Gold Per Capita
66 annual observations

Gold price history: the same ounce, 98× the cash

The World Bank annual series rises from $35 per troy ounce in 1960 to $3,442 in 2025. The path was uneven: long plateaus and drawdowns sit inside a roughly 98-fold nominal increase.

Coverage1960–2025 annual averagesPrimary sourceWorld Bank Commodity Price Data (Pink Sheet)Published2026-09-26
Gold price history poster with 66 annual World Bank observations plotted at their calendar years. One troy ounce averaged $35 in 1960 and $3,442 in 2025, about 98 times as many nominal dollars. The line shows the 1980 rise, the 2012–2015 decline and the 2025 endpoint.
The same one-troy-ounce gold bar cost $35 in the 1960 annual average and $3,442 in 2025: about 98 times as much nominal cash.
Download full infographicEditable SVG865 × 1,600 px · WebP
Chart data and description

The calendar-spaced World Bank annual line begins at $35 in 1960, marks $608 in 1980 and reaches $3,442 in 2025. Annual averages fell from $1,670 in 2012 to $1,161 in 2015, a 30% decline. The small gold-bar engraving is decorative; the prices are nominal and not live quotes.

1960 average$35.00Nominal USD per troy ounce
2025 average$3,442.0098.3× the 1960 level
Highest annual average$3,442.002025 in this series
Annual gold price in nominal U.S. dollars per troy ounceAnnual gold price in nominal U.S. dollars per troy ounce from 1960 through 2025. It begins at $35.00, peaks at $3,442.00 in 2025, and ends at $3,442.00. $0.00$860.50$1,721.00$2,581.50$3,442.00Peak $3,442.00 · 202519601970198019902000201020202025
Annual gold price in nominal U.S. dollars per troy ounce. Source values are available in the linked data table and downloads.

Sources, methods and reusable data

The chart, axes and labels come from the published data; the engraved artwork is decorative. Read the source notes or download the underlying data.

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Suggested citation

Gold Per Capita. “Gold price history: the same ounce, 98× the cash.” 2026-09-26. https://goldpercapita.com/infographics/gold-price-history-1960-2025