Percentage Change Calculator

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Percentage Change Calculator

Enter the original value and new value to calculate the percentage change.

Result:

Percentage Change: 0.00%

🧭 How to Use This Percentage Change Calculator (Step-by-Step)

  1. Enter the Original Value
    📉 This is your starting number — for example, a previous price, revenue, or test score.

  2. Enter the New Value
    📈 This is the updated or current number you want to compare it to.

  3. Click “Calculate”
    ✅ The calculator will instantly show you:

    • The percentage change between the two values

    • Whether it’s an increase, decrease, or no change

🧠 Tips for Using This Calculator Effectively

✔️ Use it to compare time-based changes
This calculator is perfect for showing how things changed over time — like revenue month over month or price from last year to now.

✔️ Keep context in mind
A 10% change could be big or small depending on what you’re measuring. Use real dollar values alongside the percentage to tell the full story.

✔️ Use for performance tracking
Track growth or decline in sales, profits, traffic, or test scores — helpful for businesses, students, and investors alike.

✔️ Watch for zero baselines
If your original value is zero, you can’t calculate a percentage change. Instead, just show the difference in absolute terms.

✔️ Compare it with your competitors
Use this calculator to show how your business, product, or service has improved vs. others.

📊 Percentage Change vs. Percentage Difference

Concept Percentage Change Percentage Difference
Use When You’re measuring how much something increased or decreased from a starting value You’re comparing two values symmetrically with no clear starting point
Formula ((New − Old) / Old) × 100 `(
Direction Matters? ✅ Yes — it tells you if the value increased or decreased ❌ No — it only tells you how different the values are
Can be negative? ✅ Yes (e.g., −25% if something decreased) ❌ No — always a positive number
Examples “My investment grew 20%.”
“Revenue dropped by 8%.” “Price A and Price B differ by 12%.”
“Two test scores were 6% apart.”
Best For Tracking growth, decline, performance over time Comparing values side-by-side without bias

🔍 Quick Examples

Percentage Change

  • Old price: $80

  • New price: $100

  • Change = ((100 − 80) / 80) × 100 = +25% increase

Percentage Difference

  • Value A: $80

  • Value B: $100

  • Difference = (20 / 90) × 100 = 22.22%

🧠 Summary

  • Use percentage change to measure growth from a starting point.

  • Use percentage difference to compare values when there’s no baseline or when you want a neutral comparison.

💬 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is percentage change?

Percentage change measures how much something has increased or decreased compared to where it started. It’s commonly used for prices, sales, population, and financial metrics.

How is it calculated?

The formula is:
👉 ((New − Old) / Old) × 100
If the result is positive, it’s an increase. If negative, it’s a decrease.

Can percentage change be negative?

Yes. A negative result means the new value is less than the original value — a decrease.

What if the original value is zero?

The percentage change is undefined, because dividing by zero is mathematically impossible.

How is this different from percentage difference?

Percentage change shows direction (increase/decrease) from a starting point.
Percentage difference compares two values symmetrically without assuming a starting point.

📘 Glossary of Terms

Original Value
🧾 The number you’re starting from — often the past or baseline number.

New Value
🔄 The current or updated number you’re comparing to the original.

Percentage Change
📈 The amount of increase or decrease between the original and new value, expressed as a percentage of the original.

Positive Result
✅ Indicates an increase in the value.

Negative Result
📉 Indicates a decrease in the value.

Undefined
❌ Happens when the original value is zero — the formula can’t divide by zero.

📊 Real-World Examples

📦 Example 1: Product Price Increase
Old Price: $50
New Price: $60
→ ((60 − 50) / 50) × 100 = 20% increase

📉 Example 2: Revenue Decline
Revenue dropped from $8,000 to $6,000
→ ((6,000 − 8,000) / 8,000) × 100 = −25% decrease

🧑‍🎓 Example 3: Exam Score Improvement
Old Score: 70
New Score: 84
→ ((84 − 70) / 70) × 100 = 20% improvement

💼 Example 4: Website Traffic Growth
Last month: 5,000 visitors
This month: 7,500 visitors
→ ((7,500 − 5,000) / 5,000) × 100 = 50% increase

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