US inflation history
Source: https://www.investopedia.com/inflation-rate-by-year-7253832
Date Updated: 2025-04-25T11:58:00-07:00
Historical U.S. Inflation Rate by Year: 1929 to 2025
Basic Definition
Inflation rate is the percentage change in the price of products and services from one year to the next.
Key Takeaways
- The U.S. inflation rate shows the change in prices year-over-year.
- The inflation rate responds to different phases of the business cycle as the economy expands and contracts.
- The Federal Reserve uses monetary policy to control inflation and keep it at or near an annual target of 2%.
- In 2022, inflation reached some of the highest levels seen since 1981, hitting 9.1% in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
- The 12-month percentage change for inflation for December 2024 was 2.9%.
Table
| Year | Inflation Rate YOY, From Previous Dec. | Federal Funds Rate | Business Cycle* | Events Affecting Inflation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1929 | 0.60% | NA | August peak | Market crash |
| 1930 | -6.40% | NA | Contraction (-8.5%) | Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act |
| 1931 | -9.30% | NA | Contraction (-6.4%) | Dust Bowl began |
| 1932 | -10.30% | NA | Contraction (-12.9%) | Hoover tax hikes |
| 1933 | 0.80% | NA | Contraction ended in March (-1.2%) | FDR’s New Deal |
| 1934 | 1.50% | NA | Expansion (10.8%) | U.S. debt rose |
| 1935 | 3.00% | NA | Expansion (8.9%) | Social Security |
| 1936 | 1.40% | NA | Expansion (12.9%) | FDR tax hikes |
| 1937 | 2.90% | NA | Expansion peaked in May (5.1%) | Depression resumed |
| 1938 | -2.80% | NA | Contraction ended in June (-3.3%) | Depression ended |
| 1939 | 0.00% | NA | Expansion (8.0%) | Dust Bowl ended |
| 1940 | 0.70% | NA | Expansion (8.8%) | Defense increased |
| 1941 | 9.90% | NA | Expansion (17.7%) | Pearl Harbor |
| 1942 | 9.00% | NA | Expansion (18.9%) | Defense spending |
| 1943 | 3.00% | NA | Expansion (17.0%) | Defense spending |
| 1944 | 2.30% | NA | Expansion (7.9%) | Bretton Woods Agreement |
| 1945 | 2.20% | NA | February peak, October trough (-1.0%) | WWII ends |
| 1946 | 18.10% | NA | Contraction (-11.6%) | Budget cuts |
| 1947 | 8.80% | NA | Contraction (-1.1%) | Cold War spending |
| 1948 | 3.00% | NA | November peak (4.1%) | |
| 1949 | -2.10% | NA | October trough (-0.6%) | Fair Deal; NATO |
| 1950 | 5.90% | NA | Expansion (8.7%) | Korean War |
| 1951 | 6.00% | NA | Expansion (8.0%) | |
| 1952 | 0.80% | NA | Expansion (4.1%) | |
| 1953 | 0.70% | NA | July peak (4.7%) | Korean War ended |
| 1954 | -0.70% | 1.25% | May trough (-0.6%) | Dow returned to 1929 high |
| 1955 | 0.40% | 2.50% | Expansion (7.1%) | |
| 1956 | 3.00% | 3.00% | Expansion (2.1%) | |
| 1957 | 2.90% | 3.00% | August peak (2.1%) | Recession began |
| 1958 | 1.80% | 2.50% | April trough (-0.7%) | Recession ended |
| 1959 | 1.70% | 4.00% | Expansion (6.9%) | Fed raised rates |
| 1960 | 1.40% | 2.00% | April peak (2.6%) | Recession began |
| 1961 | 0.70% | 2.25% | February trough (2.6%) | JFK’s deficit spending ended recession |
| 1962 | 1.30% | 3.00% | Expansion (6.1%) | |
| 1963 | 1.60% | 3.50% | Expansion (4.4%) | |
| 1964 | 1.00% | 3.75% | Expansion (5.8%) | LBJ Medicare, Medicaid |
| 1965 | 1.90% | 4.25% | Expansion (6.5%) | |
| 1966 | 3.50% | 5.50% | Expansion (6.6%) | Vietnam War |
| 1967 | 3.00% | 4.50% | Expansion (2.7%) | |
| 1968 | 4.70% | 6.00% | Expansion (4.9%) | |
| 1969 | 6.20% | 9.00% | December peak (3.1%) | Nixon took office; moon landing |
| 1970 | 5.60% | 5.00% | November trough (0.2%) | Recession |
| 1971 | 3.30% | 5.00% | Expansion (3.3%) | Wage-price controls |
| 1972 | 3.40% | 5.75% | Expansion (5.3%) | Stagflation |
| 1973 | 8.70% | 9.00% | November peak (5.6%) | End of the gold standard |
| 1974 | 12.30% | 8.00% | Contraction (-0.5%) | Watergate scandal |
| 1975 | 6.90% | 4.75% | March trough (-0.2%) | Stopgap monetary policy confused businesses and kept prices high |
| 1976 | 4.90% | 4.75% | Expansion (5.4%) | |
| 1977 | 6.70% | 6.50% | Expansion (4.6%) | |
| 1978 | 9.00% | 10.00% | Expansion (5.5%) | |
| 1979 | 13.30% | 12.00% | Expansion (3.2%) | |
| 1980 | 12.50% | 18.00% | January peak (-0.3%) | Recession began |
| 1981 | 8.90% | 12.00% | July trough (2.5%) | Reagan tax cut |
| 1982 | 3.80% | 8.50% | Contraction (-1.8%) | Recession ended |
| 1983 | 3.80% | 9.25% | Expansion (4.6%) | Military spending |
| 1984 | 3.90% | 8.25% | Expansion (7.2%) | |
| 1985 | 3.80% | 7.75% | Expansion (4.2%) | |
| 1986 | 1.10% | 6.00% | Expansion (3.5%) | Tax cut |
| 1987 | 4.40% | 6.75% | Expansion (3.5%) | Black Monday crash |
| 1988 | 4.40% | 9.75% | Expansion (4.2%) | Fed raised rates |
| 1989 | 4.60% | 8.25% | Expansion (3.7%) | S&L crisis |
| 1990 | 6.10% | 7.00% | July peak (1.9%) | Recession |
| 1991 | 3.10% | 4.00% | March trough (-0.1%) | Fed lowered rates |
| 1992 | 2.90% | 3.00% | Expansion (3.5%) | NAFTA drafted |
| 1993 | 2.70% | 3.00% | Expansion (2.7%) | Balanced Budget Act |
| 1994 | 2.70% | 5.50% | Expansion (4.0%) | |
| 1995 | 2.50% | 5.50% | Expansion (2.7%) | |
| 1996 | 3.30% | 5.25% | Expansion (3.8%) | Welfare reform |
| 1997 | 1.70% | 5.50% | Expansion (4.4%) | Fed raised rates |
| 1998 | 1.60% | 4.75% | Expansion (4.5%) | Long-term capital management crisis |
| 1999 | 2.70% | 5.50% | Expansion (4.8%) | Glass-Steagall Act repealed |
| 2000 | 3.40% | 6.50% | Expansion (4.1%) | Tech bubble burst |
| 2001 | 1.60% | 1.75% | March peak, November trough (1.0%) | Bush tax cut; 9/11 attacks |
| 2002 | 2.40% | 1.25% | Expansion (1.7%) | War on Terror |
| 2003 | 1.90% | 1.00% | Expansion (2.8%) | Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act |
| 2004 | 3.30% | 2.25% | Expansion (3.8%) | |
| 2005 | 3.40% | 4.25% | Expansion (3.5%) | Hurricane Katrina; Bankruptcy Act |
| 2006 | 2.50% | 5.25% | Expansion (2.8%) | |
| 2007 | 4.10% | 4.25% | December peak (2.0%) | Bank crisis |
| 2008 | 0.10% | 0.25% | Expansion (0.1%) | Financial crisis |
| 2009 | 2.70% | 0.25% | June trough (-2.6%) | American Recovery and Reinvestment Act |
| 2010 | 1.50% | 0.25% | Expansion (2.7%) | Affordable Care Act; Dodd-Frank Act |
| 2011 | 3.00% | 0.25% | Expansion (1.6%) | Debt ceiling crisis |
| 2012 | 1.70% | 0.25% | Expansion (2.3%) | |
| 2013 | 1.50% | 0.25% | Expansion (2.1%) | Government shutdown, sequestration |
| 2014 | 0.80% | 0.25% | Expansion (2.5%) | Quantitative easing ends |
| 2015 | 0.70% | 0.50% | Expansion (2.9%) | Deflation in oil and gas prices |
| 2016 | 2.10% | 0.75% | Expansion (1.8%) | |
| 2017 | 2.10% | 1.50% | Expansion (2.5%) | |
| 2018 | 1.90% | 2.50% | Expansion (3.0%) | |
| 2019 | 2.30% | 1.75% | Expansion (2.5%) | |
| 2020 | 1.40% | 0.25% | Contraction (-2.2%) | COVID-19 pandemic |
| 2021 | 7.00% | 0.25% | Expansion (5.8%) | COVID-19 pandemic |
| 2022 | 6.50% | 4.50% | Expansion (1.9%) | Russia invades Ukraine |
| 2023 | 3.40% | 5.50% | Expansion (2.5%) | Fed raised rates |
| 2024 | 2.9% | 4.48% | Expansion (2.8%) |