a nickel worth in 1923

[LeLucille]

Ah, the humble nickel. In 1923, it was a respectable piece of pocket change, not just the coin you fish out of your car's cup holder to make exact change. While the provided sources point us toward the magical tool of an inflation calculator, they don't give the final number, which is a bit like showing someone a map without the "you are here" sticker.

Fear not! Based on the Consumer Price Index data used by calculators like the one from the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, a nickel in 1923 had the purchasing power of about 90 cents today.

That's right, ninety cents! It was the kind of money that could actually buy you something, not just a gumball. So, while your great-grandfather's five cents wouldn't get him a fancy cold brew, it was far from insignificant. It was a proper coin with some financial swagger, unlike the modern nickel, which seems to exist primarily to be ignored in the "take a penny, leave a penny" tray.