Tony Orlando and Dawn
Prices in 1973 vs. today
“In today's money” adjusts the 1973 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 | 1973 | Today |
|---|---|---|
| 🏠 Median price of a house soldmedian sale price | $32,600 | $393,300 +1,106% |
| ⛽ Gallon of regular gasper gallon | 39¢ | $4.48 +1,055% |
| 🥛 Gallon of whole milkper gallon | $1.31 | $4.11 +214% |
| 🥛 Half-gallon of whole milkper half-gallon | 65¢ | $2.05 +214% |
| 🥚 Dozen large eggsper dozen | 78¢ | $2.27 +191% |
| 🍞 Loaf of white breadper pound | 28¢ | $1.83 +563% |
| ☕ Pound of ground coffeeper pound | $1.04 | $9.33 +797% |
| ✉️ First-class postage stampper letter | 8¢ | 82¢ +925% |
| 💡 Kilowatt-hour of home electricityper kWh, residential | 2.5¢ | 18.3¢ +632% |
| ⏱️ Federal minimum wageper hour | $1.60 | $7.25 +353% |
| 🧰 Average factory worker's hourly payper hour, manufacturing production workers | $3.97 | $30.21 +661% |
| 👪 Median family incomeper year | $12,100 | $110,500 +813% |
| 🍔 Pound of ground beefper pound | 96¢ | $6.79 +610% |
| 🥓 Pound of baconper pound | $1.32 | $6.76 +410% |
| 🍗 Pound of whole chickenper pound | 60¢ | $2.06 +246% |
| 🍌 Pound of bananasper pound | 17¢ | 66¢ +298% |
| 🍅 Pound of tomatoesper pound | 48¢ | $1.99 +313% |
| 🍬 Pound of white sugarper pound | 15¢ | $1.02 +575% |
| 🌾 Pound of flourper pound | 15¢ | 55¢ +261% |
1973 at a glance
Questions people ask about 1973
How much was a gallon of gas in 1973?
Regular gasoline averaged 39¢ a gallon in 1973 (U.S. city average, including taxes). That's about $2.94 in today's money. In Sep 2026 it averaged $4.48.
How much was a postage stamp in 1973?
A first-class stamp cost 8¢ in 1973. Today it costs 82¢.
How much did a house cost in 1973?
The median price of a house sold in the U.S. in 1973 was $32,600, about $247,393 adjusted for inflation. The latest median (Q3 2026) is $393,300.
What was the minimum wage in 1973?
The federal minimum wage was $1.60 an hour in 1973, worth about $12.14 an hour today. It has been $7.25 since July 2009.
How much was milk in 1973?
A gallon of whole milk averaged $1.31 in 1973. Today: $4.11.
How much were eggs in 1973?
A dozen large Grade A eggs averaged 78¢ in 1973. Today: $2.27.
What was the #1 song of 1973?
Billboard's top song of 1973 was “Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree” by Tony Orlando and Dawn.
How much is $1 from 1973 worth today?
$1 in 1973 buys about as much as $7.59 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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