Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
For comparison, the US inflation in the same period was less than 90%.
Vladimir Putin wants to promote an image of a “fatherly” figure having everything under control.
You could argue that he does not have the war in Ukraine under control, but given how tight the Russian flow of information is domestically, it is easier for Putin to keep up appearances regarding the war, now in its fifth year.
However, even Putin can’t censor the prices in the supermarket — and since he took power, the Russian public has suffered through inflation of epic proportions.
Price surge nationwide
According to calculations by the “If byt’chnom” (“To Be Precise”) project using data from the Russian statistics agency Rosstat, consumer prices have increased roughly 10.3 times since the start of 2000.
Goods and services priced at 100 rubles at the beginning of that year cost about 1,033 rubles by the end of 2025.
That equates to an average annual increase of about 9.4 percent and cumulative inflation of roughly 930 percent over 26 years, the project found.
Compared to the West
To put the number into perspective, we have calculated the cumulative inflation for some of the Western economies using various sources:
- USA: Cumulative inflation of 89.8% by early 2026 (usinflationcalculator.com)
- Canada: Cumulative inflation of 76.5% by early 2026 (Bank of Canada)
- UK: Cumulative inflation of 91.8% by early 2026 (Bank of England)
- Germany: Cumulative inflation of 62% by early 2026 (Statista)
- Sweden: Cumulative inflation of 60% by early 2026 (Trading Economics)
War years’ impact
Inflation has accelerated during Russia’s war with Ukraine.
Between 2022 and 2025, the consumer price index rose by about 39 percent.
According to Russia’s Central Bank, financial pressure is widely felt. Around 32 percent of Russians say their financial situation has worsened, while 54 percent report a “very strong” rise in prices, especially for meat, poultry, fruit, vegetables, and utility bills.
Meanwhile, the bank recently lowered its inflation forecast for 2026 to between 4.5 and 5.5 percent.
Sources: Rosstat data; “If byt’chnom” (To Be Precise) project; reporting referenced by the Central Bank of Russia; usinflationcalculator.com; Bank of Canada; Bank of England; Statista; Trading Economics; The Moscow Times.
