By Ruby Lizon-Walker

22/11/2023

Use this calculator to work out the impact of current and historical inflation on your salary and savings. Our inflation calculator works for the UK only; for a US inflation calculator visit our partner site, savings.com.

Inflation Calculator FAQs


What is the inflation calculator for?

Using a UK inflation calculator, you can find out how much an item, transaction or service costs compared to another year.

Specifically, the GBP inflation calculator will tell you how much the value (how much you can buy with one pound) has increased or decreased between two years.


What can I find out using an inflation calculator?

The inflation calculator can find the equivalent buying power of any amount of money between two years. That means this tool can be used as a wage inflation calculator, a historical salary calculator, and a savings inflation calculator. You can find out the buying power of your salary in any year since 1914. You can also find out how your savings or pension have increased or decreased in value since you started saving. Learn more about your savings using our free savings calculator.


How to calculate the inflation rate

The inflation calculator takes the price of many items (based on the CPI^ or RPI^) in two years, finds the difference between the two, and then divides the difference by the starting price. This number is then multiplied by 100 to create a percentage change.

As a formula, the inflation calculation looks like this:

((A – B) / B) x 100 = inflation rate %

Where A = the current date’s price, and
B = the previous date’s price

Once the current inflation rate in the UK has been calculated, this alongside a database of historical inflation rates dating back to 1914 (UK data) can be applied to any amount of money to see how much you would need to buy the equivalent amount of goods in your comparison year.

Instead of doing the maths yourself, use our inflation adjustment calculator above for quick and accurate calculations.


How to use the inflation calculator:

  1. Figure out the amount of money you’d like to know the worth of (“starting amount")
  2. Choose your beginning year (any time from 1914 to 2022)
  3. Choose your ending year (any time from 1914 to 2022)
  4. Click the Calculate button
  5. Scroll down and check the “Results" section to see how many pounds your “starting amount" is worth in your ending year


Are there any more resources to find out how inflation works and what it means?

Yes. The rate of inflation is monitored and regulated in part by the Bank of England. The Bank of England website has a list of FAQs available to explain interest and inflation and the link between the two.

You can check out our Cost of Living Guide for more information about why inflation has increased so much since 2022, why this is impactful, and ways you can make your money go further during times of high inflation. For more saving tips, check out our saving guides.


What is the current inflation rate in the UK?

The rate of inflation is continuously changing. For the latest and most accurate data, visit the Office for National Statistics “Inflation and price indices" page, which is updated monthly.


Definitions:

^CPI (Consumer Price Index): A record of the average amount UK consumers pay for a basket of goods over time.

Inflation: The increase in the amount consumers pay for goods and services.

Deflation: The decrease in the amount consumers pay for goods and services.

^RPI (Retail Price Index): The monthly change in inflation or deflation, including housing costs.

Interest: The amount you will be charged for taking out a loan (as a percentage of the total loan value), separate to repayment charges.