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Inflation Calculator

Enter an amount and two years — the calculator shows what the same basket costs now, how much prices grew in total and what that means per year.

Same basket costs —
Prices rose by
—
Average per year
—
Buying power of the sum
—

Data: World Bank, FP.CPI.TOTL (2010 = 100)

How to use

  1. Enter the amount and choose the country.
  2. Pick the starting year and the year to compare it with.
  3. Read the equivalent sum, the total growth and the average yearly inflation.

Good to know

Average inflation is not total growth divided by years

Prices grow from an already grown level, so the average is a compound rate, not a division. If prices tripled over thirty years, that is 3.7 % a year — dividing 200 % by 30 would give 6.7 % and overstate every year of that period nearly twice. The calculator reports the compound figure, which is the one that can be compared with a deposit rate or a pay rise.

The index number itself means nothing

Each series has its own base year: the World Bank sets 2010 = 100, the American CPI-U series is anchored to 1982—84. An index of 250 is therefore not «two and a half times more expensive than somewhere else» — only the ratio between two years of the same series carries meaning, and that ratio is all this tool uses.

Frequently asked questions

Where does the data come from?

Annual consumer price indices: the World Bank series FP.CPI.TOTL for most countries, and the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis annual average CPI-U for the United States — that one reaches back to 1913, which is why American questions about 1950 or 1970 can be answered at all.

Why does my own basket feel more expensive than the number here?

The index averages a whole country’s spending: food, rent, transport, electronics, services. Your own basket has different weights, and rent or tuition may have grown far faster than the average. The figure answers «how much did money in general lose», not «how much did my life cost».

Are old amounts converted into today’s currency?

Sums are shown in the country’s current currency. For countries that changed currency — the euro area, for instance — the number is a conversion of purchasing power, not a historical price tag in marks or francs.

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