It's sad but true: a dollar just isn't worth what it used to be these days.
And in case you were wondering, prices are only expected to keep rising through next year - sorry to break it to you.
For anyone curious just how much prices have gone up, up, up, since the 1980s (and even further back in some cases), Wikibuy has crunched the numbers and turned up some surprising answers.
Their latest infographic (which you can read in full here) compares how prices for everyday expenses like groceries, cars, homes, and an education have changed through the decades.
Spoiler alert: if you think gas prices are high these days, wait until they remind you how cheap bread used to be.
Note: You can read the full sources for the infographic at Wikibuy's website.
Groceries
All items in this section are compared by their absolute cost (with inflation).
A loaf of bread is one of the few must have grocery staples for nearly every home in America, but it will cost you almost three times as much today compared to the 1980s.
Bacon has experienced one of the worst price hikes on this list, doubling its cost by 2000 and then almost doubling again by 2018.
Shoppers often complain about the rising price of ground beef, but compared to other ingredients it has remained pretty steady, only beginning to shoot up in the mid-2000s.
You've probably noticed that produce is not getting any cheaper, but seeing that tomatoes are more than twice as expensive as they were in 1980 is shocking.
Everyday Prices
You would imagine with the rise of email, it wouldn't get more expensive to mail a letter, but the price of a postage stamp is still more than twice as expensive as it was in 1980.
Have gas prices gone up? I hardly noticed... Kidding aside, gas prices are expected to continue going up in the near future.
Financial Milestones
The prices in this section have been adjusted to 2017 dollars, so you can compare what the items were really worth in past decades and today.
Yes, gas prices were lower way back when, but don't forget that new cars were also flying off the lots at great prices. Try getting a used car at $12,000 today!
Why are millennials living with their parents for longer and longer? While you're thinking that brainteaser through, take a peak at what a house cost back in 1940...
Here's a surprising entry: yes it's more expensive to raise a child these days, but it turns out kids have never exactly been cheap. Speaking of which...
Public colleges are meant to open to everyone, but as you can see prices have more than tripled in 2017 dollars since the late '80s, making it harder for kids from poor families to get a degree.
And finally, you may be surprised to learn that while prices are going up, up, up at private schools, their rates have not climbed as much percentage-wise as public colleges.
Read more about these price changes and see the full infographic at Wikibuy's website.
