U.K. inflation rate in 1879: -4.21%

£

Inflation in 1879 and its effect on pound value

£1 in 1878 is equivalent in purchasing power to about £0.96 in 1879. The pound had an average deflation rate of -4.21% per year since 1878, producing a cumulative price change of -4.21%. Purchasing power increased by 4.21% in 1879 compared to 1878. On average, you would have to spend 4.21% less money in 1879 than in 1878 for the same item. This is an example of deflation.

This means that prices in 1879 are 4.21% lower than average prices since 1878, according to the Office for National Statistics composite price index.

The inflation rate in 1878 was -2.06%. The inflation rate in 1879 was -4.21%. The 1879 inflation rate is lower compared to the average inflation rate of 3.54% per year between 1879 and 2024.

Inflation rate is calculated by change in the composite price index (CPI). The CPI in 1879 was 9.10. It was 9.50 in the previous year, 1878. The difference in CPI between the years is used by the Office for National Statistics to officially determine inflation. Because the 1879 CPI is less than 1878 CPI, negative inflation (also known as deflation) has occurred.

⌃
Inflation from 1878 to 1879
Average inflation rate-4.21%
Converted amount
£1 base		£0.96
Price difference
£1 base		£-0.04
CPI in 18789.500
CPI in 18799.100
Inflation in 1878-2.06%
Inflation in 1879-4.21%
£1 in 1878£0.96 in 1879
Recent GBP inflation
Annual Rate, the Office for National Statistics CPI
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How to calculate inflation rate for £1, 1878 to 1879

Our calculations use the following inflation rate formula to calculate the change in value between 1878 and 1879:

CPI in 1879 CPI in 1878
×
1878 GBP value
=
1879 GBP value

Then plug in historical CPI values. The U.K. CPI was 9.5 in the year 1878 and 9.1 in 1879:

9.19.5
×
£1
=
£0.96

£1 in 1878 has the same "purchasing power" or "buying power" as £0.96 in 1879.

To get the total inflation rate for the 1 years between 1878 and 1879, we use the following formula:

CPI in 1879 - CPI in 1878CPI in 1878
×
100
=
Cumulative inflation rate (1 years)

Plugging in the values to this equation, we get:

9.1 - 9.59.5
×
100
=
-4%

Data source & citation

Raw data for these calculations comes from the composite price index published by the UK Office for National Statistics (ONS). A composite index is created by combining price data from several different published sources, both official and unofficial. The Consumer Price Index, normally used to compute inflation, has only been tracked since 1988. All inflation calculations after 1988 use the Office for National Statistics' Consumer Price Index, except for the current year, which is based on The Bank of England's forecast.

You may use the following MLA citation for this page: “Inflation Rate in 1879 | UK Inflation Calculator.” Official Inflation Data, Alioth Finance, 12 Dec. 2024, https://www.officialdata.org/UK-inflation-rate-in-1879.

Special thanks to QuickChart for their chart image API, which is used for chart downloads.

in2013dollars.com is a reference website maintained by the Official Data Foundation.

Ian Webster

About the author

Ian Webster is an engineer and data expert based in San Mateo, California. He has worked for Google, NASA, and consulted for governments around the world on data pipelines and data analysis. Disappointed by the lack of clear resources on the impacts of inflation on economic indicators, Ian believes this website serves as a valuable public tool. Ian earned his degree in Computer Science from Dartmouth College.

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Inflation from 1878 to 1879
Average inflation rate-4.21%
Converted amount
£1 base		£0.96
Price difference
£1 base		£-0.04
CPI in 18789.500
CPI in 18799.100
Inflation in 1878-2.06%
Inflation in 1879-4.21%
£1 in 1878£0.96 in 1879