Gold vs. Inflation
This is the chart that actually answers “is gold a hedge against inflation”: gold’s nominal price indexed to 100 against the US Consumer Price Index, also indexed to 100. The gap between the two lines is gold’s real, inflation-adjusted return, stated directly below the chart rather than left for the reader to estimate visually.
| Measure | Gold | CPI |
|---|---|---|
| Total returnOver the selected window | +945.80% | +81.93% |
| Annualised (CAGR)Compound yearly rate | +10.91% | +2.68% |
| Max drawdownWorst peak-to-trough fall | −44.6% | −4.4% |
| CorrelationDaily moves, −1 to +1 | 0.02over 23 yrs | |
Gold's inflation-adjusted (real) return: +8.02% annualised; gold has outpaced the cost of living over this window.