What is the percentage increase formula?

Percentage increase equals the final value minus the starting value, divided by the absolute value of the starting value, multiplied by 100.

Why does the formula use the absolute value of the starting value?

The denominator uses the absolute value so the sign of the result always reflects the true direction of the change (positive for growth), even when the starting value itself is negative.

What does it mean if the result is negative?

A negative result means the value actually decreased rather than increased. Use a percentage decrease calculator for the correctly labeled figure — the formula is the same, just read the other way.

If a value doubles, what is the percentage increase?

Exactly 100%. Doubling always corresponds to a +100% increase, tripling to +200%, and so on.

What's the difference between percentage increase and percentage change?

Percentage change reports a signed result covering both directions. Percentage increase uses the same formula but is meant to describe growth — a negative outcome signals the value went down instead.

Can percentage increase be more than 100%?

Yes. Any time a value more than doubles, the percentage increase exceeds 100%. Going from 10 to 25, for example, is a 150% increase.

Percentage Increase Calculator

What is a percentage increase?

Percentage increase measures how much a value grew from a starting point to a final point, expressed as a percentage of the starting value.

$\text{Percentage increase} = \frac{\text{Final} - \text{Starting}}{|\text{Starting}|} \times 100$

Tip: The formula divides by the absolute value of the starting value, so the sign of the result stays meaningful even if the starting value is negative.

Worked example — jeans price

Last year a pair of jeans cost $36; this year they cost $45. How much did the price increase?

$45 - 36 = 9; \quad \frac{9}{36} = 0.25; \quad 0.25 \times 100 = 25\%$

The price increased by 25%.

Worked example — user growth

A product grew from 800 to 1,000 users.

$\frac{1000 - 800}{800} \times 100 = \frac{200}{800} \times 100 = 25\%$

That's a 25% increase in users.

Doubling always means +100%

Going from 10 apples to 20 apples:

$\frac{20 - 10}{10} \times 100 = 100\%$

Doubling a value is always a 100% increase — tripling it is always a 200% increase, and so on.

When the result is negative

The formula only measures the direction it's given — if the final value is actually smaller than the starting value, the result comes out negative.

$\frac{50 - 100}{|100|} \times 100 = -50\%$

A negative percentage increase means the value actually decreased. The calculator flags this so the answer isn't misread as growth — for a properly labeled figure, use the Percentage Decrease calculator instead.

Percentage increase vs. percentage change vs. percentage decrease

Tip: Percentage Increase, Percentage Decrease, and Percentage Change all use the exact same formula — (final − starting) ÷ |starting| × 100. They differ only in which direction the calculator expects and how the sign is presented.

Reach for Percentage Change when you don't know in advance whether a value grew or shrank. Reach for Percentage Increase (this calculator) or Percentage Decrease when you're specifically checking for growth or shrinkage and want the label to match.

Common mistakes

Dividing by the final value instead of the starting value. The denominator is always the starting value, never the final one.
Forgetting the absolute value. Skipping the absolute value on the starting value can flip the sign when the starting value is negative.
Reading a negative result as growth. If the percent comes out negative, the value went down, not up.

Where percentage increase shows up

Retail and finance — price markups, salary raises, revenue growth.
Science and health — population growth, measurement increases over time.
Everyday comparisons — year-over-year growth, before/after improvements.