HarderToEarn.com

1987 vs 1989

The Cost of Living Comparison

Median Income

$26,060 $28,910

+10.9%

Median Home

$104,700 $120,425

+15.0%

Housing Labor

4.0yr 4.2yr

1.0x harder

📊 Full Item Comparison

Item 1987 Price 1989 Price Change Hours 1987 Hours 1989 Verdict
🥚 Eggs $0.78 $1.00 +28% 0.1h 0.1h Harder
🍞 Bread $0.55 $0.67 +22% 0.0h 0.0h Harder
⛽ Gas $0.95 $1.02 +8% 0.1h 0.1h Easier
🥩 Ground Beef $1.31 $1.44 +10% 0.1h 0.1h Easier
🐔 Chicken $0.78 $0.93 +18% 0.1h 0.1h Harder
🥓 Bacon $2.14 $1.77 -17% 0.2h 0.1h Easier
☕ Coffee $2.79 $3.07 +10% 0.2h 0.2h Easier
🍊 Oranges $2.46 $2.60 +6% 0.2h 0.2h Easier
⚡ Electricity $0.08 $0.08 +4% 0.0h 0.0h Easier
🎓 College Tuition $1,537 $1,780 +16% 122.7h 128.1h Harder
🚗 New Car $12,922 $14,371 +11% 1031.4h 1034.0h Harder
🏠 Monthly Rent $388 $418 +8% 31.0h 30.1h Easier
🏥 Doctor Visit $28.03 $30.94 +10% 2.2h 2.2h Easier

📈 Got Harder to Earn

Items where labor hours increased from 1987 to 1989, sorted by magnitude.

🥚
Eggs

0.1h → 0.1h

1.1x

harder

🍞
Bread

0.0h → 0.0h

1.1x

harder

🐔
Chicken

0.1h → 0.1h

1.1x

harder

🎓
College Tuition

122.7h → 128.1h

1.0x

harder

🚗
New Car

1031.4h → 1034.0h

1.0x

harder

📉 Got Easier to Earn

Items where labor hours decreased from 1987 to 1989, sorted by magnitude.

🥓
Bacon

0.2h → 0.1h

0.7x

easier

Electricity

0.0h → 0.0h

0.9x

easier

🍊
Oranges

0.2h → 0.2h

1.0x

easier

Gas

0.1h → 0.1h

1.0x

easier

🏠
Monthly Rent

31.0h → 30.1h

1.0x

easier

🥩
Ground Beef

0.1h → 0.1h

1.0x

easier

Coffee

0.2h → 0.2h

1.0x

easier

🏥
Doctor Visit

2.2h → 2.2h

1.0x

easier

💵 Purchasing Power

If you earned the median income in 1987 ($26,060), you'd need $28,428 in 1989 to maintain the same lifestyle.

Based on CPI adjustment (113.6 → 123.9).

Share on

🔗 Related Comparisons