Canadian inflation calculator

It multiplies your amount by the ratio of two Consumer Price Index levels: amount × CPI(end) ÷ CPI(start). The CPI levels are Statistics Canada’s all-items index for Canada (2002=100). Annual mode uses the annual averages in table 18-10-0005-01; monthly mode uses the monthly index in table 18-10-0004-01.

Use annual averages when you know only the year, such as a salary or a house price from 1995. Use months when you know the date, such as a lease that started in March 2021. Monthly figures move with seasonal prices (gasoline, travel, fresh food), so two months in different seasons can differ from the annual comparison.

It is the steady yearly rate that would produce the same total change: (CPI end ÷ CPI start) raised to 1 ÷ years, minus 1. It smooths out good and bad years, so it is useful for comparing periods of different length.

Both use Statistics Canada’s CPI, but they may use different months or years, annual averages versus a single month, or different rounding. Check which periods each calculator compares. This calculator shows the exact index levels it used under the result.