53 years ago

Shoe prices in 1973

What happened to U.S. shoe prices in 1973, how that year ranks, and what 1973 prices come to in September 2026 money.

$100 of shoes in 1973

$246.00

at September 2026 shoe prices (all footwear). Overall inflation would make it $758.87.

1973 vs 1972

+4.2%

Ranks 18th of 78 years since 1948, largest rise first. All items: +6.2%.

Real change in 1973

−1.8%

Shoes measured against everything else. Shoes got relatively cheaper.

Have a price from 1973? Open 1973 in the calculator →

Each shoe group in 1973

All footwear +4.2% Average index 62.8 · $100 then = $246.00 now · 18th of 78 years

BLS began separate men’s, women’s, and boys’ and girls’ footwear indexes in December 1977, so 1973 has the all-footwear index only.

1973 in context

All footwear rose 4.2% in 1973, while the consumer price index for all items rose 6.2% and clothing rose 3.7%. That left shoes 1.8% cheaper relative to everything else people bought.

Before the store: the producer price index for footwear made in the United States rose 4.9%. Factory to store →

Ranked by yearly change, 1973 sits between 1978 (+4.4%) and 1959 (+4.1%).

Month by month in 1973 (January = 100)

All footwear

Not seasonally adjusted BLS CPI indexes.

Neighboring years

1970+5.2%1971+3.3%1972+2.8%1974+6.1%1975+4.5%1976+4.0%1977+4.6%1978+4.4%1979+7.9%

← 1972 · 1974 →

Yearly figures are averages of the twelve monthly BLS CPI-U values; 2026 uses the months published so far. How we calculate