How Much Did the Commodore 64 Cost in 1982?
By the Price Time Machine team · Updated
The Commodore 64 price was $595 when it went on sale in the United States in August 1982. Adjusted for inflation, that is about $2,052 in September 2026 money, roughly 3.4 times the original price.
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Commodore 64 at a glance
- US launch price
- $595
- In today’s money
- ≈ $2,052August 1982 to September 2026 (CPI-U, BLS)
- US release date
- August 1, 1982
- Where it was designed
- West Chester, Pennsylvania, United StatesDesigned by Commodore's engineers at its base in West Chester, Pennsylvania.
- Category
- Gaming & tech
- Price source
- en.wikipedia.org
Today’s price is the US launch price adjusted for US inflation with the Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, comparing the launch month with the latest published month. It updates automatically as new figures come out.
How Commodore made it so cheap
At its first showing, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January 1982, rivals were amazed. One Commodore engineer remembered Atari staff asking, “How can you do that for $595?” The answer was that Commodore owned MOS Technology, which made its chips, so it controlled its own costs.
The price then fell fast. In January 1983 Commodore cut it to $425, and in April 1983 it offered a $100 rebate to anyone trading in another console or computer, bringing the effective price down to $299.
The Commodore 64 price in today’s money
Inflation means a dollar buys less today than it did in 1982. Using the US Consumer Price Index, the original Commodore 64 price of $595 works out at about $2,052 in September 2026 money, around 3.4 times the original figure. That is what the same amount of spending power would cost now, not what the Commodore 64 sells for second-hand.
Where was the Commodore 64 designed?
Commodore’s engineers designed it at the company’s base in West Chester, Pennsylvania. It was named after its 64 KB of memory.
Commodore 64 facts you might not know
- Guinness World Records lists it as the best-selling desktop computer model of all time, with estimates of 12.5 to 17 million sold.
- Between 1983 and 1986 it had 30% to 40% of the US computer market.
- It was sold in ordinary shops, not just computer stores, and has been compared to the Ford Model T for bringing a new technology to ordinary households.
- Its SID sound chip was praised as a true music synthesiser, and about 10,000 commercial programs were made for it.
Frequently asked questions
How much did a Commodore 64 cost in 1982?
The Commodore 64 cost $595 when it went on sale in August 1982. By April 1983 a rebate brought the effective price down to $299.
How much is $595 from 1982 worth today?
Adjusted for US inflation, the Commodore 64’s launch price is about $2,052 in September 2026 money.
How many Commodore 64s were sold?
Estimates range from 12.5 to 17 million, making it the best-selling desktop computer model ever.
Want to compare the Commodore 64 price with other launch prices? See what the IBM PC cost, browse more famous launch prices, or play this question in Price Time Machine.
Sources
Launch prices and dates are checked against the sources below. Today’s price is calculated from official US inflation data and updates automatically when new figures are published.
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