1997
10 different songs reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1997. The year opened with Un-Break My Heart by Toni Braxton at the top, and Candle In The Wind 1997/Something About The Way You Look Tonight by Elton John held #1 the longest — 12 weeks in 1997.
Prices rose 2.3% over 1996, a calm year by historical standards. One dollar in 1997 buys about what $2.01 buys in 2025.
A gallon of regular gas averaged $1.23, up 0% from 1996. In 2025 dollars that is $2.47, against an actual 2025 average of $3.26.
Mailing a letter took a 32¢ stamp (it is 73¢ in 2025), and the federal minimum wage was $4.88 an hour.
Every #1 hit of 1997
| Song | Artist | First week at #1 | Weeks at #1 in 1997 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Un-Break My Heart | Toni Braxton | Jan 4 | 7 |
| Wannabe | Spice Girls | Feb 22 | 4 |
| Can't Nobody Hold Me Down | Puff Daddy (Featuring Mase) | Mar 22 | 6 |
| Hypnotize | The Notorious B.I.G. | May 3 | 3 |
| MMMBop | Hanson | May 24 | 3 |
| I'll Be Missing You | Puff Daddy & Faith Evans Featuring 112 | Jun 14 | 11 |
| Mo Money Mo Problems | The Notorious B.I.G. Featuring Puff Daddy & Mase | Aug 30 | 2 |
| Honey | Mariah Carey | Sep 13 | 3 |
| 4 Seasons Of Loneliness | Boyz II Men | Oct 4 | 1 |
| Candle In The Wind 1997/Something About The Way You Look Tonight | Elton John | Oct 11 | 12 |
Weeks are counted within 1997; a song that carried over from 1996 or into 1998 shows only its 1997 weeks.
What things cost in 1997
| Item | 1997 price | In 2025 dollars | Actual 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gallon of regular gas | $1.23 | $2.47 | $3.26 |
| Dozen large eggs | $1.06 | $2.12 | $4.25 |
| Loaf of white bread (per lb) | $0.87 | $1.75 | $1.87 |
| Gallon of whole milk | $2.61 | $5.24 | $4.07 |
| Ground beef (per lb) | $1.40 | $2.80 | $6.09 |
| Whole chicken (per lb) | $1.00 | $2.01 | $2.06 |
| Bacon (per lb) | $2.68 | $5.38 | $7.02 |
| Ground coffee (per lb) | $4.11 | $8.25 | $8.18 |
| Bananas (per lb) | $0.49 | $0.98 | $0.65 |
| Sugar (per lb) | $0.43 | $0.87 | $1.02 |
| Potatoes (per lb) | $0.36 | $0.71 | $0.96 |
| Flour (per lb) | $0.30 | $0.61 | $0.56 |
| Electricity (per kWh) | $0.09 | $0.19 | $0.18 |
| Federal minimum wage (per hour) | $4.88 | $9.79 | $7.25 |
| Median new home sale price | $145,000 | $290,821 | $415,400 |
| First-class stamp | 32¢ | 64¢ | 73¢ |
Compare 1997 prices with any amount → · Find the #1 song on any day in 1997 →
The internet in 1997
- May 1997AOL Instant Messenger — AIM arrives — buddy lists, away messages and screen names you will regret. source
- September 15, 1997google.com is registered — Larry Page and Sergey Brin register google.com for their Stanford search project. source
See the web as it looked in 1997:
Yahoo! ↗Netscape ↗AOL ↗CNN ↗Amazon ↗Apple ↗Microsoft ↗The White House ↗GeoCities ↗Space Jam ↗eBay ↗
Links open the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine at its capture nearest July 1, 1997.
