Gold Price in 1980

In 1980, the price of gold averaged $615 per troy ounce, up 100.3% from the year before. This page covers the 1980 average, high, low, and year-end close, the events that moved the market, and what that gold would be worth in today's dollars.

1980 Average

$615

LBMA annual average, USD/oz

Change vs 1979

+100.3%

from $307 in 1979

1980 High

$873

from daily trading data

1980 Low

$453

from daily trading data

Year-End Close

$600

last trading day of 1980

What happened to the gold price in 1980

Gold averaged $615 per troy ounce in 1980, surging 100.3% from the $307 average of 1979. Annual moves of that size are rare and put 1980 among the most explosive years in the metal's modern history. Daily trading data shows gold moved between a low of $453 and a high of $873 during the year, ending 1980 at $600. The defining story of 1980: Gold peaks at $850; Volcker hikes rates.

The 1980s marked the start of a two-decade bear market for gold. Paul Volcker's aggressive interest rate hikes broke the back of inflation and pushed real yields sharply higher, pulling capital out of bullion and into bonds and equities.

Adjusted for inflation, gold's 1980 average of $615 equals about $2,406 in today's dollars. The conversion uses US Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U annual averages, so treat it as a close approximation rather than an exact figure.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the price of gold in 1980?

Gold averaged $615 per troy ounce in 1980, based on LBMA annual average data. Daily prices ranged from a low of $453 to a high of $873, and the year closed at $600. That average was up 100.3% from $307 in 1979.

What is a 1980 gold price worth in today's dollars?

Adjusted with the US Consumer Price Index, gold's 1980 average of $615 works out to roughly $2,406 in today's dollars, using 2025 as the CPI base year. The conversion uses BLS CPI-U annual averages, so treat it as a close approximation rather than an exact figure.

What moved the gold price in 1980?

The defining story of 1980: Gold peaks at $850; Volcker hikes rates. Against that backdrop, the annual average climbed 100.3%, from $307 in 1979 to $615.

Annual averages are LBMA prices per troy ounce in US dollars. Where shown, the yearly high, low, and close come from MetalCharts daily historical data and may differ slightly from figures published elsewhere. Inflation adjustments use BLS CPI-U annual averages.