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    Percentage Change Calculator

    Calculate percentage increase or decrease between two values

    Formula

    Percentage Change = ((New - Old) / Old) × 100

    Divides the difference between new and old values by the old value, then multiplies by 100 to express as a percentage.

    Examples

    Stock price: $50 → $65

    Change = (65-50)/50 × 100 = +30% increase

    Price drop:

    00 →
    50

    Change = (150-200)/200 × 100 = -25% decrease

    Population: 1M → 1.2M

    Change = (1.2M-1M)/1M × 100 = +20% growth

    Frequently Asked Questions

    About Percentage Change

    The Percentage Change Calculator determines the percentage increase or decrease between two values. This is one of the most commonly needed calculations in business, finance, science, and everyday life. It answers the question: "By what percentage did this value change?"

    Percentage change is used everywhere: stock market returns, inflation rates, sales growth, population changes, weight loss/gain, grade improvements, price changes, and statistical comparisons. Understanding percentage change is crucial for interpreting data accurately.

    The formula is straightforward: subtract the old value from the new value, divide by the old value, and multiply by 100. A positive result indicates an increase; negative indicates a decrease. The absolute change (raw difference) is also useful but does not account for scale—a

    0 increase means very different things for a
    0 item versus a
    0,000 item.

    Key concept: percentage changes are not symmetric. A 50% increase followed by a 50% decrease does NOT return to the original value. If

    00 increases 50% to
    50, then decreases 50%, it becomes $75, not
    00. This asymmetry is important in investing—a 50% loss requires a 100% gain to break even.

    The multiplier shows how many times the new value is relative to the old. A multiplier of 1.5 means the value is 1.5 times the original (50% increase). A multiplier less than 1 indicates a decrease. This is useful for compound calculations.

    Year-over-year (YoY) percentage change is a standard business metric that compares the same period across years to account for seasonal variations. Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) extends this concept across multiple years, showing the smoothed annual growth rate.

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