Inflation Record$100 in 1981 → 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)
$511.86
+411.9% cumulative inflation · 1981–2026
Your $100 in 1981 would have the purchasing power of $511.86 in Australia today.
What this means
- Purchasing power: $100 in 1981 had the same average buying power as $511.86 in 2026.
- Price level change: the overall consumer price level rose by 411.9% across this 45-year span; the purchasing power of a dollar changed by -80.5%.
- 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 1981 | Worth in 2026 |
|---|---|
| $1 | $5.12 |
| $5 | $25.59 |
| $10 | $51.19 |
| $20 | $102.37 |
| $50 | $255.93 |
| $100 | $511.86 |
| $500 | $2,559.29 |
| $1,000 | $5,118.59 |
| $10,000 | $51,185.88 |
| $100,000 | $511,858.78 |
Key facts about 1981
- Consumer prices rose 9.5% in 1981 — the 10th-largest annual increase in the 1949–2026 record.
- 1981 is in the quarterly-CPI era: its annual average is the mean of the year's four quarterly indexes.
- In the decade after 1981, prices rose 105.5% in total.
$100 in 1981, decade by decade
| Year | Worth | Cumulative price change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | $205.46 | +105.5% |
| 2001 | $258.67 | +158.7% |
| 2011 | $344.11 | +244.1% |
| 2021 | $413.95 | +314.0% |
| 2026 | $511.86 | +411.9% |
Quarterly CPI in 1981
| Period | Index | Change vs same period, prior year |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 | 27.8 | 9.4% |
| Q2 | 28.4 | 8.4% |
| Q3 | 29.0 | 9.0% |
| Q4 | 30.2 | 11.0% |
Annual average for 1981: 28.850
Verify this calculation
Series: All groups CPI, weighted average of eight capital cities (6401.0); base 2011-12=100; not seasonally adjusted.
Index (1981 annual average): 28.850 · Index (2026 annual average): 147.671 · Ratio: 5.1186
Formula: amount × (indexend / indexstart). Formula v1.0 — annual-average CPI, NSA (per-country basis on each methodology page). Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics.