1960–1970 · official CPI data

Mad MenInflation Calculator


See what any dollar amount from the show — salaries, accounts, the famous checks — is worth in today's money, matched to each season's year.

Currency converter

In today's money · June 2026

Watch it climb, year by year
That's what the money is for!
— Don Draper

Famous money from the show

Real amounts characters talk about. Tap a card to load it into the calculator.

Accounts & pitches

Storylines the show never put an exact dollar figure on — context only.

Everyday prices in their world

What ordinary things ran in the mid-'60s (≈1965) and what that feels like now.

Questions & answers

How much is $1 from Mad Men worth today?

It depends on the year. Because Mad Men runs from 1960 to 1970, $1 from the Season 1 premiere (1960) is worth about $11.25 in 2026, while $1 from the 1970 finale is worth about $8.58. Enter any amount and year above to convert it.

What years does Mad Men take place in?

The series spans March 1960 (Season 1) to November 1970 (the finale). This calculator maps each season to its on-screen year so the inflation base matches what you're watching.

How is the conversion calculated?

It uses the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index (CPI-U): today's value = original amount × (CPI in 2026 ÷ CPI in the show's year).

Was Don Draper's salary good money?

Don's roughly $30,000-a-year creative director salary in 1960 is equivalent to about $337,000 today — a comfortable upper-class income that fits his Manhattan-executive lifestyle.

Does this Mad Men calculator contain spoilers?

Not by default. Plot details are blurred and each event's year is shown, so you control what's revealed based on how far you've watched.