The world in 1962
What was a dollar worth in 1962?
If you were born in 1962, here's what your money could do — and how much it has changed since.
−90%
That's how much value the dollar has lost since 1962.
$1 back then is worth about $10.45 today.
$1 back then is worth about $10.45 today.
🍔 Same money, 1962 vs. today
The same money buys you one plate today — a burger, a coffee and a gallon of gas. Here's how many it bought in 1962.
vs
1962
10×
plates
+4 more$21 bought 10 full plates in 1962
Today
1×
plate
$21 buys just 1 plate now
💰 The full breakdown
What $1,000 bought in 1962 — vs. today.
Gallons of gas934% more back then
1962
3,226 gal
today
312 gal
Fast-food burger meals (est.)950% more back then
1962
1,754 meals
today
167 meals
Hours of min-wage work530% more back then
1962
870 hrs
today
138 hrs
Postage stamps1725% more back then
1962
25,000 stamps
today
1,370 stamps
Prices: U.S. BLS (CPI, milk, coffee) · EIA (gas) · DOL (minimum wage) · USPS (stamps) · Census (home). Burger meal estimated from inflation. Yearly averages.
Want your exact day?
See the history, the famous birthdays and the economy of the exact day you were born.
Where the numbers come from
Every figure here is a yearly average from public U.S. government data, free for anyone to use.
The dollar & inflation · BLS
The change in a dollar's value is the ratio of the Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) then and now, from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Gas, homes & wages
Average retail gasoline price (U.S. EIA), median home sales price (U.S. Census Bureau) and the federal minimum wage (U.S. Dept. of Labor). All public domain.
For general informational and entertainment purposes only — not financial advice. Figures are yearly averages and rounded; actual prices varied by month and region.