By the late summer of 1976, gold's mid-decade correction had run its course, bottoming well below its 1974 high. From this low the metal began the second, steeper leg of the 1970s bull market. Renewed inflation, a weakening dollar, and the gathering crises of the decade's end would drive the price relentlessly upward over the next three years, culminating in the 1979 fever and the January 1980 peak.
Gold Price History · The Free-Float Era
1976
The Bull Market’s Low
Gold bottomed mid-decade — and then began the climb that would end in the 1980 mania.
- Average price
- $125/oz
- In 2025 dollars
- $706/oz
- Change on the year
- −22.5%
- After inflation
- −26.7%
1976 in context · real value, 1956–1996
What would $10,000 of gold in 1976 be worth today?
Run the numbers across gold, stocks, housing, and bonds — adjusted for inflation.
Calculate 1976 →How gold did in 1976
Value at year-end of $10,000 invested on 1 January 1976.
Gold $7,753 −22.5%
S&P 500 (total return) $12,383 +23.8%
US housing $10,762 +7.6%
Inflation (CPI) $10,576 +5.8%
Annual-average basis. Gold: Officer & Williamson; S&P 500 & Treasuries: Damodaran (NYU); housing: Shiller; CPI: BLS. Methodology →
Related years
Sources. Gold price: Officer & Williamson, The Price of Gold, 1257–Present (annual average); inflation adjustment by US CPI (BLS / Officer & Williamson). Asset comparison from the calculator dataset. Figures are annual averages. Full methodology →