How much did things cost in 1971?
These are prices of some sample items in 1971.
How much were these prices for someone on an average income in 1971? To get a feel for this, I have adjusted them for the increase in incomes from 1971 to today. You can see these adjusted prices in the column 'Income adjusted'.
| 1971 price | Income adjusted | |
|---|---|---|
| 25" HMV Colourmaster colour TV (Currys) | £289.00 | £8,300 |
| 24" Ferguson black & white TV (Currys) | £69.00 | £2,000 |
| Gallon of petrol | 34p | £9.80 |
| Ford Cortina car | £968 | £28,000 |
| Mini 850 | £641 | £18,000 |
| Mini Clubman Estate | £824 | £24,000 |
| Bottle of whisky (Haig) | £2.53 | £73 |
| Pint of beer (Whitbread Tankard) | 16p | £4.60 |
| 20 cigarettes | 27p | £7.80 |
| Electrolux Midi Automatic 52 refrigerator (Debenhams) | £59.90 | £1,700 |
| Servis Supertwin MK70 washing machine (Currys) | £84.95 | £2,400 |
| Hoover Automatic Deluxe washing machine (Currys) | £105.00 | £3,000 |
| Braun KMM1 coffee grinder | £13.00 | £370 |
| Melitta Automat filter coffee machine | £22.94 | £660 |
| Goblin Teasmade 833 | £22.11 | £640 |
| Russell Hobbs K2S kettle | £9.27 | £270 |
| Pint of milk | 5p | £1.40 |
| Large loaf of bread | 10p | £2.90 |
| ½ lb of Country Life butter (Tesco) | 11½p | £3.30 |
| Nescafé 8oz coffee (Tesco) | 47½p | £14 |
| Can of coke (Woolworth) | 5½p | £1.60 |
| Golden Wonder crisps | 3p | 86p |
| One dozen large white eggs (Tesco) | 25p | £7.20 |
| ½lb Stork margarine (Sainsbury's) | 6½p | £1.90 |
| Vesta beef curry with rice (for two) | 20p | £5.80 |
| Average house price | £5,000.00 | £140,000 |
| Council rent per week | £5.00 | £140 |
| The Daily Mirror newspaper | 2½p - 3p | 72p - 86p |
| The Daily Express newspaper | 2½p - 3p | 72p - 86p |
| Tiny Tears (Timothy White) | £2.80 | £80 |
| Monopoly game (Tesco) | £1.15 | £33 |
| Mens suit made to measure from Burton | £28 | £800 |
| Mens paisley patterned polyester/cotton shirt (C&A) | £1.65 | £47 |
| Mens raincoat (C&A) | £9.95 | £290 |
| Woman's suit with hot pants and long trousers (Richard Shops) | £13.95 | £400 |
| Dresses (Richard Shops) | £7.25 | £210 |
| Jersey dress (C&A) | £3.50 | £100 |
| Satin hot pants (C&A) | £2 | £57 |
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 1971 adjusted for inflation see Infation adjusted prices for 1971
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How much did things cost in:
By Steven Braggs, updated May 2022
References
[1] Hansard - HC Deb 29 January 1975 vol 885 cc396-406
[2] 'Records for Christmas', in Which? December 1971, published by the Consumers' Association, page 364
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