How to Calculate Percent Difference

You can calculate percent difference with your calculator.

Percentages are used to compare ratios by converting them to how many out of 100. For example, two out of five would be equivalent to 40 percent, or 40 out of 100. Percent difference measures the amount of change in proportion to the number that is changing. For example, if a $4 stock went up $2 to $6, it would be a much more significant percent difference than if a $100 stock went up $2 to $102. To calculate percent difference, you just need to know the two values.

Things You'll Need

• Calculator

Instructions

1. Subtract the first value from your second value. For example, if you wanted to know the percent difference between 80 and 85, you would subtract 80 from 85 to get 5. If the second value is smaller than your second value, you will get a negative value, which means you will have a negative percent difference.

2. Divide the result from Step 1 by the first number. Continuing the example, you would divide 5 by 80 to get 0.0625.

3. Multiply the result from step 2 by 100 to convert the number from a decimal to a percentage. Finishing the example, you would multiply 0.0625 by 100 to get 6.25 percent.

References

• Math is Fun: Percentage Difference
• Queens U: Calculate a Percent Difference