Jimmy Gilmer and the Fireballs / "Surfin' U.S.A." – The Beach Boys
Prices in 1963 vs. today
“In today's money” adjusts the 1963 price for inflation (CPI-U, Sep 2026). If today's price is higher than that, the item really did get more expensive, not just the dollar.
| Item | 1963 | Today |
|---|---|---|
| 🏠 Median price of a house soldmedian sale price | $18,100 | $393,300 +2,073% |
| ⛽ Gallon of regular gasper gallon | 30¢ | $4.48 +1,374% |
| 🥛 Gallon of whole milkper gallon | 97¢ | $4.11 +322% |
| 🥛 Half-gallon of whole milkper half-gallon | 49¢ | $2.05 +322% |
| 🥚 Dozen large eggsper dozen | 55¢ | $2.27 +312% |
| 🍞 Loaf of white breadper pound | 22¢ | $1.83 +747% |
| ☕ Pound of ground coffeeper pound | 69¢ | $9.33 +1,245% |
| ✉️ First-class postage stampper letter | 5¢ | 82¢ +1,540% |
| 💡 Kilowatt-hour of home electricityper kWh, residential | 2.5¢ | 18.3¢ +632% |
| ⏱️ Federal minimum wageper hour | $1.15 | $7.25 +530% |
| 🧰 Average factory worker's hourly payper hour, manufacturing production workers | $2.34 | $30.21 +1,191% |
| 👪 Median family incomeper year | $6,200 | $110,500 +1,682% |
| 🍔 Pound of ground beefper pound | 51¢ | $6.79 +1,224% |
| 🥓 Pound of baconper pound | 68¢ | $6.76 +889% |
| 🍗 Pound of whole chickenper pound | 40¢ | $2.06 +415% |
| 🍌 Pound of bananasper pound | 16¢ | 66¢ +300% |
| 🍅 Pound of tomatoesper pound | 32¢ | $1.99 +519% |
| 🍬 Pound of white sugarper pound | 14¢ | $1.02 +649% |
| 🌾 Pound of flourper pound | 11¢ | 55¢ +378% |
1963 at a glance
Questions people ask about 1963
How much was a gallon of gas in 1963?
Regular gasoline averaged 30¢ a gallon in 1963 (U.S. city average, including taxes). That's about $3.34 in today's money. In Sep 2026 it averaged $4.48.
How much was a postage stamp in 1963?
A first-class stamp cost 5¢ in 1963. Today it costs 82¢.
How much did a house cost in 1963?
The median price of a house sold in the U.S. in 1963 was $18,100, about $199,138 adjusted for inflation. The latest median (Q3 2026) is $393,300.
What was the minimum wage in 1963?
The federal minimum wage was $1.15 an hour in 1963, worth about $12.65 an hour today. It has been $7.25 since July 2009.
How much was milk in 1963?
A gallon of whole milk averaged 97¢ in 1963. Today: $4.11.
How much were eggs in 1963?
A dozen large Grade A eggs averaged 55¢ in 1963. Today: $2.27.
What was the #1 song of 1963?
Billboard's top song of 1963 was “Sugar Shack” by Jimmy Gilmer and the Fireballs / "Surfin' U.S.A." – The Beach Boys.
How much is $1 from 1963 worth today?
$1 in 1963 buys about as much as $11.00 did in Sep 2026, based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI-U).
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau & HUD, Median Sales Price of Houses Sold; U.S. Energy Information Administration (regular gasoline, U.S. city average retail price incl. taxes; leaded until 1975, unleaded from 1976); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Average Price Data (U.S. city average) (from 1980); Before 1980: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics retail food prices as published by the U.S. Census Bureau (Historical Statistics of the United States, Series E 187–202, and the Statistical Abstract of the United States); U.S. Postal Service rate history (rate in effect July 1); U.S. Energy Information Administration (average residential price incl. taxes); U.S. Department of Labor (rate in effect July 1); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics; U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey; Billboard Year-End Hot 100. How we calculate these.
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