To get an idea of grocery prices in the United States in 1923, this ad appeared in the Washington Times on August 14, 1923. Everything looks cheap, but there’s been a lot of inflation in the last 99 years. According to this online inflation calculator, one dollar in 1923 was the equivalent of $17.33 in 2022 money, so to compare, you need to multiply these prices by that amount.
For example, five pounds of flour was 27 cents, but that’s the same as $4.68 today. How does that compare to today’s actual price, shown below?
Similarly, a pound of butter was 52 cents, but that’s over $9 in today’s money. And 10 pounds of sugar was 83 cents, the same as $14.39 today. How does that compare to the current prices shown below?
A can of Campbell’s Tomato Soup was 9 cents, but that’s the same as $1.56 today. How does that compare?
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