SSgt Barry Sadler / "California Dreamin'" – The Mamas & the Papas
Prices in 1966 vs. today
“In today's money” adjusts the 1966 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 | 1966 | Today |
|---|---|---|
| 🏠 Median price of a house soldmedian sale price | $21,500 | $393,300 +1,729% |
| ⛽ Gallon of regular gasper gallon | 32¢ | $4.48 +1,296% |
| 🥛 Gallon of whole milkper gallon | 100¢ | $4.11 +312% |
| 🥛 Half-gallon of whole milkper half-gallon | 50¢ | $2.05 +312% |
| 🥚 Dozen large eggsper dozen | 60¢ | $2.27 +279% |
| 🍞 Loaf of white breadper pound | 22¢ | $1.83 +724% |
| ☕ Pound of ground coffeeper pound | 82¢ | $9.33 +1,034% |
| ✉️ First-class postage stampper letter | 5¢ | 82¢ +1,540% |
| 💡 Kilowatt-hour of home electricityper kWh, residential | 2.3¢ | 18.3¢ +696% |
| ⏱️ Federal minimum wageper hour | $1.25 | $7.25 +480% |
| 🧰 Average factory worker's hourly payper hour, manufacturing production workers | $2.60 | $30.21 +1,063% |
| 👪 Median family incomeper year | $7,500 | $110,500 +1,373% |
| 🍔 Pound of ground beefper pound | 54¢ | $6.79 +1,153% |
| 🥓 Pound of baconper pound | 95¢ | $6.76 +608% |
| 🍗 Pound of whole chickenper pound | 41¢ | $2.06 +400% |
| 🍌 Pound of bananasper pound | 16¢ | 66¢ +318% |
| 🍅 Pound of tomatoesper pound | 35¢ | $1.99 +472% |
| 🍬 Pound of white sugarper pound | 12¢ | $1.02 +749% |
| 🌾 Pound of flourper pound | 12¢ | 55¢ +358% |
1966 at a glance
Questions people ask about 1966
How much was a gallon of gas in 1966?
Regular gasoline averaged 32¢ a gallon in 1966 (U.S. city average, including taxes). That's about $3.33 in today's money. In Sep 2026 it averaged $4.48.
How much was a postage stamp in 1966?
A first-class stamp cost 5¢ in 1966. Today it costs 82¢.
How much did a house cost in 1966?
The median price of a house sold in the U.S. in 1966 was $21,500, about $223,187 adjusted for inflation. The latest median (Q3 2026) is $393,300.
What was the minimum wage in 1966?
The federal minimum wage was $1.25 an hour in 1966, worth about $12.98 an hour today. It has been $7.25 since July 2009.
How much was milk in 1966?
A gallon of whole milk averaged 100¢ in 1966. Today: $4.11.
How much were eggs in 1966?
A dozen large Grade A eggs averaged 60¢ in 1966. Today: $2.27.
What was the #1 song of 1966?
Billboard's top song of 1966 was “The Ballad of the Green Berets” by SSgt Barry Sadler / "California Dreamin'" – The Mamas & the Papas.
How much is $1 from 1966 worth today?
$1 in 1966 buys about as much as $10.38 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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