How Much Did the Commodore PET Cost in 1977?
By the Price Time Machine team · Updated
The Commodore PET price was $795 in 1977, when the PET 2001 became one of the first personal computers sold ready to use. Adjusted for inflation, that is about $4,349 in September 2026 money, roughly 5.5 times the original price.
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Commodore PET 2001 at a glance
- US launch price
- $795
- In today’s money
- ≈ $4,349October 1977 to September 2026 (CPI-U, BLS)
- US release date
- October 1, 1977
- Where the company was based
- Palo Alto, United StatesMade by Commodore Business Machines, then based in Palo Alto, California. Chuck Peddle led the design.
- 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.
What did $795 get you?
The PET 2001 was an all-in-one computer. The keyboard, screen and a cassette recorder for saving programs were all built into one metal case, so you could plug it in and start typing straight away.
Commodore first planned a cheaper 4KB model alongside the 8KB one, but dropped it in early 1978.
The Commodore PET price in today’s money
Inflation means a dollar buys less today than it did in 1977. Using the US Consumer Price Index, the original Commodore PET price of $795 works out at about $4,349 in September 2026 money, around 5.5 times the original figure. That is what the same amount of spending power would cost now, not what a Commodore PET sells for second-hand.
When was the Commodore PET released?
- Shown to the public: January 1977, at the Winter Consumer Electronics Show
- First units shipped: October 1977
- Widely available: December 1977
Where was the Commodore PET made?
It was made by Commodore Business Machines, then based in Palo Alto, California. Chuck Peddle, who had designed the 6502 chip inside it, led the team that built it.
Commodore PET facts you might not know
- The name came from a joke. Commodore’s Andre Souson saw the Pet Rock craze and said they should make a “pet computer”.
- Commodore later said PET stood for “Personal Electronic Transactor”.
- It arrived in the same year as the Apple II and the TRS-80, the three machines often called the 1977 trinity of home computers.
Frequently asked questions
How much did the Commodore PET cost?
The Commodore PET 2001 cost $795 in 1977.
How much is $795 from 1977 worth today?
Adjusted for US inflation, the Commodore PET’s $795 price is about $4,349 in September 2026 money.
What does PET stand for?
Commodore said it stood for Personal Electronic Transactor, but the name started as a joke about the Pet Rock.
When did the Commodore PET come out?
It was shown in January 1977 and the first units shipped in October 1977.
Want to compare the Commodore PET price with other launch prices? See what the TRS-80 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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