Value of £1 from 1895 to 1918
£1 in 1895 is equivalent in purchasing power to about £2.31 in 1918, an increase of £1.31 over 23 years. The pound had an average inflation rate of 3.71% per year between 1895 and 1918, producing a cumulative price increase of 131.40%.
This means that prices in 1918 are 2.31 times as high as average prices since 1895, according to the Office for National Statistics composite price index.
The inflation rate in 1895 was -1.15%. 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.
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| Cumulative price change | 131.40% |
| Average inflation rate | 3.71% |
| Converted amount £1 base | £2.31 |
| Price difference £1 base | £1.31 |
| CPI in 1895 | 8.600 |
| CPI in 1918 | 19.900 |
| Inflation in 1895 | -1.15% |
| Inflation in 1918 | 22.09% |
| £1 in 1895 | £2.31 in 1918 |
Buying power of £1 in 1895
This chart shows a calculation of buying power equivalence for £1 in 1895 (price index tracking began in 1750).
For example, if you started with £1, you would need to end with £2.31 in order to "adjust" for inflation (sometimes refered to as "beating inflation").
When £1 is equivalent to £2.31 over time, that means that the "real value" of a single U.K. pound decreases over time. In other words, a pound will pay for fewer items at the store.
This effect explains how inflation erodes the value of a pound over time. By calculating the value in 1895 dollars, the chart below shows how £1 is worth less over 23 years.
According to the Office for National Statistics, each of these GBP amounts below is equal in terms of what it could buy at the time:
This conversion table shows various other 1895 amounts in 1918 pounds, based on the 131.40% change in prices:
| Initial value | Equivalent value |
|---|---|
| £1 pound in 1895 | £2.31 pounds in 1918 |
| £5 pounds in 1895 | £11.57 pounds in 1918 |
| £10 pounds in 1895 | £23.14 pounds in 1918 |
| £50 pounds in 1895 | £115.70 pounds in 1918 |
| £100 pounds in 1895 | £231.40 pounds in 1918 |
| £500 pounds in 1895 | £1,156.98 pounds in 1918 |
| £1,000 pounds in 1895 | £2,313.95 pounds in 1918 |
| £5,000 pounds in 1895 | £11,569.77 pounds in 1918 |
| £10,000 pounds in 1895 | £23,139.53 pounds in 1918 |
| £50,000 pounds in 1895 | £115,697.67 pounds in 1918 |
| £100,000 pounds in 1895 | £231,395.35 pounds in 1918 |
| £500,000 pounds in 1895 | £1,156,976.74 pounds in 1918 |
| £1,000,000 pounds in 1895 | £2,313,953.49 pounds in 1918 |
How to calculate inflation rate for £1, 1895 to 1918
Our calculations use the following inflation rate formula to calculate the change in value between 1895 and 1918:
CPI in 1918 CPI in 1895
×
1895 GBP value
=
1918 GBP value
Then plug in historical CPI values. The U.K. CPI was 8.6 in the year 1895 and 19.9 in 1918:
19.98.6
×
£1
=
£2.31
£1 in 1895 has the same "purchasing power" or "buying power" as £2.31 in 1918.
To get the total inflation rate for the 23 years between 1895 and 1918, we use the following formula:
CPI in 1918 - CPI in 1895CPI in 1895
×
100
=
Cumulative inflation rate (23 years)
Plugging in the values to this equation, we get:
19.9 - 8.68.6
×
100
=
131%
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: “£1 in 1895 → 1918 | UK Inflation Calculator.” Official Inflation Data, Alioth Finance, 10 Nov. 2024, https://www.officialdata.org/uk/inflation/1895?amount=1&endYear=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.
| Cumulative price change | 131.40% |
| Average inflation rate | 3.71% |
| Converted amount £1 base | £2.31 |
| Price difference £1 base | £1.31 |
| CPI in 1895 | 8.600 |
| CPI in 1918 | 19.900 |
| Inflation in 1895 | -1.15% |
| Inflation in 1918 | 22.09% |
| £1 in 1895 | £2.31 in 1918 |