In addition, revised tables for CPI for the CPI base period (1982-84) have been posted.  These pages are available in the "individual year section." 

This site was revised to August 14, 2018 (delayed partly because of changes in the University web structure).

Note that tables of conversion factors for individual years prior to 2017 have NOT been revised in the individual year section.  Use the Excel or pdf files discussed in the second bullet below to locate updated conversion factors for years prior to 2017.

• Inflation conversion factors for individual years in the individual year section
• A single file, available in both Excel and pdf formats, provides conversion factors for year 1774 to estimated 2028 in dollars of 1994 through estimated 2018 and for several alternate inflation measures, in the "download conversion factor tables" at the link at the bottom of this page.

• Comparison of Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and Congressional Budget Office (CBO) inflation estimates early in each calendar year with actual inflation for that year is shown for years 2002 to 2017 here.

• A brief introduction to US national government budget concepts, including data, links, and suggestions for understanding the budget, is available here.  It is best examined by using it with the set of graphs listed on this page.  Although the specific examples have not been revised for the most recent years, the illustrations should remain instructive.

Many people are unclear or misinformed about the composition of the national government budget. The best-known example is that nearly everyone vastly over-estimates foreign aid as percent of the national government budget.  The following tables show the composition of national government spending as percent of the budget and percent of the national economy (gross domestic product, GDP).  The following two items examine the composition of national government in specific years and also over time.  Note:  These have not been revised to reflect recent-year data but the illustrations should be useful even if the data are not current.

• one set of graphs in the graphs section.  The revised graphs show trends in inflation-adjusted price levels, national government outlays and revenues, gross domestic product, and the minimum wage.  Data are for all or part of years 1774 to 2012, though, for example, the minimum wage began in 1938.

• a second set of graphs, showing presidential and congressional pay, 1789-2012, also in the graphs section

• A graph showing comparison of yearly price changes using three inflation measures--the CPI-U, the CPI-U-RS (research series), and the "chained" CPI--is available here, though it has not been revised for the most recent budget years.  The "chained" CPI is included because of its recent political importance.

To ease understanding of the value of dollar figures over time, the materials on this page “re-base” the official CPI from its current base (1982-84 average = 1.000) to dollars of more recent years (for example, 2017 = 1.000).

All inflation conversion factors use year-to-year inflation, not December-to-December inflation. 

Final 2017 CPI is from Bureau of Labor Statistics, https://www.bls.gov/cpi/data.htm, "All Urban Consumers (Current Series)," January 2018.

INFLATION ASSUMPTIONS:  Inflation conversion factors for 2018 and later assume 2.05% inflation in 2018, 2.15% in 2019, 2.30% in 2020, 2.40% in 2021 and 2022, and 2.35% each year 2023 through 2028.  These are averages of OMB and CBO inflation estimates as of January (CBO) and May (OMB) 2018.

CAUTION:  These use CPI year to year average data rather than December to December.

Note also that these are calendar year CPI data. In the tables that use these data to calculate inflation-adjusted budget data, the difference between calendar year and federal budget year (October 1 to September 30 starting budget year 1976, July 1 to June 30 in earlier budget years) will slightly affect the results.  However, because these slight offsets are the same for all recent years, the effects probably will be minimal.

However, these differences suggest that inflation-adjusted budget and economic data from other sources (for example, the Bureau of Economic Analysis) might not match these data directly.