What happened to prices after 2020
2020 itself was quiet for prices: 1.4%, as the pandemic shut down travel and restaurants. Then reopening, stimulus payments and tangled supply chains collided. Prices rose 7.0% in 2021 and 6.5% in 2022, the fastest since 1981, and the year-over-year rate peaked at 9.1% in June 2022.
It has eased since, to 3.3%, 2.9% and 2.7% in the three years that followed. Even so, prices have risen 4.47% a year since 2020, faster than over any five-year stretch since 1986–1991.
What amounts from 2020 are worth today
| In 2020 | In 2025 | 2025 amount in 2020 |
|---|---|---|
| $1 | $1.24 | $0.80 |
| $5 | $6.22 | $4.02 |
| $10 | $12.44 | $8.04 |
| $20 | $24.88 | $16.08 |
| $50 | $62.21 | $40.19 |
| $100 | $124.41 | $80.38 |
| $500 | $622.07 | $401.88 |
| $1,000 | $1,244.15 | $803.76 |
| $5,000 | $6,220.73 | $4,018.82 |
| $10,000 | $12,441.46 | $8,037.64 |
Read across: $1,000 in 2020 buys what $1,244 did in 2025, and $1,000 in 2025 would have bought what $803.76 did in 2020.
Inflation by decade since 2020
| Decade | Average a year | Prices over the decade |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s (2021–2025) | 4.47% | +24.4% |
Every year since 2020: CPI, inflation and the cost of $100 of 2020 goods
| Year | CPI (Dec.) | Inflation | Cost of $100 of 2020 goods |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 260.5 | — | $100.00 |
| 2021 | 278.8 | +7.0% | $107.02 |
| 2022 | 296.8 | +6.5% | $113.93 |
| 2023 | 306.7 | +3.3% | $117.74 |
| 2024 | 315.6 | +2.9% | $121.15 |
| 2025 | 324.1 | +2.7% | $124.41 |
How this is calculated
We divide the consumer price index for December 2025 (324.1) by the index for December 2020 (260.5), which gives 1.2441, and multiply. Each year’s inflation runs December to December. December figures follow prices to the end of each year, so they can differ slightly from tables that use yearly averages. The index measures an average urban household’s spending; your own costs can rise faster or slower.
For what the stock market did over the same years, see S&P 500 returns since 2020. Every figure here comes from the same data as the inflation calculator. The method is on the methodology page.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), U.S. city average, all items, December values.