R

Value of 1985 South African Rand today

R100 in 1985
R1,647.61 in 2024

The inflation rate in South Africa between 1985 and today has been 1,547.61%, which translates into a total increase of R1,547.61. This means that 100 rand in 1985 are equivalent to 1,647.61 rand in 2024. In other words, the purchasing power of R100 in 1985 equals R1,647.61 today. The average annual inflation rate between these periods has been 7.45%.

Inflation timeline in South Africa (1985 - 2024)

The following chart depicts the equivalence of R100 due to compound inflation and CPI changes. All values are equivalent in terms of purchasing power, which means that for each year the same goods or services could be bought with the indicated amount of money.

All calculations are performed in the local currency (ZAR) and using 6 decimal digits. Results show only up to 2 decimal digits to favour readability. Inflation data is provided by governments and international institutions on a monthly basis. Today's values were extrapolated from the latest 12-month rolling average official data.

The following table contains relevant indicators:

Indicator Value
Cumulative inflation 1985-2023 1,462.03%
Cumulative inflation 1985-today 1,547.61%
Avg. Annual inflation 1985-2023 7.5%
CPI 1985 9.57
CPI 2023 149.54
CPI 2024-09 (latest official data) 157.17
CPI today 157.74

How to calculate today's value of money after inflation?

There are several ways to calculate the time value of money. Depending on the data available, results can be obtained by using the Consumer Price Index (CPI) formula or the compound interest formula.

Using the CPI formula

When we have both the start and end years, we can use the following formula:

Valuet =Value0 ×
CPIt/CPI0

To obtain the values equivalent in buying power between 1985 and 2023, use the corresponding CPI values:

Value2023
=Value1985 ×
CPI2023/CPI1985
=R 100 ×
149.54/9.57
R1,562.03

To obtain the equivalent value today (present value), plug in the CPI for today, which is estimated as 157.74:

Valuetoday
=Value1985 ×
CPItoday/CPI1985
=R 100 ×
157.74/9.57
R1,647.61

Alternative: Using the compound interest formula

Given that money changes with time as a result of an inflation rate that acts as compound interest, we can use the following formula: FV = PV × (1 + i)n, where:

  • FV: Future Value
  • PV: Present Value
  • i: Interest rate (inflation)
  • n: Number of times the interest is compounded (i.e. # of years)

In this case, the future value represents the final amount obtained after applying the inflation rate to our initial value. In other words, it indicates how much are R100 worth today. There are 38 years between 1985 and 2023 and the average inflation rate was 7.5011%. Therefore, we can resolve the formula like this:

Value2023
=PV × (1 + i)n
=R100 × (1 + 0.075011)38
R1,562.03

South Africa inflation - Conversion table

Initial Value Equivalent value
R1 rand in 1985 R15.62 rand in 2023
R5 rand in 1985 R78.1 rand in 2023
R10 rand in 1985 R156.2 rand in 2023
R50 rand in 1985 R781.01 rand in 2023
R100 rand in 1985 R1,562.03 rand in 2023
R500 rand in 1985 R7,810.14 rand in 2023
R1,000 rand in 1985 R15,620.29 rand in 2023
R5,000 rand in 1985 R78,101.44 rand in 2023
R10,000 rand in 1985 R156,202.89 rand in 2023
R50,000 rand in 1985 R781,014.43 rand in 2023
R100,000 rand in 1985 R1,562,028.85 rand in 2023
R500,000 rand in 1985 R7,810,144.27 rand in 2023
R1,000,000 rand in 1985 R15,620,288.54 rand in 2023
Cumulative inflation From 1985 1,547.61%
Avg. annual inflation From 1985 7.45%
CPI 1985 9.57
CPI today 157.74

Value of Rand over time (by year)

Period Value
1985 100
1986 118.65
1987 137.83
1988 155.44
1989 178.34
1990 203.88
1991 235.15
1992 267.77
1993 293.8
1994 320.06
1995 347.84
1996 373.42
1997 405.52
1998 433.43
1999 455.88
2000 480.22
2001 507.61
2002 555.8
2003 587.37
2004 583.3
2005 595.34
2006 614.65
2007 652.62
2008 718.37
2009 770.2
2010 801.7
2011 841.78
2012 889.97
2013 941.45
2014 999.16
2015 1,044.53
2016 1,113.17
2017 1,170.87
2018 1,223.77
2019 1,274.19
2020 1,315.09
2021 1,375.74
2022 1,472.59
2023 1,562.03
2024-09 1,641.72
Today 1,647.61

All available years

Today's value of south african rand by year:

1957 | 1958 | 1959 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |

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