Inflation Record
$100 in 1970 → Today (Australia)
Official data verified · CPI (ABS) · Annual average · Not seasonally adjusted · Data through September 2026 (fetched 2026-11-02) · All groups CPI, weighted average of eight capital cities (6401.0)
$1,510.70
+1410.7% cumulative inflation · 1970–2026
Your $100 in 1970 would have the purchasing power of $1,510.70 in Australia today.
What this means
- Purchasing power: $100 in 1970 had the same average buying power as $1,510.70 in 2026.
- Price level change: the overall consumer price level rose by 1410.7% across this 56-year span; the purchasing power of a dollar changed by -93.4%.
- This measures the broad basket of consumer goods and services (CPI (ABS)). Individual expenses moved at different rates.
What this means in other amounts
| In 1970 | Worth in 2026 |
|---|---|
| $1 | $15.11 |
| $5 | $75.54 |
| $10 | $151.07 |
| $20 | $302.14 |
| $50 | $755.35 |
| $100 | $1,510.70 |
| $500 | $7,553.52 |
| $1,000 | $15,107.03 |
| $10,000 | $151,070.34 |
| $100,000 | $1,510,703.40 |
Key facts about 1970
- Consumer prices rose 3.4% in 1970 — the 36th-largest annual increase in the 1949–2026 record.
- 1970 is in the quarterly-CPI era: its annual average is the mean of the year's four quarterly indexes.
- In the decade after 1970, prices rose 169.6% in total.
$100 in 1970, decade by decade
| Year | Worth | Cumulative price change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | $269.57 | +169.6% |
| 1990 | $587.72 | +487.7% |
| 2000 | $731.20 | +631.2% |
| 2010 | $983.12 | +883.1% |
| 2020 | $1,187.72 | +1087.7% |
| 2026 | $1,510.70 | +1410.7% |
Quarterly CPI in 1970
| Period | Index | Change vs same period, prior year |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 | 9.6 | 2.1% |
| Q2 | 9.7 | 3.2% |
| Q3 | 9.8 | 3.2% |
| Q4 | 10.0 | 5.3% |
Annual average for 1970: 9.775
Verify this calculation
Series: All groups CPI, weighted average of eight capital cities (6401.0); base 2011-12=100; not seasonally adjusted.
Index (1970 annual average): 9.775 · Index (2026 annual average): 147.671 · Ratio: 15.1070
Formula: amount × (indexend / indexstart). Formula v1.0 — annual-average CPI, NSA (per-country basis on each methodology page). Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics.