Shoe prices in 1998
What happened to U.S. shoe prices in 1998, how that year ranks, and what 1998 prices come to in September 2026 money.
at September 2026 shoe prices (all footwear). Overall inflation would make it $206.70.
Ranks 59th of 78 years since 1948, largest rise first. All items: +1.6%.
Shoes measured against everything else. Shoes got relatively cheaper.
Each shoe group in 1998
- Men’s shoes −0.2% Average index 131.8 · $100 then = $122.71 now · 38th of 47 years
- Women’s shoes +0.9% Average index 123.1 · $100 then = $115.43 now · 21st of 47 years
- Boys’ and girls’ shoes +0.3% Average index 131.4 · $100 then = $127.67 now · 32nd of 47 years
- All footwear +0.4% Average index 128.0 · $100 then = $120.68 now · 59th of 78 years
1998 in context
All footwear rose 0.4% in 1998, while the consumer price index for all items rose 1.6% and clothing rose 0.1%. That left shoes 1.2% cheaper relative to everything else people bought.
Men’s shoes fell 0.2% and women’s rose 0.9%, so women’s shoes rose faster by 1.1 points. Men’s vs women’s over time →
Before the store: the producer price index for footwear made in the United States rose 0.7%, and the import price index for footwear fell 0.0%. Factory to store →
Ranked by yearly change, 1998 sits between 2011 (+0.4%) and 2014 (+0.3%).
Month by month in 1998 (January = 100)
- Men’s shoes
- Women’s shoes
- Boys’ and girls’ shoes
Neighboring years
Yearly figures are averages of the twelve monthly BLS CPI-U values; 2026 uses the months published so far. How we calculate