U.K. inflation rate in 1918: 22.09%

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Inflation in 1918 and its effect on pound value

£1 in 1917 is equivalent in purchasing power to about £1.22 in 1918. The pound had an average inflation rate of 22.09% per year between 1917 and 1918, producing a cumulative price increase of 22.09%. Purchasing power decreased by 22.09% in 1918 compared to 1917. On average, you would have to spend 22.09% more money in 1918 than in 1917 for the same item.

This means that prices in 1918 are 1.22 times as high as average prices since 1917, according to the Office for National Statistics composite price index.

The inflation rate in 1917 was 25.38%. The inflation rate in 1918 was 22.09%. The 1918 inflation rate is higher compared to the average inflation rate of 4.11% per year between 1918 and 2024.

Inflation rate is calculated by change in the composite price index (CPI). The CPI in 1918 was 19.90. It was 16.30 in the previous year, 1917. The difference in CPI between the years is used by the Office for National Statistics to officially determine inflation.

⌃
Inflation from 1917 to 1918
Average inflation rate22.09%
Converted amount
£1 base		£1.22
Price difference
£1 base		£0.22
CPI in 191716.300
CPI in 191819.900
Inflation in 191725.38%
Inflation in 191822.09%
£1 in 1917£1.22 in 1918
Recent GBP inflation
Annual Rate, the Office for National Statistics CPI
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How to calculate inflation rate for £1, 1917 to 1918

Our calculations use the following inflation rate formula to calculate the change in value between 1917 and 1918:

CPI in 1918 CPI in 1917
×
1917 GBP value
=
1918 GBP value

Then plug in historical CPI values. The U.K. CPI was 16.3 in the year 1917 and 19.9 in 1918:

19.916.3
×
£1
=
£1.22

£1 in 1917 has the same "purchasing power" or "buying power" as £1.22 in 1918.

To get the total inflation rate for the 1 years between 1917 and 1918, we use the following formula:

CPI in 1918 - CPI in 1917CPI in 1917
×
100
=
Cumulative inflation rate (1 years)

Plugging in the values to this equation, we get:

19.9 - 16.316.3
×
100
=
22%

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 1918 | UK Inflation Calculator.” Official Inflation Data, Alioth Finance, 2 Dec. 2024, https://www.officialdata.org/UK-inflation-rate-in-1918.

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 1917 to 1918
Average inflation rate22.09%
Converted amount
£1 base		£1.22
Price difference
£1 base		£0.22
CPI in 191716.300
CPI in 191819.900
Inflation in 191725.38%
Inflation in 191822.09%
£1 in 1917£1.22 in 1918