America Since 2000 · Data Lab

Then vs Now

How different is America today from another year?

Compare two years in U.S. economic history to see how regular gas prices, unemployment, grocery prices, overall consumer prices, median rent and median earnings changed.

Choose any supported years from 2000 to today. The page uses published data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, Bureau of Labor Statistics and U.S. Census Bureau.

Then

Now

2000 → Today 2005 → Today 2010 → Today 2015 → Today 2020 → Today

What changed?

2023 compared with 2026

Metric values for the earlier and later years, with the measured change
Metric	2023	2026	Change
Regular gas	$3.52/gal	$4.06/gal	+15.3%
Unemployment	3.6%	4.1%	+0.5 pp
Grocery prices	Index 302.9	Index 321.6	+6.2%
Overall prices	Index 304.7	Index 333.9	+9.6%
Median rent	$1,406/mo	N/A	N/A
Median earnings	$45,105/yr	N/A	N/A

What do the price index values mean?

CPI is an index that tracks how prices change over time; the 1982–84 average equals 100. These values are index levels, not dollar amounts or inflation rates. The Change column shows the consumer-friendly percentage movement between the selected years.

Groceries: 2023 Index 302.9 · 2026 Index 321.6
Overall prices: 2023 Index 304.7 · 2026 Index 333.9

Change profile

How much did life change?

Compare how each measure changed between the two years. The earlier year is used as the starting point so measures with different units can be shown together.

Earlier year = 100. A value of 150 represents a level 50% higher than the starting year. Higher does not necessarily mean better.

20232026

Costs vs Earnings

Did earnings keep up with everyday costs?

See how quickly earnings, rent and everyday prices changed over the years where all selected measures overlap.

Comparable data: 2023–2024

Rent and earnings are not available for every selected year, so this chart uses the first and last years where all displayed measures overlap.

Baseline 2023 = 100. The chart compares pace of change; published dollar values are nominal.

Earnings growth+4.1%

Rent growth+5.8%

Grocery price growth+1.2%

Overall price growth+2.9%

Rent growth exceeded earnings growth by 1.7 percentage points over this comparison period.

Costs vs Earnings index table. 100 represents the 2023 baseline level for each series; a value of 150 means that measure was 50% higher than its baseline level.
Year	Earnings	Rent	Groceries	Prices	Gas
2023	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
2024	104.1	105.8	101.2	102.9

Key changes

What the numbers show

Reading the comparison

Dollar values shown are nominal (not adjusted for inflation) unless stated otherwise.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is an index, not a dollar amount -- it tracks price levels relative to a fixed reference period.
Unemployment is compared in percentage points, not a relative percent, since it is already a rate.
Annual Census ACS estimates (median rent and median earnings) begin in 2005; earlier years are honestly marked unavailable, never shown as zero.
Why some years are missing: Data Driven Tech does not fill missing official observations with estimates or zeros. When an authoritative source does not publish a comparable annual value, the page shows N/A. For 2020, the Census Bureau did not release standard ACS 1-year estimates because pandemic-era collection did not meet normal statistical quality standards. Census methodology ↗ (opens in new tab)
This page compares the same published/derived annual figures used throughout America Since 2000 -- see methodology for how each is calculated.

Sources

Compare U.S. economic conditions across years

Then vs Now compares major U.S. economic measures across more than two decades. Select two years to see how regular gasoline prices, unemployment, grocery prices, overall consumer prices, median rent and median earnings changed.

Some measures cover a longer historical period than others. Gasoline, unemployment and CPI-based measures extend farther back, while annual ACS rent and earnings estimates have a more limited comparable range. Missing observations appear as N/A rather than estimates or zeros.

Gas prices over time

Compare the U.S. average retail price of regular gasoline between two selected years.

Unemployment by year

Compare national unemployment rates and see the difference in percentage points between the selected years.

Grocery prices over time

Compare changes in the Bureau of Labor Statistics Food at Home Consumer Price Index.

Inflation and consumer prices

Compare how the overall U.S. Consumer Price Index changed between two selected years.

Rent over time

Compare national median gross rent where annual Census ACS estimates are available.

Earnings over time

Compare median annual earnings using the available Census ACS annual series.

Why is 2020 rent or earnings data missing?

The Census Bureau did not release standard 2020 American Community Survey 1-year estimates because COVID-19 disrupted survey collection and the resulting data did not meet its normal statistical quality standards. Census released experimental 2020 estimates instead, but advises users not to compare those experimental values with standard ACS annual estimates. Data Driven Tech therefore shows 2020 as N/A for affected ACS-based metrics rather than mixing incomparable data.

Census release notice ↗ (opens in new tab) Experimental estimates FAQ ↗ (opens in new tab)

Frequently asked questions

Why is 2020 rent data unavailable?

The standard 2020 ACS 1-year release was not published because pandemic-era collection did not meet Census quality standards. Experimental estimates exist, but Census advises against comparing them with standard annual ACS estimates, so they are excluded here.

Why is 2020 earnings data unavailable?

The standard 2020 ACS 1-year release was not published because pandemic-era collection did not meet Census quality standards. Experimental estimates exist, but they are excluded here for year-to-year comparability.

Why do rent and earnings start later than gas or inflation data?

Different government datasets have different publication histories. The page only shows years where a comparable annual observation exists for the selected metric.

Does N/A mean zero?

No. N/A means a comparable published observation is not available for that year. Missing data are never replaced with zero.

How much have prices increased since 2000?

Select 2000 as "Then" and the current year as "Now" above to see the change in each category; gas, unemployment and CPI-based prices are available from 2000, while rent and earnings comparisons begin in 2005.

How much has rent increased since 2005?

Select 2005 as "Then" to compare median gross rent against any later year -- 2005 is the first year with an annual Census ACS 1-year estimate.

How have wages changed since 2005?

Select 2005 as "Then" to compare median annual earnings, from the same Census ACS 1-year estimates used throughout America Since 2000.

Why does the comparison start with 2005 by default?

Annual Census ACS rent and earnings estimates used on this page begin in 2005, so 2005 is the earliest year all six primary metrics can participate in the comparison together.

What does "earlier year = 100" mean?

In the Change Profile radar chart, the earlier selected year is normalized to a baseline of 100 for every metric. A later-year value above 100 means that metric's level was higher; below 100 means it was lower. This describes direction and magnitude of change, not whether the change was good or bad.

Are these values adjusted for inflation?

No. Dollar values (gas price, rent, earnings) shown here are nominal figures as published, not adjusted for inflation.

What does the Costs vs Earnings chart show?

It compares how median earnings, rent, grocery prices and overall consumer prices changed over a common period using a shared starting point.

Use the data for your next decision

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