UK Pounds Inflation Calculator 2026/27: GBP Purchasing Power Across History
What £1, £100 or £1,000 from past years is worth today using ONS CPI annual averages, plus CPI vs CPIH vs RPI and how frozen tax thresholds cause fiscal drag.
£100 from historical years - today's equivalent value
Using ONS CPI D7BT annual averages, indexed to 2015 = 100:
| Year | CPI | £100 from that year in 2025 pounds | Cumulative price growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 55.9 | £247.58 | +148% |
| 1995 | 67.2 | £205.95 | +106% |
| 2000 | 72.7 | £190.37 | +90% |
| 2005 | 78.1 | £177.21 | +77% |
| 2010 | 89.4 | £154.81 | +55% |
| 2015 | 100 | £138.40 | +38% |
| 2020 | 108.7 | £127.32 | +27% |
| 2023 | 130.5 | £106.05 | +6% |
For any pair of UK years, use our inflation calculator. Over the 35 years from 1990, CPI rose an average of 2.6% a year, so £100 from 1990 has lost about 60% of its purchasing power by 2025.
UK CPI annual averages
Annual averages from 1949 to 2025, indexed to 2015 = 100. From 1988 the figures are ONS series D7BT; before 1988 they are ONS modelled estimates, which ONS says are not National Statistics and are provided for indicative purposes only. Updated when ONS publishes each year's annual figure.
| Year | CPI annual average | YoY change |
|---|---|---|
| 1949 (modelled) | 4.5 | n/a |
| 1950 (modelled) | 4.7 | +4.44% |
| 1951 (modelled) | 5.1 | +8.51% |
| 1952 (modelled) | 5.5 | +7.84% |
| 1953 (modelled) | 5.7 | +3.64% |
| 1954 (modelled) | 5.8 | +1.75% |
| 1955 (modelled) | 6.1 | +5.17% |
| 1956 (modelled) | 6.4 | +4.92% |
| 1957 (modelled) | 6.6 | +3.12% |
| 1958 (modelled) | 6.8 | +3.03% |
| 1959 (modelled) | 6.8 | +0.00% |
| 1960 (modelled) | 6.9 | +1.47% |
| 1961 (modelled) | 7.1 | +2.90% |
| 1962 (modelled) | 7.4 | +4.23% |
| 1963 (modelled) | 7.6 | +2.70% |
| 1964 (modelled) | 7.8 | +2.63% |
| 1965 (modelled) | 8.2 | +5.13% |
| 1966 (modelled) | 8.5 | +3.66% |
| 1967 (modelled) | 8.7 | +2.35% |
| 1968 (modelled) | 9 | +3.45% |
| 1969 (modelled) | 9.5 | +5.56% |
| 1970 (modelled) | 10.1 | +6.32% |
| 1971 (modelled) | 10.9 | +7.92% |
| 1972 (modelled) | 11.7 | +7.34% |
| 1973 (modelled) | 12.7 | +8.55% |
| 1974 (modelled) | 14.6 | +14.96% |
| 1975 (modelled) | 17.8 | +21.92% |
| 1976 (modelled) | 20.5 | +15.17% |
| 1977 (modelled) | 23.5 | +14.63% |
| 1978 (modelled) | 25.3 | +7.66% |
| 1979 (modelled) | 28 | +10.67% |
| 1980 (modelled) | 32.2 | +15.00% |
| 1981 (modelled) | 35.8 | +11.18% |
| 1982 (modelled) | 38.7 | +8.10% |
| 1983 (modelled) | 40.6 | +4.91% |
| 1984 (modelled) | 42.4 | +4.43% |
| 1985 (modelled) | 44.6 | +5.19% |
| 1986 (modelled) | 46.2 | +3.59% |
| 1987 (modelled) | 47.7 | +3.25% |
| 1988 | 49.6 | +3.98% |
| 1989 | 52.2 | +5.24% |
| 1990 | 55.9 | +7.09% |
| 1991 | 60.1 | +7.51% |
| 1992 | 62.6 | +4.16% |
| 1993 | 64.2 | +2.56% |
| 1994 | 65.5 | +2.02% |
| 1995 | 67.2 | +2.60% |
| 1996 | 68.8 | +2.38% |
| 1997 | 70.1 | +1.89% |
| 1998 | 71.2 | +1.57% |
| 1999 | 72.1 | +1.26% |
| 2000 | 72.7 | +0.83% |
| 2001 | 73.6 | +1.24% |
| 2002 | 74.5 | +1.22% |
| 2003 | 75.5 | +1.34% |
| 2004 | 76.5 | +1.32% |
| 2005 | 78.1 | +2.09% |
| 2006 | 79.9 | +2.30% |
| 2007 | 81.8 | +2.38% |
| 2008 | 84.7 | +3.55% |
| 2009 | 86.6 | +2.24% |
| 2010 | 89.4 | +3.23% |
| 2011 | 93.4 | +4.47% |
| 2012 | 96.1 | +2.89% |
| 2013 | 98.5 | +2.50% |
| 2014 | 100 | +1.52% |
| 2015 | 100 | +0.00% |
| 2016 | 100.7 | +0.70% |
| 2017 | 103.4 | +2.68% |
| 2018 | 105.9 | +2.42% |
| 2019 | 107.8 | +1.79% |
| 2020 | 108.7 | +0.83% |
| 2021 | 111.6 | +2.67% |
| 2022 | 121.7 | +9.05% |
| 2023 | 130.5 | +7.23% |
| 2024 | 133.9 | +2.61% |
| 2025 | 138.4 | +3.36% |
CPI vs CPIH vs RPI - which to use
| Index | Series | Owner-occupiers' housing costs? | Used for |
|---|---|---|---|
| CPI | D7BT | No | Bank of England 2% target; September CPI in the State Pension triple lock |
| CPIH | L55O | Yes, plus Council Tax | ONS lead measure of inflation since March 2017 |
| RPI | CHAW | Includes mortgage interest payments | Legacy contracts such as some index-linked gilts and pension schemes; Plan 2 student loan interest. Not accredited official statistics. CPIH methods can be brought into RPI from February 2030. |
Sources: ONS consumer price inflation QMI; HM Treasury and UKSA RPI reform response. For most general-purpose UK calculations CPI D7BT is the standard reference, and our inflation calculator uses it.
Fiscal drag - the silent tax rise
Fiscal drag is the rise in tax that comes from keeping thresholds fixed in cash terms while prices and wages rise. These are frozen until 5 April 2031 (extended at the Autumn Budget 2025):
- Personal Allowance £12,570
- Higher-rate threshold £50,270
- Additional-rate threshold £125,140
- Inheritance Tax nil-rate band £325,000
- Residence nil-rate band £175,000
Other fixed amounts that are not indexed include the National Insurance Primary Threshold (£12,570) and Upper Earnings Limit (£50,270), which are aligned with the Income Tax thresholds, the £20,000 ISA allowance and the £60,000 pension annual allowance.
Illustration: the Personal Allowance has been £12,570 since 2021/22. Had it risen with CPI annual averages from 2021 to 2025, it would be about £15,589, and a basic-rate taxpayer would pay about £604 a year less tax. This is our calculation from the CPI series, not an official estimate.
The Capital Gains Tax annual exempt amount was cut outright, from £12,300 in 2022/23 to £6,000 in 2023/24 and £3,000 from 2024/25 (GOV.UK) - a real-terms reduction on top of fiscal drag.
Related calculators and guides
- UK inflation calculator - interactive year-by-year purchasing power tool.
- Salary vs inflation £35,000 - real-term salary growth comparison.
- What £50,000 buys you - purchasing power across UK cities.
- UK State Pension guide - triple lock uprating.
- Personal Allowance guide - frozen until 5 April 2031.
- £100k tax trap - the Personal Allowance taper.
- Budget 2026 summary
- All insights - more UK economic and pay-data deep dives.
Frequently asked questions
How much has the pound lost to inflation?
Using ONS CPI annual averages, prices in 2025 were 2.48 times their 1990 level, so £100 from 1990 has lost about 60% of its purchasing power - an average of 2.6% a year. The annual rate peaked at 11.1% in October 2022 (ONS series D7G7). See the year-by-year table below.
How is UK inflation measured?
Three official indices. CPI (Consumer Prices Index, series D7BT, 2015 = 100) is the measure the Bank of England's 2% target uses, and the September CPI figure feeds the State Pension triple lock. It excludes owner-occupiers' housing costs. CPIH adds owner-occupiers' housing costs and Council Tax, and has been ONS's lead measure of inflation since 21 March 2017. RPI (Retail Prices Index) is the oldest; ONS says it does not meet the standard for accredited official statistics and is still published because long-term contracts are tied to it. This calculator uses CPI.
What has UK inflation averaged over the long run?
From the CPI annual averages: 2.7% a year from 1990 to 2000, 2.1% from 2000 to 2010 and 2.0% from 2010 to 2020. Annual average CPI rose 9.1% in 2022, 7.2% in 2023, 2.6% in 2024 and 3.4% in 2025. The monthly annual rate peaked at 11.1% in October 2022, the highest in the D7G7 series, which starts in 1989. For earlier decades ONS publishes modelled estimates, which it says are for indicative purposes only; on those, the largest annual-average rise was in 1975, at about 21.9%.
What is £100 from 1990 worth today?
Using ONS CPI annual averages, £100 in 1990 had the same purchasing power as about £248 in 2025 - prices rose about 148% over 35 years, 2.6% a year on average. For comparison: £100 from 2000 is about £190.37; from 2010 about £154.81; from 2020 about £127.32. Prices rose faster after 2020 because of the 2022-23 spike. For any pair of years, use our inflation calculator.
How does inflation affect my salary in real terms?
Divide your salary by the price index to express it in a common year's prices. With CPI at 100 in 2015 and 138.4 in 2025, £40,000 in 2025 buys what £28,902 bought in 2015. So someone who earned £30,000 in 2015 and £40,000 in 2025 is about 4% worse off in real terms. Our salary vs inflation pages run the comparison for specific salaries.
What is fiscal drag and how is it linked to inflation?
Fiscal drag is the rise in tax that comes from keeping thresholds fixed in cash terms while prices and wages rise. The Personal Allowance (£12,570), higher-rate threshold (£50,270) and additional-rate threshold (£125,140) are frozen until 5 April 2031, as are the Inheritance Tax nil-rate band (£325,000) and residence nil-rate band (£175,000). Illustration: the Personal Allowance has been £12,570 since 2021/22. Had it risen with CPI annual averages from 2021 to 2025, it would be about £15,589, and a basic-rate taxpayer would pay about £604 a year less tax. Separately, a £4,000 pay rise for a basic-rate employee leaves £2,880 after 20% Income Tax and 8% National Insurance - and less in real terms if prices rose faster than pay.
What is the Bank of England 2% inflation target?
The government sets the Bank of England a target of keeping CPI inflation at 2%. If inflation misses the target by more than 1 percentage point either side - above 3% or below 1% - the Governor writes to the Chancellor explaining why and what the Bank will do (Bank of England). The Monetary Policy Committee sets Bank Rate to meet the target. Bank Rate was raised 14 times between December 2021 (from 0.1% to 0.25%) and August 2023 (to 5.25%), then cut to 5% in August 2024, 4.75% in November 2024, 4.5% in February 2025, 4.25% in May 2025, 4% in August 2025 and 3.75% in December 2025. The target has been based on CPI since December 2003, replacing RPIX (ONS).
How does inflation affect the State Pension?
The full new State Pension is uprated each April by the triple lock: the highest of CPI inflation (the September figure), growth in average earnings, or 2.5%. It was £203.85 a week in 2023/24, £221.20 in 2024/25 (up 8.5%), £230.25 in 2025/26 (up 4.1%) and £241.30 in 2026/27 (up 4.8%, ahead of September 2025 CPI of 3.8%, ONS D7G7).
What is the difference between CPI and CPIH?
They use the same basket, except that CPIH (series L55O) also includes owner-occupiers' housing costs - the costs of owning, maintaining and living in your own home - and Council Tax. ONS calls CPIH its most comprehensive measure and has used it as its lead measure since March 2017. CPI (D7BT) excludes those costs and is the measure the Bank of England targets. The two usually differ by a fraction of a percentage point, depending on how housing costs move.
What about RPI? Is it still used?
Yes, but only for legacy purposes. ONS says RPI and its derivatives do not meet the standard for accredited official statistics and are still published because they are tied to long-term contracts - for example some index-linked gilts and pension schemes. Plan 2 student loan interest is also set from RPI. The UK Statistics Authority intends to bring CPIH's methods and data sources into RPI; the government would not consent before 2030, so the change can be made in February 2030 (HM Treasury and UKSA consultation response).
Why was UK inflation so high in 2022-2023?
CPI's annual rate reached 11.1% in October 2022, the highest in the D7G7 series since it starts in 1989. Energy prices rose sharply after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The Bank of England raised Bank Rate 14 times between December 2021 and August 2023, from 0.1% to 5.25%. The annual rate was 3.1% in August 2026 (ONS D7G7).
How can I protect savings against UK inflation?
No single product guarantees it. Common approaches: (1) index-linked investments, such as index-linked gilts, which pay more as prices rise but can still fall in market value; (2) a diversified long-term portfolio of shares, which has historically outpaced inflation over long periods, with no guarantee and with sharp falls along the way; (3) using tax wrappers - ISA growth is tax-free, and pension contributions get tax relief; (4) keeping only the cash you need in savings and comparing the interest rate with inflation. For large sums, regulated financial advice may be worth paying for.
How does inflation affect tax thresholds and allowances?
Most UK thresholds are fixed in cash terms and not indexed. The Personal Allowance, higher-rate and additional-rate thresholds and the Inheritance Tax nil-rate and residence nil-rate bands are frozen until 5 April 2031. National Insurance's Primary Threshold (£12,570) and Upper Earnings Limit (£50,270) are aligned with the Income Tax thresholds. The £20,000 ISA allowance and the £60,000 pension annual allowance are fixed amounts, and from 6 April 2027 the cash ISA limit for under-65s falls to £12,000. The Capital Gains Tax annual exempt amount was cut from £12,300 in 2022/23 to £6,000 in 2023/24 and £3,000 from 2024/25. Each year that prices rise, a fixed threshold is worth less in real terms.