Inflation calculator
What your money will buy later, what today's life will cost, and what an amount from the past is worth now, using official price indices.
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In 20 years, €10,000 buys what €6,730 buys today.
At 2% inflation a year, money kept as cash loses 33% of its purchasing power over 20 years. To keep up, it has to earn at least 2% a year after tax.
- Worth in today's money
- €6,730
- Purchasing power lost
- 33%
- Prices double every
- 35 years
- Same basket costs then
- €14,859
- Purchasing power
- Amount on paper
What if… worth in today's money
See the figures
| Year | Purchasing power | Price of today's basket |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | €9,804 | €10,200 |
| Year 2 | €9,612 | €10,404 |
| Year 3 | €9,423 | €10,612 |
| Year 4 | €9,238 | €10,824 |
| Year 5 | €9,057 | €11,041 |
| Year 6 | €8,880 | €11,262 |
| Year 7 | €8,706 | €11,487 |
| Year 8 | €8,535 | €11,717 |
| Year 9 | €8,368 | €11,951 |
| Year 10 | €8,203 | €12,190 |
| Year 11 | €8,043 | €12,434 |
| Year 12 | €7,885 | €12,682 |
| Year 13 | €7,730 | €12,936 |
| Year 14 | €7,579 | €13,195 |
| Year 15 | €7,430 | €13,459 |
| Year 16 | €7,284 | €13,728 |
| Year 17 | €7,142 | €14,002 |
| Year 18 | €7,002 | €14,282 |
| Year 19 | €6,864 | €14,568 |
| Year 20 | €6,730 | €14,859 |
Next step
How it calculates
Inflation is the rise in the price of a typical basket of goods and services. The calculator works in three directions:
- What my money buys later: an amount kept as cash, in today’s money after n years.
- What today costs later: the price of today’s basket after n years.
- Past prices: what an amount from one year corresponds to in another, using the official consumer price index.
The first two use one yearly rate, compounded:
Value in today’s money = amount / (1 + i)n · Future price = amount × (1 + i)n
The history mode divides the two years’ annual average index values. For Germany it uses the consumer price index of the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis, 2020 = 100), for the US the CPI-U of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (1982–84 = 100), each from 1991 to 2025.
Example: 10,000 in 20 years
At 2% a year, €10,000 kept as cash buys in 20 years what €6,730 buys today. It loses 33% of its purchasing power, and the same basket then costs €14,859. At 3 % the amount is worth only €5,537 in today’s money.
Two per cent sounds harmless, but it compounds: prices double in about 35 years. That is why cash for decades is not a safe choice, only a stable-looking one. To keep its purchasing power, money has to earn at least the inflation rate after tax.
What prices did in the past
In Germany, 100 in 1991 corresponds to €197 in 2025 prices, an average of 2% a year. The years were uneven: from 2021 to 2022 alone prices rose by 6.9%, and since 2020 they are up 22% in total. In the United States, US$100 in 1991 corresponds to US$236 in 2025, 2.6% a year.
For German amounts before 2002, convert from D-Mark first at the fixed rate of 1.95583 DM per euro. The calculator uses annual averages, so it compares years, not single months.
Germany and the US compared
Both countries had similar inflation for most of the period, but the US ran a little higher: 2.6% a year since 1991 against 2% in Germany. Over 34 years that adds up. The 2022 surge hit both, and US prices had already started rising faster in 2021. Choose the country under “Prices in”; the two indices use different base years (2020 = 100 and 1982–84 = 100), but the ratio between two years means the same thing. The amounts are shown in the currency you pick; the index does not convert currencies.
Which rate should I use for the future?
The European Central Bank aims for 2 % a year over the medium term, and that is a sensible default. Your own inflation can differ: rent, energy, childcare and health care have often risen faster than the average basket. If most of your money goes to these, try 3 % as well. For the next decades nobody knows the rate, which is why plans should hold up across a range rather than rely on one number.
Real return: what is left after inflation
Inflation also eats returns. What counts is the real return: (1 + return) / (1 + inflation) − 1. A savings account at 3 % with 2 % inflation earns 0.98% a year in real terms; after 26.375 % tax on the interest (above the allowance) it is only 0.2%. A global equity fund at 7 % before tax keeps about 4.9% a year after inflation, with large swings along the way. Use the ETF savings plan calculator for the effect of fees and tax.
What it can’t see
It assumes one rate for every year, while real inflation comes in waves. It does not know that your pay, pension or rent may rise with prices, or what your savings earn in the meantime. The compound interest calculator can show growth in today’s money, and Zenarios runs your whole plan in today’s money, so income, spending, pensions and investments are compared on the same footing.
Common questions
How much will 10,000 be worth in 20 years?
At 2 % inflation a year, 10,000 kept as cash buys in 20 years what about 6,730 buys today, a loss of a third of its purchasing power. At 3 % it is about 5,537.
How do you calculate the future value of money with inflation?
Divide by (1 + inflation rate) to the power of the number of years. At 2 % for 20 years: 10,000 / 1.02^20 ≈ 6,730. The other way round, something costing 1,000 today costs 1,000 × 1.02^30 ≈ 1,811 in 30 years.
How much is €1,000 from 2000 worth today in Germany?
Using the annual average consumer price index from Destatis, €1,000 in 2000 corresponds to about €1,615 in 2025 prices: prices rose by 61 %.
What was inflation in Germany in recent years?
From the annual average consumer price index (2020 = 100): 6.9 % in 2022, 5.9 % in 2023, 2.2 % in 2024 and 2.2 % in 2025. From 1991 to 2025 prices almost doubled, about 2.0 % a year on average.
How long until prices double?
Divide about 70 by the inflation rate. At 2 % prices double in about 35 years, at 3 % in about 23 years.