In 2000, "Breathe" topped the charts, Gladiator packed theaters, a stamp cost 33¢, the average home went for about $169,000.
🎵 Top songs of 2000
"Breathe" — Faith Hill
"Smooth" — Santana featuring Rob Thomas
"Maria Maria" — Santana featuring The Product G&B
🎬 In theaters
Gladiator
Mission: Impossible 2
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
What things cost in 2000
$1.51
Gallon of gas
33¢
Postage stamp
$5.39
Movie ticket
$2.79
Gallon of milk
$169,000
Average home
$20,400
New car
$42,148
Household income
A $1.51 gallon of gas in 2000 had the buying power of roughly $2.75–$2.85 in 2024 dollars. A 33¢ stamp had about the same value as a 60¢ stamp today.
The biggest moments of 2000
The Y2K bug didn't bite — and the world rang in a new millennium.
The dot-com bubble peaked, then burst.
Sony released the PlayStation 2.
The contested U.S. presidential election went to George W. Bush after the Supreme Court ruled in Bush v. Gore.
The Concorde crash near Paris ended the era of supersonic passenger flight.
The "ILOVEYOU" computer worm infected millions of computers worldwide in May.
Toys, TV & trends of 2000
Pokémon trading cards were in every kid's backpack.
Razor scooters were the must-have toy of the year.
Survivor reality TV debuted on CBS in May.
"Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" was a TV phenomenon.
Low-rise jeans, butterfly clips, and frosted tips defined Y2K fashion.
TRL on MTV was must-watch after-school TV.
Furby toys and Tamagotchis were still everywhere.
The music scene
2000 was the peak of teen pop (Britney Spears, *NSYNC, Backstreet Boys), the late-golden-era of hip-hop (Eminem's Marshall Mathers LP, Jay-Z), Latin crossover (Shakira, Ricky Martin), and nu-metal's mainstream takeover (Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park).
At the movies
Gladiator won 5 Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Actor. Mission: Impossible 2 was the highest-grossing film worldwide ($546M). How the Grinch Stole Christmas led U.S. domestic box office. Cast Away, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, and Memento also defined the year.
Cartoons kids loved
SpongeBob SquarePants
Pokémon
Rugrats
SpongeBob SquarePants debuted in 1999 and exploded into a global phenomenon in 2000, eventually becoming Nickelodeon's longest-running show. Pokémon's "Indigo League" anime drove a worldwide trading-card craze. Rugrats was in its final original-content years.
The world in 2000
World population: about 6.1 billion
U.S. President: Bill Clinton (Bush elected in November)
The International Space Station received its first long-term crew
The Sydney Summer Olympics drew global audiences in September.
The International Space Station received its first long-term crew in November.
Vladimir Putin was inaugurated as President of Russia in May.
2000 birthday questions
How old is someone born in 2000?
Someone born in 2000 turns 26 in 2026 (25 if their birthday has not come round yet).
What was the number one song in 2000?
"Breathe" by Faith Hill was among the biggest hits of 2000.
What movie came out in 2000?
Gladiator was one of the films packing theaters in 2000.
How much did gas cost in 2000?
A gallon of gas ran about $1.51 in 2000, and a postage stamp cost 33¢.
How much did a house cost in 2000?
The average home went for roughly $169,000 in 2000, against a typical household income of about $42,148.