What is a percentage point?

The plain arithmetic difference between two percentages. 5% minus 4% is 1 percentage point (often written pp or “points”).

How many basis points are in a percentage point?

100. A basis point is one hundredth of a percentage point, so a 0.25 pp change in an interest rate is 25 basis points.

Is a 0% to 2% change an infinite percent increase?

A relative change from zero is undefined, so the calculator shows only the point change (+2 pp). That is the useful number in that situation anyway.

Which should I report, points or percent?

Report points when the audience cares about the level of the rate (interest rates, tax rates, polls). If you report a relative change, say “relative” and give both rates, e.g. “from 2% to 3%, a 50% relative increase.”

Percentage Point vs Percent Change Calculator

When a rate moves from 4% to 5%, it went up one percentage point and it also went up 25%. Both statements are correct, and they are wildly different. Type an old and a new rate to get both numbers and a sentence you can use without misleading anyone.

Written and maintained by Ricardo Rodrigues · Last updated October 7, 2026 · What changed

Who this calculator is for

This page is for anyone reading or writing about rates: savers and borrowers following interest rates, people reading election polls, analysts reporting conversion or churn rates, and students who have been asked the classic exam question about “percent” versus “percentage points.”

If the two numbers you have are ordinary quantities — prices, salaries, visitors — you want the percentage change calculator instead. Percentage points only exist when both numbers are already percentages.

Percentage points vs percent change

Type two rates (interest, unemployment, a poll share, a tax rate) to see both ways of describing the move.

Old rate

New rate

Change in percentage points

+1 pp

Relative change: +25% of the old rate

pp = new − old · relative % = (new − old) ÷ old × 100

Step-by-step for your numbers

Percentage-point change = new rate − old rate = 5% − 4% = +1 pp.
Relative change = point change ÷ old rate × 100 = 1 ÷ 4 × 100 = +25%.
Both are true at once: the rate moved +1 percentage points, which is a 25% rise in the rate itself. Say which one you mean.
On €10,000 the yearly amount goes from €400 to €500 (a difference of €100), if the rate is a simple annual rate.

Comparison table

The same 1-point move is a very different relative change
Old rate	New rate	Point change	Relative change
1%	2%	+1 pp	+100%
2%	3%	+1 pp	+50%
4%	5%	+1 pp	+25%
10%	11%	+1 pp	+10%
40%	41%	+1 pp	+2.5%

About this percentage points

The other calculators on this site answer “by what percent did a number change?” This one is for the special case where the number itself is already a percentage: an interest rate, a tax rate, a vote share, a conversion rate, a failure rate. Then there are two different changes to report, and headlines regularly report the dramatic one without saying so.

The result panel shows the point change first because it is the one that does not depend on the starting level. The relative change sits under it. The steps then translate the move into money on €10,000, because a rate that goes from 4% to 5% costs one extra euro per hundred per year, whatever the percent change sounds like.

How to use each field

Old rate: The earlier percentage, typed without the % sign: 4 for 4%. This is the base for the relative change, so it matters which one you call old.
New rate: The later percentage. It can be lower than the old one; the result then shows a negative point change and a negative relative change.
The two results: The large number is the change in percentage points (new − old). The line beneath is the relative change: how much the rate itself grew or shrank as a share of its old value.

When to use this calculator

A central bank, lender, or news story says a rate rose or fell and you want to know how big the move really is.
You are writing a report and need to choose between “up 3 points” and “up 7%” — and say which one you mean.
You are comparing a risk or conversion rate before and after a change and a colleague quoted a relative figure.

Worked examples

Example calculations for Percentage Points
Question	Answer
Interest rate 4% → 5%	+1 pp · +25% relative
Unemployment 10% → 8%	−2 pp · −20% relative
Poll share 42% → 45%	+3 pp · +7.14% relative
Defect rate 2% → 3%	+1 pp · +50% relative

Walkthroughs

A savings rate drops from 3% to 2.25%

Old rate 3, new rate 2.25. Point change: 2.25 − 3 = −0.75 pp, or 75 basis points. Relative change: −0.75 ÷ 3 × 100 = −25%.

On €10,000 that is the difference between €300 and €225 of simple yearly interest: €75 less. “The rate fell a quarter” and “the rate fell 0.75 points” describe the same event.

A poll moves from 42% to 45%

Point change: +3 pp. Relative change: 3 ÷ 42 × 100 ≈ +7.14%. In election coverage, “up three points” is the standard phrasing. Saying the party’s support “grew 7%” is correct but unusual, and readers may hear it as 49%.

Remember that polls have a margin of error, often stated in points. A 3-point move may be inside that margin; this calculator cannot tell you whether the change is statistically meaningful.

Formula

Goal	Formula
Point change	new rate − old rate
Relative change	(new − old) ÷ old × 100
Basis points	point change × 100

Point change is subtraction, nothing more: 5 − 4 = 1 pp. Relative change is the ordinary percentage-change formula applied to the rates: (5 − 4) ÷ 4 × 100 = 25%. The calculator gives both because neither is wrong — they answer different questions.

Finance often uses basis points, where 1 basis point = 0.01 percentage points. A rate cut “of 25 basis points” is a 0.25 pp cut. Multiply the point change by 100 to get basis points.

If a rate is applied to a fixed amount, the point change converts straight into money. Each percentage point on €10,000 is €100 a year in simple interest. That is why lenders and borrowers usually care about points, while press releases about relative risk often lead with percent.

Mistakes this page will not catch for you

Calling a point change a percent change

“Mortgage rates rose 1%” is ambiguous. If they went from 4% to 5%, they rose 1 percentage point and 25%. Write “1 percentage point” or “to 5% from 4%” and the ambiguity disappears.

Being impressed by relative change on a tiny base

A risk that goes from 1 in 10,000 to 2 in 10,000 has “doubled” (+100%), but the point change is 0.01 pp. Both are true. The relative figure alone makes small risks sound large.

Subtracting percents that have different bases

Percentage points are only meaningful when both rates are shares of comparable wholes. 20% of a small group and 18% of a different, larger group can be compared in points, but the point gap does not tell you how many people are involved.

FAQ

What is a percentage point?: The plain arithmetic difference between two percentages. 5% minus 4% is 1 percentage point (often written pp or “points”).
How many basis points are in a percentage point?: 100. A basis point is one hundredth of a percentage point, so a 0.25 pp change in an interest rate is 25 basis points.
Is a 0% to 2% change an infinite percent increase?: A relative change from zero is undefined, so the calculator shows only the point change (+2 pp). That is the useful number in that situation anyway.
Which should I report, points or percent?: Report points when the audience cares about the level of the rate (interest rates, tax rates, polls). If you report a relative change, say “relative” and give both rates, e.g. “from 2% to 3%, a 50% relative increase.”