In 1975, $100 bought you what $425.43 buys you in 2015. However, actual costs differ.
While these costs show a mixed bag, the high ticket items increased the most while wages and income lagged. All the inflation and cost of living numbers are helpful for politicians and statisticians but can be deceiving to the rest of us. The one thing that is clear is that wages and household income lag increasing costs of big ticket items.
It’s important to note that average gasoline prices do not reflect the costs in New York and California. Nor do movie ticket prices reflect these major city prices.
