CPI Inflation Calculator — United Kingdom 2026/27
What a sum of money from an earlier year is worth today, measured against the official consumer price index for your country — with the buying power it lost, the average annual rate behind that, and the year-by-year path.
An inflation adjustment is one ratio: the price index in the later year divided by the index in the earlier one.
| 2010 | £1,000.00 |
|---|---|
| 2011 | £1,044.74 |
| 2012 | £1,074.94 |
| 2013 | £1,101.79 |
| 2014 | £1,118.57 |
| 2015 | £1,118.57 |
| 2016 | £1,126.40 |
| 2017 | £1,156.60 |
| 2018 | £1,184.56 |
| 2019 | £1,205.82 |
| 2020 | £1,215.88 |
| 2021 | £1,248.32 |
| 2022 | £1,361.30 |
| 2023 | £1,459.73 |
| 2024 | £1,497.76 |
| 2025 | £1,548.10 |
| 2026 | £1,593.96 |
| target | £1,000.00 |
| 2011 | 4.47 |
|---|---|
| 2012 | 2.89 |
| 2013 | 2.5 |
| 2014 | 1.52 |
| 2015 | 0 |
| 2016 | 0.7 |
| 2017 | 2.68 |
| 2018 | 2.42 |
| 2019 | 1.79 |
| 2020 | 0.83 |
| 2021 | 2.67 |
| 2022 | 9.05 |
| 2023 | 7.23 |
| 2024 | 2.61 |
| 2025 | 3.36 |
| 2026 | 2.96 |
How the cpi inflation calculator — united kingdom 2026/27 works
An inflation adjustment is one ratio: the price index in the later year divided by the index in the earlier one. Multiply the amount by that ratio and you have the sum that buys today what the original bought then. The index level itself means nothing on its own — the Australian series sits near 148 and the American near 334 for the same recent year, because they are counted from different base years — so only the ratio between two years of the SAME series is worth reading, and that is all this uses. The average annual rate is the geometric mean of the cumulative change, not the arithmetic one: prices compound, so a 55% rise over sixteen years is about 2.8% a year rather than 3.4%. The purchasing power lost is the gap between the adjusted amount and the original, and it is the honest way to state what cash in a drawer did over the period — not that the money shrank, but that what it buys did. Where the official index is not what you want to measure against — a private-school fee, a rent, a specific basket — the custom rate replaces the series with a flat compounding rate over the same span.
Formula: adjusted = amount × (CPI in the later year ÷ CPI in the earlier year) · average annual rate = (1 + cumulative)^(1 ÷ years) − 1
United Kingdom Inflation Notes
Formula
Inflation-adjusted amount = Original amount × (CPI in target year ÷ CPI in base year). For example, £1,000 in 2010 (CPI 89.4) adjusted to 2024 (CPI 133.9) = £1,000 × 133.9/89.4 = £1,498.
Data source
CPI data in this calculator is the Office for National Statistics (ONS) Consumer Prices Index (CPI) all-items index, 2015 = 100 (series D7BT, dataset MM23) — the headline measure for the whole of the United Kingdom. Years 2010–2025 are calendar-year averages; the 2026 figure is the latest published month, June 2026 (index 142.5, released 22 July 2026), when CPI was 2.6% higher than a year earlier. For the latest monthly release, visit ons.gov.uk.
Limitations
The all-items CPI is a national average. Your personal inflation rate depends on your specific spending mix. Households facing high rents and energy bills in London and the South East experienced far higher personal inflation in 2022–23 than the headline figure. The CPI does not capture all costs of living equally.
UK CPI historical dataCPI index values and annual rates 2010–2026
| Year | CPI index |
|---|---|
| 2010 | 89.4 |
| 2012 | 96.1 |
| 2014 | 100.0 |
| 2016 | 100.7 |
| 2018 | 105.9 |
| 2020 | 108.7 |
| 2021 | 111.6 (+2.6%) |
| 2022 | 121.7 (+9.1% avg) |
| 2023 | 130.5 (+7.3%) |
| 2024 | 133.9 (+2.5%) |
| 2025 | 138.4 (+3.4%) |
| 2026 (June) | 142.5 (+2.6% y/y) |
ONS CPI all-items index, 2015 = 100 (series D7BT). Figures to 2025 are calendar-year averages; the 2026 row is the latest published month, June 2026. Monthly CPI peaked at 11.1% in October 2022.
How inflation erodes savings and what return you need to maintain real value
The inflation break-even rate
To maintain the real value of savings, your after-tax return must exceed the inflation rate. At 3.5% inflation and a 40% marginal tax rate, you need a gross return of approximately 5.8% to break even in real terms. Most fixed-rate savings bonds in 2023–24 paid 4.5–5.5%, so they sat around — or just below — this break-even level. Interest above your Personal Savings Allowance is taxable, which is why the gross rate has to clear inflation by a margin; interest inside a cash ISA is not.
Rule of 72
Divide 72 by the inflation rate to estimate how many years it takes for prices to double. At 3.5% inflation, prices double approximately every 20.6 years. At 7% (2022 peak), prices would double every 10.3 years.
How to use CPI data to calculate real wage changes and negotiate effectively
Calculating your real wage change
Enter your salary from a previous year as the “amount,” set the from year to when you last had a meaningful raise, and the to year to the current year. The adjusted amount shows what your salary needs to be today to maintain the same real purchasing power. If your current salary is below this figure, you have had a real pay cut.
Using CPI in salary negotiations
Present the CPI-adjusted figure to your employer alongside your current salary. Frame it as maintaining purchasing power rather than asking for a “raise.” Over 2022–2024, most UK workers on fixed salaries or below-inflation pay deals lost 5–10% of real purchasing power.
Frequently askedFrequently asked questions
What is the United Kingdom's current CPI inflation rate?
UK CPI inflation was 2.6% in the 12 months to June 2026 (ONS, released 22 July 2026), down from 2.8% in the 12 months to May 2026 and from a peak of 11.1% in October 2022. Core CPI — excluding energy, food, alcohol and tobacco — was also 2.6%. The Bank of England has a 2% CPI target over the medium term. Check the latest monthly CPI release from the ONS for current figures.
What does the CPI basket include?
The ONS CPI basket tracks prices for a representative mix of goods and services bought by UK households, grouped into 12 divisions. The larger weights fall on transport, recreation and culture, restaurants and hotels, food and non-alcoholic drinks, and housing costs such as energy and rents (note that CPI, unlike CPIH, excludes owner-occupier mortgage and housing costs). The basket is reviewed every year to reflect changing spending patterns.
How does the Bank of England use CPI?
The Bank of England sets Bank Rate primarily to keep CPI inflation at its 2% target over the medium term. When CPI rises well above target, the Bank typically raises Bank Rate to slow economic activity and reduce inflation; when it falls below target, it may cut rates to stimulate spending. The 2022–23 rate-rise cycle (from 0.10% to 5.25%) was a direct response to CPI peaking at 11.1%.
Why doesn't CPI reflect my cost of living?
The CPI is a national average across all spending categories. Your personal inflation rate depends on your specific spending mix. If you spend a larger share on rent and energy, or live in London or the South East (where housing costs diverged from the national average), your personal inflation rate may be significantly higher than the headline CPI. The ONS publishes Household Costs Indices (HCIs) for different household types, which can be more accurate for specific situations.
Where these figures come from
Savings and interest figures on this page are drawn from the Bank of England (Bank Rate and published deposit averages), the Prudential Regulation Authority and the FSCS (deposit protection), and MoneyHelper (consumer guidance). Inflation figures come from the ONS.
- Bank of England Bank Rate — Bank of England — Bank Rate.
- Deposit interest-rate data — Bank of England — Retail Deposit and Investment Rates (F4).
- FSCS deposit protection (up to £120,000 per eligible person, per authorised firm, from 1 December 2025) — FSCS — Banks and building societies.
- Compound interest & savings strategy — MoneyHelper — Saving.
- UK inflation context — ONS — Consumer Prices Index.
Last checked: July 2026. Rates and thresholds are reviewed against the source of record each November, when annual adjustments for the following tax year are published.
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| Inputs | Inflation-adjusted amount | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 1,000 from 2010 in today’s money | £1,594 | sixteen years of the official index |
| Across the 2022 spike alone | £1,169 | two years that did what the previous ten did |
| A flat 3% instead of the index | £1,605 | for a basket the official index does not describe |
The sources behind this calculator
- CFA Institute — Quantitative Methods: The Time Value of Money — the discounting, annuity and IRR conventions used here
- US Federal Reserve — Regulation Z (Truth in Lending), APR calculation — why APR includes fees where a nominal rate does not
- MoneyHelper (UK Government-backed) — the UK's free money guidance service
Last checked: September 2026. These are the standard textbook formulas; the conventions named are those of the CFA Institute curriculum and ISO 80000 usage.