The real question
A 5% raise is not automatically progress. If prices rose faster than your pay, your real wage went down even though the paycheck number went up.
Raise calculator
Salary inflation calculator
Compare a raise against inflation and see whether your pay is really moving forward after prices rise.
Example
A 4% raise when prices rose 3.4% increases buying power by about 0.6%.
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Real raise after inflation
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What this means
Positive means the raise beat inflation; negative means buying power fell.
Track in Goal CueOr preview instantly on this iPhone →Use the result
From answer to action.
Put the inflation-adjusted salary target into Goal Cue and track whether the year is actually on pace.
Track this in Goal Cue →What the result means
The calculator compares the new salary after the raise with the salary required to preserve last year's buying power.
Why track it through the year
After you set the right annual number, the harder job is staying on pace. Goal Cue breaks that salary or income target into where you should be today.
Method and source
BLS CPI-U (CUUR0000SA0) for July 2026: 3.4% year over year. Snapshot refreshed August 19, 2026. Use this as a starting assumption for U.S. purchasing-power planning, then adjust it for your own decision.
BLS CPI-U (CUUR0000SA0)Common questions
What is a real raise?
A real raise is the part of a pay increase left after accounting for inflation. If pay rises 4% while prices rise 5%, the real raise is negative.
Can salaried workers use Goal Cue?
Yes. Goal Cue works for salaried professionals who want to compare annual pay, bonuses, commissions, or raise targets against inflation.
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