Can I look up historical CPI here?

No. Enter the average rate yourself; official CPI tables are published by national statistics agencies such as the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

What rate should I use for planning?

2–3% suits long-term developed-market planning. For tuition or healthcare-specific costs, higher sector-specific rates are common.

Why does purchasing power fall faster than prices rise?

They are mirror images: buying power divides by the same compounding factor that prices multiply by, so it decays slightly faster than a naive subtraction suggests.

Finance

Inflation Calculator

What this does

Project what today’s prices will cost after years of inflation; and what tomorrow’s money will really buy.

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Good to know

Inflation is a quiet tax on idle cash

Money under the mattress loses purchasing power exponentially. This is the core argument for investing even conservative savings; returns must merely beat inflation for wealth to hold its real value.

Choosing a rate

Central banks in developed economies typically target around 2%. Using 3% builds in a margin; using a recent spike overstates the long run. For salary negotiations, think in the same terms: a raise below inflation is a real pay cut.

How it's calculated

The math behind this calculator

Future cost = Amount × (1 + r)^t Purchasing power = Amount / (1 + r)^t

At a constant inflation rate r, prices multiply by (1+r) every year. The same math in reverse tells you how much a fixed pile of money will actually buy after t years of rising prices.

Assumptions & limitations

One constant average rate; real-world inflation varies year to year.
Long-run developed-market inflation has averaged roughly 2–3%; the US long-run average is near 3%.
Not a historical CPI lookup; it projects forward from your chosen rate.

Worked example

At 3% average inflation, a $1,000 expense today costs about $1,806 in 20 years; and $1,000 of cash kept idle buys only about $554 worth of goods.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Can I look up historical CPI here?: No. Enter the average rate yourself; official CPI tables are published by national statistics agencies such as the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
What rate should I use for planning?: 2–3% suits long-term developed-market planning. For tuition or healthcare-specific costs, higher sector-specific rates are common.
Why does purchasing power fall faster than prices rise?: They are mirror images: buying power divides by the same compounding factor that prices multiply by, so it decays slightly faster than a naive subtraction suggests.

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