How much did things cost in 1963?
These are prices of some sample items in 1963.
How much were these prices for someone on an average income in 1963? To get a feel for this, I have adjusted them for the increase in incomes from 1963 to today. You can see these adjusted prices in the column 'Income adjusted'.
| 1963 price | Income adjusted | |
|---|---|---|
| Gallon of petrol | 4s 9d | £13 |
| Pint of beer | 2s 1d | £5.60 |
| 20 cigarettes | 4s 6d | £12 |
| Pint of milk | 8½d | £1.90 |
| Dansette Conquest Auto record player | £23 19s 6d | £1,300 |
| 19" Philips dual standard black & white TV (Currys) | 69 guineas | £3,900 |
| The Daily Mirror newspaper | 3d | 68p |
| Average house price | £2,822 | £150,000 |
| Pepsi Cola (3 cans) (Spar) | 2s 6d | £6.80 |
| Ford Cortina car | £597 | £32,000 |
| Frigidaire SheerLook refrigerator | £39 | £2,100 |
| Morphy-Richards TOS toaster | £5 18s 6d | £320 |
| Hoover Constellation 862 vacuum cleaner | £19 12s 6d | £1,100 |
| Dent-o-matic electric tooth brush | £4 4s | £230 |
| Kodak Automatic cine camera | £24 10s 2d | £1,300 |
| Skyline 67 tin opener | 1s 10d | £5 |
| Servis Supertwin - washing machine (Currys) | 77 guineas | £4,400 |
| Lec F160 chest freezer | £103 9s 7d | £5,600 |
| Rolls-Colston Mk IV dishwasher | £78 15s | £4,300 |
| Axminster carpet per square yard | 82s | £220 |
| Russell Hobbs K2 electric kettle | £5 5s | £280 |
| ½lb Stork margarine | 1s 9d | £4.70 |
| Aristoc Run Resist No. 1 nylon stockings 15 Denier | 8s 11d | £24 |
| Coin operated dry cleaning (Bendix) per load | 10s | £27 |
| 1 cwt of coal delivered | 8s to 12s | £22 to £33 |
Prices are in pounds, shillings and pence.
Some shops priced more expensive items in guineas. A guinea is one pound and one shilling or £1.05.
The income adjusted prices are based on the Bank of England's Three Centuries Macroeconomic Dataset Version 2.3 - 30 June 2016. I have updated the income figures based on the ONS: Series code KAB9, adjusted to bring the figures inline with the Bank of England's.
For a comparison of prices in 1963 adjusted for inflation see Infation adjusted prices for 1963
By Steven Braggs, November 2021, updated May 2022
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