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Can Claude adjust a price for inflation?

It can do the formula, but it does not know the latest CPI. The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes a new index every month, and Claude only knows the months before its training cutoff, so an inflation-adjusted figure it gives from memory is stale or guessed. Connect the free CPI Inflation Calculator server and Claude uses official BLS CPI-U, CPI-W and core CPI values from 1913 to the latest month, then gives the exact adjusted amount and the yearly rate.

Connect free, no token CPI inflation calculator MCP server

What Claude does alone, and what needs the server

Claude on its own

  • Knows the inflation formula: amount times new CPI over old CPI.
  • Explains the difference between CPI-U, CPI-W and core CPI.

With the CPI Inflation Calculator server

  • Official monthly and yearly CPI values, 1913 to the latest release.
  • Whether a raise beat inflation over the same months.
  • The Social Security COLA for a given year.

A real call to the live server

We sent this to the hosted server on 2026-11-03. The answer below is the server's own text, not a mock-up. Live values will differ when you ask.

You ask

What is $50,000 from January 2015 worth now, in buying power?

Tool call

calculate_inflation {"amount":50000,"from":"2015-01","to":"latest"}

Server answer

$50,000.00 in January 2015 has the same buying power as $72,085.99 in September 2026 (CPI-U 233.707 to 336.94). Cumulative inflation 44.17%, about 3.19% a year over 11.67 years.

On this run the live BLS check hit its daily request limit, so the server used its bundled BLS data through September 2026 and said so in the answer.

Connect it in 1 minute

One URL, no token, no account. In Claude.ai or Claude Desktop open Settings, then Connectors, then Add custom connector, and paste the URL.

Connector URL

https://cpi-inflation-calculator-mcp.lipmichal.workers.dev/mcp

Claude Code

claude mcp add --transport http cpi-inflation-calculator https://cpi-inflation-calculator-mcp.lipmichal.workers.dev/mcp

Cursor (~/.cursor/mcp.json)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "cpi-inflation-calculator": {
      "url": "https://cpi-inflation-calculator-mcp.lipmichal.workers.dev/mcp"
    }
  }
}

VS Code (.vscode/mcp.json)

{
  "servers": {
    "cpi-inflation-calculator": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://cpi-inflation-calculator-mcp.lipmichal.workers.dev/mcp"
    }
  }
}

All 5 tools, sources and more prompts: CPI inflation calculator MCP server · StateWage pay raise calculator

Questions

Can Claude adjust a price for inflation?
It can do the formula, but it does not know the latest CPI. The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes a new index every month, and Claude only knows the months before its training cutoff, so an inflation-adjusted figure it gives from memory is stale or guessed. Connect the free CPI Inflation Calculator server and Claude uses official BLS CPI-U, CPI-W and core CPI values from 1913 to the latest month, then gives the exact adjusted amount and the yearly rate.
Which CPI does it use?
CPI-U, all items, US city average, not seasonally adjusted, unless you ask for CPI-W or core CPI.
What if the newest month is missing?
The answer names the latest month it used. When the live BLS API is not reachable it falls back to bundled data and says so.
Is the server free?
Yes. The CPI Inflation Calculator server is free at its hosted URL with no token, key or account. The source is open on GitHub.

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