Salary Increase Calculator
A rise that trails rising prices is a pay cut in slow motion. This works out your increase as a percentage, then checks it against official government price data to tell you whether you are genuinely better off or just standing still.
Your rise
0%
- In money
- $0
- Needed just to stand still
- $0
- Prices rose over that time
- 0%
- Your rise in real terms
- 0%
- To get back to level, ask for
- $0
Where the money goes
Each block is sized by its share, so you can see whether in money or needed just to stand still is the bigger part without reading a single number.
Move it and watch
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at {v} for pay now
And what you can change
Why your own figure may differ
If you get that rise every year
Small yearly rises compound, in the same way savings do. This shows where your pay lands, and whether it stays ahead of prices at their long-run pace.
| Year | Your pay | Total rise |
|---|
pay rise: real examples
Three situations worth putting numbers on before a pay conversation. Click any card to load it.
- The rise that was not
$50,000 to $55,000 over five years
A 10% rise sounds respectable.
Prices rose more. You needed $64,510 to stand still, so you are $9,510 a year worse off than when you started.
Load this scenario in the calculator → - A real rise
$50,000 to $70,000 over five years
Same period, a bigger jump.
You needed $64,510 to break even, so this is $5,490 of genuine gain. about 8.5% ahead in real terms.
Load this scenario in the calculator → - No rise at all
Same pay since 2015
The number on the payslip has not moved in a decade.
Standing still is expensive. Prices rose 40.9%, so that pay is now worth $24,530 a year less. Getting level means asking for $84,530.
Load this scenario in the calculator →
Common questions about a pay rise
What counts as a good pay rise?
The first test is whether it beats rising prices. A rise below inflation means you can buy less than you could last year, even though the number on your payslip went up. That is a pay cut with a bow on it. This tool shows the line you need to clear before anything counts as real progress.
How do I work out a percentage rise?
Take the increase, divide it by your old pay, then multiply by 100. A $3,000 rise on $60,000 is 3,000 divided by 60,000, which is 0.05, so 5%. Type both numbers in and the tool does it for you, then tells you what it means in real terms.
My pay has not moved in years. What has that cost me?
Put your old pay and the year you last had a rise into the second box. The tool shows what that same pay would be today if it had simply kept pace with prices, and the gap between that and what you actually earn. For many people the gap is thousands a year.
What should I ask for?
The calculator gives you two numbers worth having in your head. The rise that merely keeps you level with prices, and the rise that puts you back where you were if you have fallen behind. Asking for the second one is asking to be made whole, not asking for a favour.
Where does the price data come from?
Straight from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the government body that measures prices. It covers 1913 to 2025 and is pulled from their public feed rather than typed in. The exact series and the date it was checked are shown at the bottom of the page.
Does this account for tax?
No. Everything here is pay before tax, because that is how rises are offered and negotiated. A rise can also push part of your income into a higher tax band, so what reaches your bank account grows by less than the headline. Our hourly and salary calculator covers converting between pay shapes.