Percentage Change Formula:
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Percentage change measures the degree of change over time, expressed as a percentage. It's used to compare how much a value has increased or decreased relative to its original value.
The calculator uses the percentage change formula:
Where:
Explanation: The formula calculates the difference between new and old values, divides by the old value to get a relative change, then multiplies by 100 to convert to percentage.
Details: Percentage change is widely used in finance, economics, statistics, and business to analyze growth rates, price changes, performance metrics, and more. It provides a standardized way to compare changes across different scales.
Tips: Enter the old (original) value and the new (current) value. The calculator will show the percentage increase or decrease. Note that the old value cannot be zero.
Q1: What does a negative percentage change mean?
A: A negative percentage change indicates a decrease from the old value to the new value.
Q2: Why can't the old value be zero?
A: Division by zero is mathematically undefined, so percentage change cannot be calculated when the old value is zero.
Q3: How is percentage change different from percentage difference?
A: Percentage change compares a new value to an old value, while percentage difference compares any two values without reference to which is older.
Q4: Can percentage change be more than 100%?
A: Yes, if the new value is more than double the old value, the percentage increase will exceed 100%.
Q5: How do I interpret a percentage decrease?
A: A percentage decrease shows how much a value has reduced relative to its original amount. For example, a 20% decrease means the new value is 80% of the original.