US & World Economies US Economy GDP Growth & Recessions U.S. GDP by Year, Compared to Recessions and Events The Strange Ups and Downs of the U.S. Economy Since 1929 By Kimberly Amadeo Updated on May 26, 2022 Reviewed by Robert C. Kelly Reviewed by Robert C. Kelly Robert Kelly is managing director of XTS Energy LLC, and has more than three decades of experience as a business executive. He is a professor of economics and has raised more than $4.5 billion in investment capital. learn about our financial review board Fact checked by Aaron Johnson Sponsored by What's this? & In This Article View All In This Article Types of GDP US GDP by Year Since 1929 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Photo: The Balance / Julie Bang U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) by year is a good overview of economic growth in the United States. The table below presents the nation's GDP for each year since 1929, compared to major economic events. The table begins with the stock market crash of 1929 and goes through the subsequent Great Depression. It includes five wars and several serious recessions. These extreme swings in the business cycle put today's economic climate in perspective. You can compare the GDP by year to fiscal and monetary policies to get a complete picture of what works and what doesn't in the U.S. economy. Key Takeaways The GDP growth rate shows whether the country’s economy is flourishing or floundering.A negative growth rate indicates contraction.Real GDP takes into account inflation, so you can compare the GDP of different years.Nominal GDP reflects the prices for the year in which the goods were produced. Types of GDP The Bureau of Economic Analysis compiles the data. Keep in mind, when reviewing this history, that the BEA measures GDP in two ways: nominal GDP and real GDP. Nominal GDP Nominal GDP is the total U.S. economic output for that year. The BEA also calls it the "current-dollar GDP," since it's measured as a dollar amount, and it doesn't take factors like inflation into account. Experts use nominal GDP to compare economic output to U.S. debt, which is also measured in dollars without adjusting for inflation. Real GDP Real GDP accounts for inflation, making comparisons to previous years more accurate. The BEA uses it to calculate the GDP growth rate and GDP per capita. Real GDP is important because without canceling out the effects of inflation, the GDP could appear to grow, when really all that's happened is an increase in prices. Note To calculate real GDP, the BEA starts with a reference year. The current base year is 2012. You'll notice that nominal and real GDP are the same in 2012. Real GDP shows what GDP would have been in each year if it were priced in 2012 dollars. That's how it removes the effect of inflation. The current base year for GDP calculations is 2012. The period from which the weights for a measurement series are derived. The national income and product accounts (NIPAs) currently use the year 2000 as the base period. Rebasing changes the reference year (or base year) for the real (chained dollar and quantity index) estimates and price indexes and expresses GDP and other NIPA aggregates in terms of the prices of one year. The effect of rebasing is to produce chained-dollar estimates that are closer to additive for periods near the new base year. It is important to note that percentage changes based upon chain-type indexes are not affected by rebasing. Generally, the year selected as the reference year is the latest year that will not be revised until the next comprehensive update. For the 2018 comprehensive update, real estimates were rebased from chained (2005) dollars to chained (2012) dollars. U.S. GDP by Year Since 1929, Compared to Major Events The following chart tracks both nominal and real GDP since 1929. Some historical events and government policies are added for context. U.S. GDP Year Nominal GDP (trillions) Real GDP (trillions) GDP Growth Rate Events Affecting GDP 1929 $0.105 $1.109 NA Depression began 1930 $0.092 $1.015 -8.5% Smoot-Hawley 1931 $0.077 $0.950 -6.4% Dust Bowl 1932 $0.060 $0.828 -12.9% Hoover tax hikes 1933 $0.057 $0.817 -1.2% New Deal 1934 $0.067 $0.906 10.8% U.S. debt rose 1935 $0.074 $0.986 8.9% Social Security 1936 $0.085 $1.113 12.9% FDR tax hikes 1937 $0.093 $1.170 5.1% Depression returned 1938 $0.087 $1.132 -3.3% Depression ended 1939 $0.093 $1.222 8.0% WWII, Dust Bowl ended 1940 $0.103 $1.330 8.8% Defense increased 1941 $0.129 $1.566 17.7% Pearl Harbor 1942 $0.166 $1.862 18.9% 1943 $0.203 $2.178 17.0% Defense spending tripled 1944 $0.224 $2.352 8.0% Bretton Woods 1945 $0.228 $2.329 -1.0% WWII ended, recession 1946 $0.228 $2.058 -11.6% Truman budget cuts 1947 $0.250 $2.035 -1.1% Cold War began 1948 $0.275 $2.119 4.1% Recession 1949 $0.273 $2.107 -0.6% NATO, Fair Deal 1950 $0.300 $2.290 8.7% Korean War 1951 $0.347 $2.474 8.0% 1952 $0.367 $2.575 4.1% 1953 $0.389 $2.696 4.7% War ended, recession 1954 $0.391 $2.680 -0.6% Dow returned to 1929 high 1955 $0.426 $2.871 7.1% 1956 $0.449 $2.932 2.1% 1957 $0.474 $2.994 2.1% Recession 1958 $0.481 $2.972 -0.7% Recession ended 1959 $0.522 $3.178 6.9% Fed raised rates 1960 $0.542 $3.260 2.6% Recession 1961 $0.562 $3.344 2.6% JFK ended recession 1962 $0.604 $3.548 6.1% 1963 $0.638 $3.703 4.4% 1964 $0.685 $3.916 5.8% LBJ's Medicare, Medicaid 1965 $0.742 $4.171 6.5% 1966 $0.813 $4.446 6.6% Vietnam War 1967 $0.860 $4.568 2.7% 1968 $0.941 $4.792 4.9% Moon landing 1969 $1.018 $4.942 3.1% Nixon took office 1970 $1.073 $4.951 0.2% Recession 1971 $1.165 $5.114 3.3% Wage-price controls 1972 $1.279 $5.383 5.3% Stagflation 1973 $1.425 $5.687 5.6% End of gold standard 1974 $1.545 $5.657 -0.5% Watergate 1975 $1.685 $5.645 -0.2% Recession ended 1976 $1.873 $5.949 5.4% Fed lowered rates 1977 $2.082 $6.224 4.6% 1978 $2.352 $6.569 5.5% Fed's 20% rate hike ended inflation 1979 $2.627 $6.777 3.2% Recession 1980 $2.857 $6.759 -0.3% 1981 $3.207 $6.931 2.5% Reagan tax cuts 1982 $3.344 $6.806 -1.8% Recession ended 1983 $3.634 $7.118 4.6% Tax hike and defense spending 1984 $4.038 $7.633 7.2% 1985 $4.339 $7.951 4.2% 1986 $4.580 $8.226 3.5% Tax cut 1987 $4.855 $8.511 3.5% Black Monday 1988 $5.236 $8.867 4.2% Fed raised rates 1989 $5.642 $9.192 3.7% S&L Crisis 1990 $5.963 $9.366 1.9% Recession 1991 $6.158 $9.355 -0.1% 1992 $6.520 $9.685 3.5% NAFTA drafted 1993 $6.859 $9.952 2.8% Balanced Budget Act 1994 $7.287 $10.352 4.0% 1995 $7.640 $10.630 2.7% Fed raised rates 1996 $8.073 $11.031 3.8% Welfare reform 1997 $8.578 $11.522 4.4% 1998 $9.063 $12.038 4.5% LTCM crisis 1999 $9.631 $12.611 4.8% Repeal of Glass-Steagall 2000 $10.252 $13.131 4.1% Tech bubble burst 2001 $10.582 $13.262 1.0% 9/11 attacks 2002 $10.936 $13.493 1.7% War on Terror 2003 $11.458 $13.879 2.9% Iraq War, JGTRRA 2004 $12.214 $14.406 3.8% 2005 $13.037 $14.913 3.5% Katrina, Bankruptcy Act 2006 $13.815 $15.338 2.9% Fed raised rates 2007 $14.452 $15.626 1.9% Bank crisis 2008 $14.713 $15.605 -0.1% Financial Crisis 2009 $14.449 $15.209 -2.5% Stimulus Act 2010 $14.992 $15.599 2.6% ACA, Dodd-Frank 2011 $15.543 $15.841 1.6% Japan earthquake 2012 $16.197 $16.197 2.2% Fiscal cliff 2013 $16.785 $16.495 1.8% Sequestration 2014 $17.527 $16.912 2.5% QE ends 2015 $18.238 $17.432 3.1% TPP, Iran deal 2016 $18.745 $17.731 1.7% Presidential race 2017 $19.543 $18.144 2.3% Tax Cuts & Jobs Act (TCJA) 2018 $20.612 $18.688 3.0% Deficit spending 2019 $21,433 $19,092 2.2% Trade war 2020 $20,893 $18,384 -3.4% Covid-19 pandemic 2021 $22,996 $19,427 5.7% Covid-19 vaccine Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) What is GDP? GDP is a measure of the total value of a country's economic output. Economists use it as a summary metric for the size of a country's economy. How is GDP measured? GDP is the total of a country's personal consumption, business investment, government spending, and net exports (exports minus imports). What is not included in GDP? In the U.S., the Bureau of Economic Analysis excludes certain goods and services from GDP. For instance, the value of domestic services like parental care, though significant, is not included. Intermediate goods that are used to produce other goods are also not included. Goods that are produced and sold illegally on the underground market are excluded, as well. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit Sources The Balance uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. "Real Gross Domestic Property (GDPC1)." Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. "Transcript: Gross Domestic Product - The Economic Lowdown Podcast Series." Bureau of Economic Analysis. "News Release." Click "Additional Information." Bureau of Economic Analysis. "Gross Domestic Product." Bureau of Economic Analysis. "Why Are Real Estimates Rebased?" Bureau of Economic Analysis. "Base Period." Bureau of Economic Analysis. “National Income and Product Accounts Tables: Table 1.1.5. Gross Domestic Product.” Bureau of Economic Analysis. “Table 1.1.6. Real Gross Domestic Product, Chained Dollars.” Bureau of Economic Analysis. “National Income and Product Accounts Tables: Table 1.1.1. Percent Change From Preceding Period in Real Gross Domestic Product.” Bureau of Economic Analysis. "What Is GDP?" Pages 1-2. Part Of Understanding GDP What Is Gross Domestic Product (GDP)? Components of GDP Explained U.S. GDP by Year, Compared to Recessions and Events Real GDP, How to Calculate It, Comparison to Nominal What Is GDP Per Capita? Real GDP Per Capita, How to Calculate It, and Data Since 1947 What Is the U.S. GDP Growth Rate? What Is Economic Growth? U.S. Real GDP Growth Rate by Year Compared to Inflation and Unemployment Related Articles What Is the U.S. GDP Growth Rate? US GDP Statistics and How to Use Them Nominal GDP: How To Calculate It and When To Use It Real GDP, How to Calculate It, Comparison to Nominal Historical US Unemployment Rate by Year What Is Gross Domestic Product (GDP)? What Is a Recession? What Exactly Is the U.S. Economy? US National Debt by Year Real GDP Per Capita, How to Calculate It, and Data Since 1947 What Is the Business Cycle? US Retail Sales Statistics and Trends U.S. Real GDP Growth Rate by Year Compared to Inflation and Unemployment How Does the U.S. Economy Work? What Is the Ideal GDP Growth Rate? 2009 GDP Statistics, Growth, and Updates by Quarter Newsletter Sign Up By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Cookies Settings Accept All Cookies