The United States’ annual inflation rate in 1980 was 13.5%, measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI). This was one of the highest full-year inflation rates in modern U.S. history.
The figure belongs to the Great Inflation, a period of persistent price increases that began in the mid-1960s and lasted until the early 1980s. Inflation was driven by several factors, including expansionary economic policy, oil-price shocks, wage and price pressures, and changing expectations.
The 13.5% figure is an annual average, not the highest individual month’s year-over-year reading. That distinction matters: monthly inflation rates can rise above or below the annual average. Inflation later declined sharply after Federal Reserve Chair Paul Volcker led aggressive interest-rate increases beginning in 1979.
A common mix-up is confusing 1980’s annual rate with the nearby annual rates of 11.3% in 1979 and 10.3% in 1981. The 1980 figure specifically refers to the average change in consumer prices compared with 1979.