Inflation Record$100 in 1978 → 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)
$673.53
+573.5% cumulative inflation · 1978–2026
Your $100 in 1978 would have the purchasing power of $673.53 in Australia today.
What this means
- Purchasing power: $100 in 1978 had the same average buying power as $673.53 in 2026.
- Price level change: the overall consumer price level rose by 573.5% across this 48-year span; the purchasing power of a dollar changed by -85.2%.
- 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 1978 | Worth in 2026 |
|---|---|
| $1 | $6.74 |
| $5 | $33.68 |
| $10 | $67.35 |
| $20 | $134.71 |
| $50 | $336.76 |
| $100 | $673.53 |
| $500 | $3,367.65 |
| $1,000 | $6,735.29 |
| $10,000 | $67,352.91 |
| $100,000 | $673,529.11 |
Key facts about 1978
- Consumer prices rose 8.0% in 1978 — the 16th-largest annual increase in the 1949–2026 record.
- 1978 is in the quarterly-CPI era: its annual average is the mean of the year's four quarterly indexes.
- In the decade after 1978, prices rose 127.0% in total.
$100 in 1978, decade by decade
| Year | Worth | Cumulative price change |
|---|---|---|
| 1988 | $227.02 | +127.0% |
| 1998 | $307.53 | +207.5% |
| 2008 | $418.47 | +318.5% |
| 2018 | $516.76 | +416.8% |
| 2026 | $673.53 | +573.5% |
Quarterly CPI in 1978
| Period | Index | Change vs same period, prior year |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 | 21.3 | 8.7% |
| Q2 | 21.7 | 8.0% |
| Q3 | 22.1 | 7.8% |
| Q4 | 22.6 | 7.6% |
Annual average for 1978: 21.925
Verify this calculation
Series: All groups CPI, weighted average of eight capital cities (6401.0); base 2011-12=100; not seasonally adjusted.
Index (1978 annual average): 21.925 · Index (2026 annual average): 147.671 · Ratio: 6.7353
Formula: amount × (indexend / indexstart). Formula v1.0 — annual-average CPI, NSA (per-country basis on each methodology page). Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics.