Result: R1 in 1994 → R5.16 in 2024
Value of R1 from 1994 to 2024
Updated: September 11, 2024R1 in 1994 is equivalent in purchasing power to about R5.16 today, an increase of R4.16 over 30 years. The rand had an average inflation rate of 5.63% per year between 1994 and today, producing a cumulative price increase of 416.49%.
This means that today's prices are 5.16 times as high as average prices since 1994, according to the OECD and the World Bank consumer price index for South Africa. A rand today only buys 19.380% of what it could buy back then.
The inflation rate in 1994 was 8.94%. The current inflation rate compared to the end of last year is now 5.49%. If this number holds, R1 today will be equivalent in buying power to R1.05 next year.
⌃
| Cumulative price change | 416.49% |
| Average inflation rate | 5.63% |
| Converted amount R1 base | R5.16 |
| Price difference R1 base | R4.16 |
| CPI in 1994 | 30.641 |
| CPI in 2024 | 158.258 |
| Inflation in 1994 | 8.94% |
| Inflation in 2024 | 5.49% |
| R1 in 1994 | R5.16 in 2024 |
Buying power of R1 in 1994
This chart shows a calculation of buying power equivalence for R1 in 1994 (price index tracking began in 1957).
For example, if you started with R1, you would need to end with R5.16 in order to "adjust" for inflation (sometimes refered to as "beating inflation").
When R1 is equivalent to R5.16 over time, that means that the "real value" of a single South African rand decreases over time. In other words, a rand will pay for fewer items at the store.
This effect explains how inflation erodes the value of a rand over time. By calculating the value in 1994 dollars, the chart below shows how R1 is worth less over 30 years.
According to the OECD and the World Bank, each of these ZAR amounts below is equal in terms of what it could buy at the time:
This conversion table shows various other 1994 amounts in today's rand, based on the 416.49% change in prices:
| Initial value | Equivalent value |
|---|---|
| R1 rand in 1994 | R5.16 rand today |
| R5 rand in 1994 | R25.82 rand today |
| R10 rand in 1994 | R51.65 rand today |
| R50 rand in 1994 | R258.24 rand today |
| R100 rand in 1994 | R516.49 rand today |
| R500 rand in 1994 | R2,582.43 rand today |
| R1,000 rand in 1994 | R5,164.86 rand today |
| R5,000 rand in 1994 | R25,824.32 rand today |
| R10,000 rand in 1994 | R51,648.64 rand today |
| R50,000 rand in 1994 | R258,243.19 rand today |
| R100,000 rand in 1994 | R516,486.37 rand today |
| R500,000 rand in 1994 | R2,582,431.87 rand today |
| R1,000,000 rand in 1994 | R5,164,863.73 rand today |
How to calculate inflation rate for R1 since 1994
Our calculations use the following inflation rate formula to calculate the change in value between 1994 and today:
CPI today CPI in 1994
×
1994 ZAR value
=
Today's value
Then plug in historical CPI values. The South African CPI was 30.64128 in the year 1994 and 158.25803574504084 in 2024:
158.2580357450408430.64128
×
R1
=
R5.16
R1 in 1994 has the same "purchasing power" or "buying power" as R5.16 in 2024.
To get the total inflation rate for the 30 years between 1994 and 2024, we use the following formula:
CPI in 2024 - CPI in 1994CPI in 1994
×
100
=
Cumulative inflation rate (30 years)
Plugging in the values to this equation, we get:
158.25803574504084 - 30.6412830.64128
×
100
=
416%
Data source & citation
You may use the following MLA citation for this page: “R1 in 1994 → 2024 | South Africa Inflation Calculator.” Official Inflation Data, Alioth Finance, 4 Oct. 2024, https://www.officialdata.org/south-africa/inflation/1994?amount=1.
Special thanks to QuickChart for their chart image API, which is used for chart downloads.
in2013dollars.com is a reference website maintained by the Official Data Foundation.
| Cumulative price change | 416.49% |
| Average inflation rate | 5.63% |
| Converted amount R1 base | R5.16 |
| Price difference R1 base | R4.16 |
| CPI in 1994 | 30.641 |
| CPI in 2024 | 158.258 |
| Inflation in 1994 | 8.94% |
| Inflation in 2024 | 5.49% |
| R1 in 1994 | R5.16 in 2024 |