What your old salary is worth today
Prices have risen since you earned it. Enter what you were paid and the year to see what you would need to earn now to buy the same.
- Extra pay needed
- – a year, just to stand still
- Rise in prices
- –
- Measured by CPI, the ONS index of what a typical household buys.
- CPI index, 2015 = 100
- – –
- Prices in 2015 are set at 100. The latest figure came out on 21 October 2026.
Show the numbers as a table
| Year | CPI index | Salary needed | Change from start |
|---|
CPI tracks a typical basket, so your own costs, such as rent or a mortgage, may have moved differently. It compares the average for the year you pick with the latest month, and assumes your old salary was steady through that year.
How the comparison works
Prices have risen since you earned your old salary, so the same number of pounds buys less. The calculator scales your old salary by how much prices have risen since the year you choose, to show the pay that would buy the same today.
It uses the UK Consumer Prices Index (CPI) from the Office for National Statistics. The old year is an annual average and today is the latest monthly figure, currently September 2026. For example, £35,000 in 2021 matches about £45,210 today.
The comparison is of gross pay, before tax. Because income tax thresholds have not moved since 2021, a salary that only keeps pace with prices can leave you with less after tax in real terms. The take-home pay calculator shows that effect.
Common questions
How do I work out what my old salary is worth today?
Multiply the old salary by the latest CPI index, then divide by the average CPI index for the year you were paid it. The result is the salary that would buy the same today. The calculator does this for you and rounds to the nearest £10.
Which measure of inflation does it use?
The UK Consumer Prices Index (CPI), published by the Office for National Statistics. Past years use the annual average and the present uses the latest monthly index.
Does it take tax into account?
No. It compares gross pay with gross pay. Tax thresholds that stay frozen mean you can pay more of a pay rise in tax, so matching inflation before tax can still leave you worse off after tax. See the take-home pay calculator.
Is CPI the same as my own cost of living?
Not exactly. CPI measures an average basket of goods and services. Rent, a mortgage, childcare or energy may have risen faster or slower for you.