What is $1 from 1956 worth today?
$1 in 1956 is worth $12.39 in September 2026, based on the official Consumer Price Index. Prices have risen 1139% since 1956, an average of 3.65% a year over 70 years. In other words, prices have doubled about 3.6 times, and a dollar today buys 8.1% of what it bought in 1956.
The same ratio applies to any amount: $20 from 1956 is worth $247.75, $100 is worth $1,239 and $1,000 is worth $12,388 in today's dollars.
Inflation in 1956
The CPI-U averaged 27.2 in 1956, up 1.5% from 26.8 in 1955. From December 1955 to December 1956, prices rose 3.0%. Ranked by annual inflation, 1956 is number 80 of the 112 years from 1914 to 2025.
In the 1950s, annual inflation averaged 2.0% a year. The highest rate was 7.9% in 1951 and the lowest -0.4% in 1955.
1956 prices in today's money, and today's prices in 1956 money
If something cost $5 in 1956, the same buying power today is $61.94. Going the other way, $100 in September 2026 would have bought what $8.07 bought in 1956, and a $60,000 salary today has the buying power of a $4,844 salary in 1956.
If your pay in 1956 was, say, $1,000 a month, you would need about $12,388 a month in September 2026 to afford the same basket of goods and services. Remember that this is an average across consumer spending: some prices, such as housing, health care and tuition, have risen faster than the CPI, while others have risen more slowly.
How this 1956 inflation figure is calculated
The calculation divides the latest CPI-U (336.94 for September 2026) by the 1956 annual average (27.2): 336.94 ÷ 27.2 = 12.3875. Multiply any 1956 amount by 12.3875 to convert it to September 2026 dollars. The data is the CPI for All Urban Consumers, U.S. city average, all items, not seasonally adjusted (BLS series CUUR0000SA0), published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Use the calculator above to pick a specific month in 1956 or a different end date. See also $1 in 1955 and $1 in 1957. All years are on the main US inflation calculator page.