How much did things cost in 1964?
These are prices of some sample items in 1964.
How much were these prices for someone on an average income in 1964? To get a feel for this, I have adjusted them for the increase in incomes from 1964 to today. You can see these adjusted prices in the column 'Income adjusted'.
| 1964 price | Income adjusted | |
|---|---|---|
| Gallon of petrol | 5s 1d | £13 |
| Pint of beer | 2s 3d | £5.60 |
| Bulmer's Dry Cider 38 fl. oz. | 2s 9d | £6.90 |
| 20 cigarettes | 4s 11d | £12 |
| Pint of milk | 9d | £1.90 |
| 19" KB Westminster black & white TV (Currys) | 59½ guineas | £3,100 |
| The Daily Mirror newspaper | 3d to 4d | 62p to 83p |
| Average house price | £3,092 | £150,000 |
| Pepsi Cola can (Vivo) | 10½d | £2.20 |
| Ford Cortina car | £624 | £31,000 |
| Elite refrigerator | £37 16s | £1,900 |
| Hotpoint Supermatic LB - twin-tub washing machine | £87 3s | £4,400 |
| Hoover Keymatic 3224 - automatic washing machine | £99 15s | £5,000 |
| Kenwood Chefette mixer | £11 16s | £590 |
| Pyrosil coffee percolator (stove top) | £5 17s 9d | £290 |
| Pedigree Zephyr pram | £19 19s 6d | £1,000 |
| Qualcast Punch Mk VII petrol lawnmower | £29 19s 6d | £1,500 |
| Wall's pork sausages 1lb | 3s 4d | £8.30 |
| Macleans Value toothpaste - tube | 3s 2d | £7.90 |
| ½lb margarine (Vivo) | 7½d | £1.60 |
| St. Michael Y-fronts | 5s 6d | £14 |
| Moulton Standard M1 small wheel bicycle | £26 9s 6d | £1,300 |
| 1 cwt of coal delivered | 8s to 12s | £20 to £30 |
| Gloy glue 1oz | 1s 6d | £3.80 |
| Ekco Princess electric blanket | £10 0s 2d | £500 |
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 1964 adjusted for inflation see Infation adjusted prices for 1964
By Steven Braggs, November 2021, updated May 2022
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