Value of a dollar in 1960: what it is worth today
A 1960 dollar at the CPI-U annual average, converted to September 2026. Change the amount or the year.
In September 2026 dollars
$1,138.31
$100.00 at 1960 prices (annual average), U.S. city average.
| Prices since | +1,038 % |
| Average per year | +3.74 % |
| What $100.00 today buys at 1960 prices | $8.78 |
| Index 1960 | 29.6 |
Prepared by Radif Partners · How the figures are built · CPI-U U.S. city average, 1960 annual average
A 1960 dollar equals $11.38 in September 2026 on the CPI-U for the U.S. city average. The index averaged 29.6 in 1960 and reads 336.94 in the latest month, so the price level is 11.4 times higher, a rise of 1,038 % or 3.74 % a year. In reverse, one of today's dollars buys what $0.09 bought in 1960. Inflation in 1960 was 1.7 % on annual averages and 1.4 % from December to December. It stayed low for several more years, then picked up: 2.9 % in 1966 and 5.5 % in 1969. Over the decade the price level rose 31.1 %. Locally, a 1960 dollar is worth $11.96 on the Los Angeles index and $11.11 on the Philadelphia index. All of these figures start from 1960 annual averages.
A quiet start, a faster finish
The early 1960s were calm on the national index. Of the six years from 1960 to 1965, every one had annual inflation below 2 %: 1.7 % in 1960, 1.0 % in 1961, 1.0 % in 1962, 1.3 % in 1963, 1.3 % in 1964, 1.6 % in 1965. Then the pace changed. The four years from 1966 to 1969 ran at 2.9 %, 3.1 %, 4.2 %, 5.5 %, each one above the last. A dollar of 1960 needed $1.31 by 1970. Prices rose 6.4 % from 1960 to 1965 and 23.2 % from 1965 to 1970, so most of the decade's rise came in its second half.
Inflation in a year of the 1960s
Inflation in 1966, U.S. average
+2.9 %
| Annual average change | +2.86 % |
| December to December | +3.46 % |
| $100 of 1966 in September 2026 | $1,039.94 |
A 1960 salary in today's dollars
A salary of $5,000 in 1960 matches $56,916 at September 2026 prices on the national index. That figure answers one question only: how much money it takes now to buy the same standard of consumption. It says nothing about taxes, about what jobs paid, or about goods that did not exist in 1960. To test another salary or a city, use the salary inflation calculator.
The city indexes of 1960
In 1960 far fewer local series existed than today. In this site's data, 14 of the 23 current metro series have a 1960 annual average: Boston; New York; Philadelphia; Chicago; Detroit; Minneapolis-St. Paul; St. Louis; Washington, DC; Atlanta; Baltimore; Houston; Los Angeles; San Francisco; Seattle. Several more began during the decade: Urban Alaska in May 1960, Dallas-Fort Worth in November 1963, Urban Hawaii in December 1963, Denver in January 1964, San Diego in February 1965. The four regions arrived only in December 1966, so a 1960 amount in a city without its own series can only be carried on the national index.
Local results differ. From the 1960 average to today the Los Angeles index multiplied by 11.96 and the Philadelphia index by 11.11, against 11.38 for the nation. That gap is about price change since 1960, not about which city was cheaper to live in.
Annual average or a single month
The calculator uses the 1960 annual average. In 1960 the national index moved from 29.3 in January to 29.8 in December, so the month you pick changes the result only a little. For a dated amount, the month-by-month calculator takes the exact month.
$100 of 1960 in later years
| Year | What $100 of 1960 buys |
|---|---|
| 1970 | $131.08 |
| 1980 | $278.38 |
| 1990 | $441.55 |
| 2000 | $581.76 |
| 2010 | $736.68 |
| 2020 | $874.36 |
| September 2026 | $1,138.31 |
Inflation in 1960, area by area
| Area | 1960 annual average change |
|---|---|
| U.S. average | +1.7 % |
| Boston | +2.4 % |
| New York | +2.0 % |
| Philadelphia | +2.0 % |
| Chicago | +1.7 % |
| Detroit | +1.0 % |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul | +1.4 % |
| St. Louis | +0.3 % |
| Washington, DC | +1.0 % |
| Atlanta | +1.4 % |
| Baltimore | +1.4 % |
| Houston | +0.7 % |
| Los Angeles | +2.0 % |
| San Francisco | +2.1 % |
| Seattle | +1.1 % |