Cost of Living Raise Calculator
Did your raise actually keep up with inflation? See the salary needed to keep pace and whether your raise is a real gain or a quiet cut.
Salary research and negotiation tools
Learn moreA raise below inflation is a cut
If prices rise faster than your pay, your real income falls even though the number on your paycheck went up. To simply hold even, your salary has to grow by the inflation rate. Anything less is a pay cut in disguise — useful context heading into a salary conversation.
How it’s calculated & sources
Salary to keep pace = current salary × (1 + inflation). Real change = (1 + your raise) ÷ (1 + inflation) − 1. We also show your new salary expressed in today’s buying power.
Benchmark: a raise below CPI inflation is a real-terms pay cut. The 2025 Social Security COLA was 2.5%; check current CPI for your number.
Results update as you type and are general estimates, not personalized financial, tax, medical or legal advice. Verify with a professional.
Worked example
On $70,000 with 3.2% inflation, you’d need about $72,240 just to hold even. A 3% raise ($72,100) slightly trails inflation — a real change of about −0.2%.
Frequently asked questions
What inflation number should I use?
The latest year-over-year CPI is the common benchmark. Use a recent official figure rather than a guess for an honest comparison.
Should I bring this to a review?
It’s a fair, factual framing — pairing a cost-of-living adjustment with a merit increase is a reasonable ask, backed by published inflation data.