Posted on 01/11/2026 11:47:56 AM PST by Libloather
A grocery store receipt from 1997 shows just how much prices of everyday items have skyrocketed in less than three decades.
TikTok user Zoe Dippel shared the shockingly low costs in a viral video after a family member found the proof of purchase in a box of mementos.
“$155 for all of this!” one of Dippel’s relatives remarked after holding up the lengthy receipt from Texas chain H-E-B dated June 20, 1997.
“That’s a lot of stuff,” Dipple declared, as she started to sort through the 122 items and read the prices out loud.
The receipt revealed that Little Debbie brownies cost $1.09, Dannon yogurt was just 50 cents, and a loaf of bread was rung up for $1.26.
Meanwhile, Gerber baby food jars were 55 cents each, while a jumbo pack of Pampers diapers cost $12.99.
Today, a jar of the same baby food is $1.57, while Pampers diapers are $29.97.
The receipt additionally shows that a one-pound carton of strawberries was $1.89. Today at H-E-B, they cost $3.97.
According to the official US Census website, the median household income in 1997 was $37,005. In 2024, that number had risen to $83,730 — a little over double.
In comparison, the cost of many grocery store items has more than tripled, showing that incomes aren’t keeping pace with prices.
Dippel’s video quickly clocked up more than 2 million views, before she shared a second clip in which she tried to purchase the same 122 items online from H-E-B.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
In general, fiat (paper) currency keeps getting inflated at an increasing rate until people will no longer accept it, then it is devalued/revalued and the cycle starts over.
Metal currencies have a similar cycle, but it is much, much longer, as slowly governments reduce the value/size of coins.
The reason we have been able to continue without a complete crash is we live in a golden age where technological advance has tended to outpace inflation of the currency.
It appears to me, President Trump is trying to overcome the inflationary acceleration through growth. With several significant and upending technological advances very close, it may work.
The ones I see are: Nuclear fusion, cheap cost to orbit, autonomous vehicles, doubling of battery energy density at roughly the same cost, and plausibly, Artificial intelligence.
Nuclear fusion - at least five companies have billion dollar plus programs to have a pilot plant in operation within the next 10 years.
Cheap cost to orbit. Musk and SpaceX have already reduced cost to orbit by 80% and expect to reduce it another 80% in the next decade.
Autonomous vehicles: Waymo in operation in some cities. Tesla expects to start this year, almost certain within three years.
Battery energy density/cost: Several technologies being pursued. Donut Lab claims bold advances, all possible, they claim they will be marketed in Verge Motorcycles this quarter (next three months). We will see.
Artifical Intelligence: has been hyped so much I do not need to discuss it. Could add humanoid robots to this, perhaps.
My starting salary at Microsoft in 1993 was $25k
Very interesting- just corroborates what I thought I knew. That prices have gone up way beyond salaries, houses, cars, food, everything is so much more expensive now compared to white people bring home
Of course, prices went up over the past 30 years. 1997 was a long time ago.
But, it sounds like HEB is overcharging. Maybe another store would have lower prices.
My state has a higher cost of living than Texas. Stores in southern states, especially, charge lower prices for groceries than they do in my state.
So, why does HEB charge higher prices than my local stores do?
Buy on sale. Look for deals. Don’t pay full price, and don’t overpay.
This currency should have been dead decades ago.
My read is that it can remain in place many more decades than it logically should.
Think of Dick Cheney.
The guy had heart attack after heart attack—any one of which could have killed him.
Despite all that he lived to be 84 years old—easily beating the normal life expectancy.
Just because the patient is terrible shape does not mean they are going to croak soon.
Look at your paycheck, ...if that didn’t improve then you need help
Yes, everyone forgets that the pay in 1979 was much lower too, not just the food prices. Sure I remember paying a rent in 1975, that included gas and water, of $175 a month….$165 if I paid on or before the first. Now my I pay $2400 a month. This line of thought is all well and good, but ya can’t go back in time.
Back then, couponing was a big deal, with many markets offering to double the face value of the manufacturer’s coupon. I made many trips to the market in which I “saved” significant amounts using coupons. I put that in quotes, as coupons were mostly for processed foods that I wouldn’t even look at today. It would be interesting to get a closer look at that receipt and see if the buyer was using coupons.
The average annual pay of all workers covered by state and federal
unemployment insurance (UI) programs was $30,336 in 1997, a 4.8 percent
gain over the 1996 national average, according to data from the Bureau of
Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor. The annual pay of
private industry workers, comprising 84.4 percent of the nation’s
employment, rose 5.1 percent in 1997, while pay for government workers rose
3.2 percent. In 1996, the increase in pay for private sector employees
was 4.2 percent and for government workers, 3.1 percent.
When I was putting it on the shelf, it was 17¢.
1959
When I was putting it on the shelf, it was 17¢.
1959
bingo
it’s all relative.
A long time ago, my mother said that if a loaf of bread ever cost $1, there would be a revolution in this country.
just doing the jobs that men won’t do.
pot roast at $14 a pound??!!
silver/gold are just metals.
LAND is where it’s at!
bingo
And you had to get a second job just to pay the remainder.
Price For one or two?
Over the holidays I noticed that cat food (22# $19) was almost the same price as ham at 89¢ per #
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