Inflation Record$100 in 1978 → Today (Canada)
Official data verified · CPI (Statistics Canada) · Annual average · Not seasonally adjusted · Data through September 2026 (fetched 2026-11-02) · Table 18-10-0004-01, All-items
$459.39
+359.4% cumulative inflation · 1978–2026
Your $100 in 1978 would have the purchasing power of $459.39 in Canada today.
What this means
- Purchasing power: $100 in 1978 had the same average buying power as $459.39 in 2026.
- Price level change: the overall consumer price level rose by 359.4% across this 48-year span; the purchasing power of a dollar changed by -78.2%.
- This measures the broad basket of consumer goods and services (CPI (Statistics Canada)). Individual expenses moved at different rates.
What this means in other amounts
| In 1978 | Worth in 2026 |
|---|---|
| $1 | $4.59 |
| $5 | $22.97 |
| $10 | $45.94 |
| $20 | $91.88 |
| $50 | $229.69 |
| $100 | $459.39 |
| $500 | $2,296.94 |
| $1,000 | $4,593.87 |
| $10,000 | $45,938.73 |
| $100,000 | $459,387.32 |
Key facts about 1978
- Consumer prices rose 9.0% in 1978 — the 14th-largest annual increase in the 1914–2026 record.
- Among the major categories tracked since 1978, Energy rose the most: 582.2% cumulatively to 2025.
- In the decade after 1978, prices rose 94.4% in total.
$100 in 1978, decade by decade
| Year | Worth | Cumulative price change |
|---|---|---|
| 1988 | $194.45 | +94.4% |
| 1998 | $249.14 | +149.1% |
| 2008 | $311.44 | +211.4% |
| 2018 | $364.10 | +264.1% |
| 2026 | $459.39 | +359.4% |
Monthly CPI in 1978
| Period | Index | Change vs same period, prior year |
|---|---|---|
| January | 35.1 | 9.0% |
| February | 35.4 | 9.3% |
| March | 35.7 | 8.8% |
| April | 35.8 | 8.5% |
| May | 36.3 | 8.7% |
| June | 36.6 | 9.3% |
| July | 37.1 | 9.4% |
| August | 37.2 | 9.7% |
| September | 37.1 | 8.5% |
| October | 37.6 | 9.0% |
| November | 37.8 | 8.9% |
| December | 37.9 | 8.6% |
Annual average for 1978: 36.633
Verify this calculation
Series: Table 18-10-0004-01, All-items; base 2002=100; not seasonally adjusted.
Index (1978 annual average): 36.633 · Index (2026 annual average): 168.289 · Ratio: 4.5939
Formula: amount × (indexend / indexstart). Formula v1.0 — annual-average CPI, NSA (per-country basis on each methodology page). Source: Statistics Canada.