HarderToEarn.com

1987 vs 1995

The Cost of Living Comparison

Median Income

$26,060 $34,080

+30.8%

Median Home

$104,700 $133,475

+27.5%

Housing Labor

4.0yr 3.9yr

1.0x easier

📊 Full Item Comparison

Item 1987 Price 1995 Price Change Hours 1987 Hours 1995 Verdict
🥚 Eggs $0.78 $0.92 +18% 0.1h 0.1h Easier
🍞 Bread $0.55 $0.79 +45% 0.0h 0.0h Harder
⛽ Gas $0.95 $1.15 +21% 0.1h 0.1h Easier
🥩 Ground Beef $1.31 $1.37 +5% 0.1h 0.1h Easier
🐔 Chicken $0.78 $0.92 +17% 0.1h 0.1h Easier
🥓 Bacon $2.14 $1.99 -7% 0.2h 0.1h Easier
☕ Coffee $2.79 $4.04 +45% 0.2h 0.2h Harder
🍊 Oranges $2.46 $2.65 +8% 0.2h 0.2h Easier
⚡ Electricity $0.08 $0.09 +18% 0.0h 0.0h Easier
🎓 College Tuition $1,537 $2,811 +83% 122.7h 171.6h Harder
🚗 New Car $12,922 $18,916 +46% 1031.4h 1154.5h Harder
🏠 Monthly Rent $388 $497 +28% 31.0h 30.3h Easier
🏥 Doctor Visit $28.03 $34.93 +25% 2.2h 2.1h Easier

📈 Got Harder to Earn

Items where labor hours increased from 1987 to 1995, sorted by magnitude.

🎓
College Tuition

122.7h → 171.6h

1.4x

harder

🚗
New Car

1031.4h → 1154.5h

1.1x

harder

Coffee

0.2h → 0.2h

1.1x

harder

🍞
Bread

0.0h → 0.0h

1.1x

harder

📉 Got Easier to Earn

Items where labor hours decreased from 1987 to 1995, sorted by magnitude.

🥓
Bacon

0.2h → 0.1h

0.7x

easier

🥩
Ground Beef

0.1h → 0.1h

0.8x

easier

🍊
Oranges

0.2h → 0.2h

0.8x

easier

🐔
Chicken

0.1h → 0.1h

0.9x

easier

🥚
Eggs

0.1h → 0.1h

0.9x

easier

Electricity

0.0h → 0.0h

0.9x

easier

Gas

0.1h → 0.1h

0.9x

easier

🏥
Doctor Visit

2.2h → 2.1h

1.0x

easier

🏠
Monthly Rent

31.0h → 30.3h

1.0x

easier

💵 Purchasing Power

If you earned the median income in 1987 ($26,060), you'd need $34,952 in 1995 to maintain the same lifestyle.

Based on CPI adjustment (113.6 → 152.4).

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