Highest Inflation (in 2023)

Money to Burn

Inflation is a pretty natural process in an economy where the value of currency decreases over time as the supply of money increases. Inflation is part of the reason why milk used to cost $1.07 per gallon in 1968 and costs around $3.50 today. Some degree of inflation is expected and accounted for, and in some ways, it's actually beneficial to the average consumer—if you owe someone $100, and the value of a dollar decreases by 5%, you now effectively owe someone 5% less on that same $100. 

When inflation rates get higher than wage growth, however, then it can cause severe economic complications. If money is worth less and people aren't earning more money to account for the difference, the normal supply and demand get disrupted, and people can end up unable to afford basic living expenses.

Some of the most famous cases in history are the hyperinflation of the Zimbabwean Dollar (just before the currency was abandoned, 100 trillion Zimbabwean Dollars was worth approximately forty U.S. cents), and the hyperinflation of the Reichsmark in post-WWI Germany. In five years a loaf of bread in Germany went from a quarter of a Reichsmark to 80 billion Reichsmarks. The currency was so valueless that it was worth more as kindling to heat people's homes than as money. 

Find out which countries today are facing the highest rates of inflation as of 2023.