How much did things cost in 1980?
These are prices of some sample items in 1980.
How much were these prices for someone on an average income in 1980? To get a feel for this, I have adjusted them for the increase in incomes from 1980 to today. You can see these adjusted prices in the column 'Income adjusted'.
| 1980 price | Income adjusted | |
|---|---|---|
| Gallon of petrol | £1.28 | £9 |
| Bottle of whisky (Teacher's) (Presto) | £5.29 | £37 |
| Bottle of sherry (Harvey's Bristol Cream) (Presto) | £2.59 | £18 |
| Watneys Party 7 (International) | £2.35 | £17 |
| Tuborg Pilsner Lager 4 cans (International) | 99p | £7 |
| Large loaf of bread | 36½p | £2.60 |
| Large loaf of bread (supermarket discount price) | 26p | £1.80 |
| 20" Bush colour TV (Co-op) | £259.95 | £1,800 |
| 12" Bush portable black & white TV (Co-op) | £66.95 | £470 |
| Casio FX81 pocket scientific calculator (Boots) | £12.95 | £92 |
| Casio 83QS41B digital watch with alarm and stopwatch (W H Smith) | £19.95 | £140 |
| Action Man Soldier toy (Debenhams) | £4.99 | £35 |
| Sindy doll (Debenhams) | £5.50 | £39 |
| Hitachi stereo cassette tape recorder (Debenhams) | £75.95 | £540 |
| Daily Mirror newspaper | 9-12p | 64-85p |
| Average house price | £23,500 | £170,000 |
| 250g Danelea butter | 39p | £2.80 |
| 200g Nescafé coffee (Presto) | £1.69 | £12 |
| Can of coke (Tesco) | 16p | £1.10 |
| Ford Cortina 1300L car | £4,350 | £31,000 |
| Zoppas fridge-freezer (Currys) | £219.95 | £1,600 |
| Hotpoint twin tub washing machine (Currys) | £159.95 | £1,100 |
| Hotpoint automatic washing machine (Currys) | £199.95 | £1,400 |
| Smiths crisps family pack (Tesco) | 17½p | £1.20 |
| Golden Wonder Pot Noodle (Fine Fare) | 32½p | £2.30 |
| Half dozen size 4 brown eggs (International) | 25p | £1.80 |
| Australian Cheddar cheese (1lb) (Tesco) | 92p | £6.50 |
| Flora soft margarine (Asda) | 27½p | £1.90 |
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 1980 adjusted for inflation see Infation adjusted prices for 1980
By Steven Braggs, February 2021, updated May 2022
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