How much did things cost in 1970?
These are prices of some sample items in 1970.
How much were these prices for someone on an average income in 1970? To get a feel for this, I have adjusted them for the increase in incomes from 1970 to today. You can see these adjusted prices in the column 'Income adjusted'.
| 1970 price | Income adjusted | |
|---|---|---|
| Gallon of petrol | 6s 8d | £11 |
| Pint of beer | 2s 11d | £4.70 |
| 20 cigarettes | 5s 2d | £8.30 |
| Pint of milk | 1s | £1.60 |
| Large loaf of bread | 1s 9d | £2.80 |
| 22" Pye colour TV | £249 (Currys) | £8,000 |
| 20" Bush black & white TV (Currys) | 70 guineas | £2,400 |
| The Sun newspaper | 5-6d | 67-81p |
| Average house price | £4500 | £140,000 |
| ½ lb of Anchor butter (Fine Fare) | 1s 7d | £2.50 |
| Can of Coke (MacFisheries) | 11d | £1.50 |
| Ford Cortina car | £882 | £28,000 |
| Electrolux automatic refridgerator (Currys) | 31 guineas | £1,000 |
| Servis Supertwin 3 - washing machine (Currys) | 75 guineas | £2,500 |
| Average GLC (Council) rent per week | £3 9s | £110 |
| Family pack of Golden Wonder crisps (Key Markets) | 1s 6d | £2.40 |
| Single pack of Golden Wonder crisps | 7d | 94p |
| Fish and chips at Little Chef | 5s | £8 |
| Half a dozen eggs | 2s 3d | £3.60 |
| ½lb Stork margarine (Woolworth's) | 11d | £1.50 |
1970 was the last year of pounds, shillings and pence before Decimalisation. So prices are in pounds, shillings and pence.
Some shops priced more expensive items in guineas. A gueinea 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 1970 adjusted for inflation see Infation adjusted prices for 1970
By Steven Braggs, updated May 2022
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