Inflation Calculator Canada
Convert dollars between any two years since 1990, project how inflation erodes a salary over time, and model provincial bracket creep. Federal brackets are fully indexed to CPI, but several provinces only partially index, quietly raising real-terms tax bills.
Value of money over time
$1,000 in 2000
$1,721 in 2025Same purchasing power
$1,000 in 2025
$581 in 2000Reverse direction
Cumulative inflation
72.1%2000 → 2025
Annualised inflation
2.20%CAGR of CPI over 25 yrs
Value of $1,000 from 2000, every year since
Source: Statistics Canada Table 18-10-0005-01 (Consumer Price Index, annual average, all-items, 2002 = 100).
How Canadian inflation and tax indexation work
CPI (Consumer Price Index): Statistics Canada's flagship inflation measure. Published monthly and as an annual average via Table 18-10-0005-01. The reference base is 2002 = 100, meaning a 2025 CPI of 164.2 indicates prices are 64.2% higher than in 2002.
Federal indexation: The CRA multiplies each federal bracket and the Basic Personal Amount by an inflation factor every year, announced the preceding November. This keeps the real value of the brackets roughly constant and largely neutralises federal bracket creep.
Provincial indexation: Policy varies by province. Ontario, BC, Alberta, Quebec, Saskatchewan, NB, NL, YT, NWT and Nunavut fully index. Nova Scotia, PEI and (historically) Manitoba have frozen brackets or the BPA for extended periods — this calculator treats them as partially indexed (roughly 50% of CPI) as a simplified planning assumption.
Real vs nominal: Nominal dollars are the face-value amounts in the year they're paid. Real dollars adjust for inflation, typically expressed in today's purchasing power. For retirement planning, always think in real terms.
Worked example
$50,000 in 2015 (CPI 126.6) is worth $64,850 in 2025 dollars (CPI 164.2) — cumulative inflation of 29.7% over that span.
Formula: $50,000 × (164.2 ÷ 126.6) = $64,850
Canadian CPI by year (2002 = 100)
Full annual-average all-items CPI series from Statistics Canada Table 18-10-0005-01, 1990 to 2025.
| Year | Annual average CPI | Inflation rate vs prior year |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 78.4 | — |
| 1991 | 82.8 | 5.6% |
| 1992 | 84 | 1.5% |
| 1993 | 85.6 | 1.9% |
| 1994 | 85.7 | 0.1% |
| 1995 | 87.6 | 2.2% |
| 1996 | 88.9 | 1.5% |
| 1997 | 90.4 | 1.7% |
| 1998 | 91.3 | 1.0% |
| 1999 | 92.9 | 1.8% |
| 2000 | 95.4 | 2.7% |
| 2001 | 97.8 | 2.5% |
| 2002 | 100 | 2.3% |
| 2003 | 102.8 | 2.8% |
| 2004 | 104.7 | 1.8% |
| 2005 | 107 | 2.2% |
| 2006 | 109.1 | 2.0% |
| 2007 | 111.5 | 2.2% |
| 2008 | 114.1 | 2.3% |
| 2009 | 114.4 | 0.3% |
| 2010 | 116.5 | 1.8% |
| 2011 | 119.9 | 2.9% |
| 2012 | 121.7 | 1.5% |
| 2013 | 122.8 | 0.9% |
| 2014 | 125.2 | 1.9% |
| 2015 | 126.6 | 1.1% |
| 2016 | 128.4 | 1.4% |
| 2017 | 130.4 | 1.6% |
| 2018 | 133.4 | 2.3% |
| 2019 | 136 | 1.9% |
| 2020 | 137 | 0.7% |
| 2021 | 141.6 | 3.4% |
| 2022 | 151.2 | 6.8% |
| 2023 | 157.1 | 3.9% |
| 2024 | 160.9 | 2.4% |
| 2025 | 164.2 | 2.1% |
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Inflation calculator FAQ
What is Canada's Consumer Price Index (CPI)?
The CPI measures the average change over time in prices Canadian households pay for a fixed basket of goods and services. Statistics Canada publishes it monthly and as an annual average. This calculator uses the all-items CPI from Table 18-10-0005-01 (formerly CANSIM v41690973) with 2002 = 100 as the reference base.
Are Canadian federal tax brackets indexed to inflation?
Yes. The federal government fully indexes personal income tax brackets and the Basic Personal Amount (BPA) each year based on CPI growth. The CRA announces the indexation factor every November for the following tax year. This means federal bracket creep is essentially neutralised for inflation.
Do all provinces index their tax brackets to inflation?
No. Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick, Newfoundland & Labrador, Yukon, NWT and Nunavut fully index their brackets and BPA to CPI. Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Manitoba have historically frozen some or all of their brackets or BPA, creating real-terms bracket creep when inflation is high.
What is bracket creep?
Bracket creep is the stealth tax increase that happens when inflation pushes your nominal income into a higher tax bracket even though your real purchasing power has not changed. In Canada it mainly affects provinces with partial or frozen indexation — the federal system is fully indexed.
How do I adjust a past-year amount into today's dollars?
Multiply the amount by the ratio of the current CPI to the past CPI. For example, $1,000 in 2000 (CPI 95.4) is worth roughly $1,721 in 2025 (CPI 164.2). The purchasing-power tab does this automatically for any pair of years from 1990 to 2025.
What inflation rate should I use for future projections?
The Bank of Canada targets CPI inflation of 2% with a control range of 1–3%. Over the last 20 years the actual average has been close to 2.1%, though 2021–2023 ran significantly hotter. A planning assumption of 2–3% is reasonable for most long-term scenarios.
Does my salary keep pace with inflation?
If your annual raise equals the CPI growth rate, your real purchasing power stays flat. If your raise is smaller than CPI, your real salary declines every year — the erosion tab shows this trajectory. To grow in real terms, raises must exceed CPI.
How is this different from the Bank of Canada inflation calculator?
The Bank of Canada's calculator converts a single dollar amount between two years. This tool does that plus projects salary erosion over time and estimates provincial bracket creep for all 13 provinces, using the same Statistics Canada CPI data.
Sources: Statistics Canada Table 18-10-0005-01 (CPI annual, all-items), CRA — Indexation of the personal income tax system, TaxTips.ca — Provincial indexation