Skip to content
calculatorpro

Percentage Increase Calculator

Add a percentage to a number and see the three figures that matter: where you started, what got added, and where you ended up. The working shows both steps, so you can check it or learn it.

  • Free
  • No account needed
  • Nothing leaves your browser

Where you are now, before the rise.

%

The percentage to add on.

Loaded with an example. Type over either field.

Answer

180

150 increased by 20% is 180 — up ↑

Starting amount
150
The increase — 20%
+30
New amount
180

What each figure is

A percentage means nothing on its own. These are the numbers it is made of.

  • Starting amount150
  • The increase30
  • Starting amountYou entered thiswhere you began150
  • The increase — 20%what gets added on+30
  • New amountthe answer, after the increase180

How that was worked out

Each step, and why it is that step.

  1. Step 1 — Work out the increase

    20% of 150 = 30

    The percentage is always taken from the starting amount, not from the total you are heading for.

  2. Step 2 — Add it on

    150 + 30 = 180

    Or in one step: 150 × 1.2 = 180.

Check it backwards: 180 − 150 = 30, and 30 ÷ 150 × 100 = 20%

The mistake this prevents

Taking 20% back off 180 gives 144, not 150. The same percentage is a bigger amount once the number has grown.

Check this before you rely on it. A free everyday calculator, provided as a guide — not tax, accounting, financial or legal advice. The working is shown above so you can verify it against your own figures. See our terms of use.

How it works

STEP 1

Enter the starting amount

The figure before the rise — last year’s salary, the old price, the original measurement. Every percentage in this sum is a share of that number, not of the total you are heading for.

STEP 2

Enter the percentage to add

A 20% rise, a 3.5% pay award, a 150% jump. Anything above 100% is fine and simply means the result is more than double.

STEP 3

Read the increase as its own figure

The amount added is shown as a line of its own, not buried in the total — that is usually the number you actually needed, and it is the one people forget to work out.

The guideHow to calculate percentages — the five sums people actually needTo find P% of a number, multiply by P ÷ 100. To find what one number is as a percentage of another, divide the part by the whole and multiply by 100.Read it

Common questions

How do I increase a number by a percentage?

Work out the percentage of the starting number, then add it on. 150 increased by 20% is (0.20 × 150) + 150 = 180. In one step it is 150 × 1.20, which is the same sum with the addition folded in.

What is the percentage increase formula?

New = old × (1 + percentage ÷ 100). For a 20% rise the multiplier is 1.20; for 7.5% it is 1.075. Going the other way — working out what percentage increase happened between two figures you already have — use the change calculator instead.

If I add 20% and then take 20% off, why am I not back where I started?

Because the second percentage is a share of a bigger number. 150 + 20% is 180, and 20% of 180 is 36, so you land on 144 rather than 150. This calculator shows that figure explicitly, because it catches people out constantly.

How do I add a percentage to a price?

The same way — but if the percentage is VAT, use the VAT calculator instead. It handles the removal direction properly, which is where VAT sums usually go wrong.

Can I increase by more than 100%?

Yes. A 100% increase doubles the number, and 150% of an increase means the result is two and a half times the original. The breakdown shows the added amount separately so the size of the jump is obvious.

Related calculators

Percentage Calculator

Percentage of a number, increase, decrease and difference.

Margin & Markup Calculator

Turn cost into price, or price into margin — without the platform fees.

VAT Calculator

Add or remove VAT at 20%, 5% or a rate you set.