$2.38 in 1978 is worth $9.89 in 2021

Buying power of $2.38 in 1978

This chart shows a calculation of buying power equivalence for $2.38 in 1978 (price index tracking began in 1635).

For example, if you started with $2.38, you would need to end with $9.89 in order to "adjust" for inflation (sometimes refered to as "beating inflation").

When $2.38 is equivalent to $9.89 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 1978 dollars, the chart below shows how $2.38 is worth less over 43 years.

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:

This conversion table shows various other 1978 amounts in 2021 dollars, based on the 315.60% change in prices:

Inflation by City

Inflation can vary widely by city, even within the United States. Here's how some cities fared in 1978 to 2021 (figures shown are purchasing power equivalents of $2.38):

• San Francisco, California: 3.73% average rate, $2.38 → $11.49, cumulative change of 382.62%
• Seattle, Washington: 3.63% average rate, $2.38 → $11.03, cumulative change of 363.61%
• Boston, Massachusetts: 3.52% average rate, $2.38 → $10.52, cumulative change of 342.18%
• Miami-Fort Lauderdale, Florida: 3.50% average rate, $2.38 → $10.44, cumulative change of 338.67%
• New York: 3.45% average rate, $2.38 → $10.25, cumulative change of 330.81%
• Atlanta, Georgia: 3.34% average rate, $2.38 → $9.76, cumulative change of 309.95%
• Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas: 3.32% average rate, $2.38 → $9.70, cumulative change of 307.63%
• Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: 3.28% average rate, $2.38 → $9.52, cumulative change of 299.87%
• Chicago, Illinois: 3.26% average rate, $2.38 → $9.47, cumulative change of 298.06%
• Detroit, Michigan: 3.15% average rate, $2.38 → $9.02, cumulative change of 278.93%
• Houston, Texas: 3.09% average rate, $2.38 → $8.80, cumulative change of 269.74%

San Francisco, California experienced the highest rate of inflation during the 43 years between 1978 and 2021 (3.73%).

Houston, Texas experienced the lowest rate of inflation during the 43 years between 1978 and 2021 (3.09%).

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 £2.38 in 1978 would be equivalent to £14.26 in 2021, an absolute change of £11.88 and a cumulative change of 498.98%.

In Canada, CA$2.38 in 1978 would be equivalent to CA$9.20 in 2021, an absolute change of CA$6.82 and a cumulative change of 286.56%.

Compare these numbers to the US's overall absolute change of $7.51 and total percent change of 315.60%.

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 1978 and 2021:

• Gas prices increased from $0.65 per gallon to $2.33
• Electricity prices increased from $0.05 per KwH to $0.14

This chart shows the average rate of inflation for select CPI categories between 1978 and 2021.

Compare these values to the overall average of 3.37% per year:

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 1978. This table and charts use the earliest available data for each category.

How to calculate inflation rate for $2.38, 1978 to 2021

Our calculations use the following inflation rate formula to calculate the change in value between 1978 and 2021:

Then plug in historical CPI values. The U.S. CPI was 65.2 in the year 1978 and 270.97016666667 in 2021:

$2.38 in 1978 has the same "purchasing power" or "buying power" as $9.89 in 2021.

To get the total inflation rate for the 43 years between 1978 and 2021, we use the following formula:

Plugging in the values to this equation, we get:

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 circumstances. 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 2.87% per year on average between 1978 and 2021. The total PCE inflation between these dates was 237.63%. In 1978, PCE inflation was 6.96%.

This means that the PCE Index equates $2.38 in 1978 with $8.04 in 2021, a difference of $5.66. Compare this to the standard CPI measurement, which equates $2.38 with $9.89. The PCE measured -77.97% 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 3.41% per year between 1978 and 2021 (vs all-CPI inflation of 3.37%), for an inflation total of 323.39%. In 1978, core inflation was 7.31%.

When using the core inflation measurement, $2.38 in 1978 is equivalent in buying power to $10.08 in 2021, a difference of $7.70. Recall that the converted amount is $9.89 when all items including food and energy are measured.

Comparison to S&P 500 Index

The average inflation rate of 3.37% has a compounding effect between 1978 and 2021. As noted above, this yearly inflation rate compounds to produce an overall price difference of 315.60% over 43 years.

To help put this inflation into perspective, if we had invested $2.38 in the S&P 500 index in 1978, our investment would be nominally worth approximately $387.57 in 2021. This is a return on investment of 16,184.38%, with an absolute return of $385.19 on top of the original $2.38.

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 0.00% of returns ($0.00) during this period. This means the inflation-adjusted real return of our $2.38 investment is $0.00. You may also want to account for capital gains tax, which would take your real return down to around $0 for most people.

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 1978 to latest available data for 2021 using average monthly close price.

For more details on the S&P 500 between 1978 and 2021, 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.

» Read more about inflation and investment.