Short Briefing
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Text briefing | Sources checked October 23, 2026

Five Percentage Points Is Not a Five Percent Increase

A rate moving from 20% to 25% changed by five percentage points. Relative to where it started, that is a 25% increase. Both statements can be true.

For
Anyone reading or reporting a change in a percentage.
Use it to
Label the change accurately before drawing a conclusion.

Start with the two rates

Imagine a fictional teaching clip shown in two rounds. In each round, 100 people start the clip. In the first, 20 finish it. In the second, 25 finish it. For this example, the completion rate is the number who finish divided by the number who start.

First round: 20 out of 100 = 20%.

Second round: 25 out of 100 = 25%.

The rates describe shares of their respective groups. The counts are included so you can see exactly what each rate means. No real audience or channel data are used here.

Subtract for percentage points

Subtract the earlier rate from the later one: 25% minus 20% equals five percentage points. A percentage point is a difference between two percentages. This tells you how far the rate moved on the percentage scale.

Calling that a “five percent increase” would describe a different calculation. The word percent needs a starting amount to compare against.

Divide for a relative percent increase

To measure the change relative to the starting rate, divide the five-point difference by the original 20% rate: 5 divided by 20, then multiplied by 100, equals 25%. The rate increased by 25% relative to its starting rate.

Check the difference by working forward. A 5% relative increase from 20% would give 20% times 1.05, or 21%. That is only one percentage point higher. “Five percentage points” and “five percent” do not lead to the same ending rate.

Keep the comparison modest

The two rounds are invented to teach arithmetic. They are not evidence that any change to the clip caused more people to finish. For a real comparison, check the time periods, who was counted, and whether both rates use the same definition of a start and a finish. A correct calculation does not repair mismatched groups or explain why a rate moved.

When you see “up 5%” beside a rate, ask for the starting and ending rates. Subtract them for the percentage-point change. Divide the difference by the starting rate for the relative percent change. Then label the number you mean.

One step you can use

Write down both rates. Subtract for percentage points; divide that difference by the starting rate for relative percent change.

Limits

This example is entirely fictional. A change in a real rate alone does not establish its cause or whether the underlying groups were comparable.

Disclosures

AI assisted drafting and source review. The teaching example and wording are original. This is a text lesson with no synthetic narration or video.

Corrections

No corrections have been recorded. See the corrections process.

Original sources and limits

Check the definitions

  1. Office for National Statistics: Percentages and percentage pointsChecked October 23, 2026

    Defines a percentage point as the difference between percentages. It does not supply the fictional clip figures.

  2. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Calculating percent changesChecked October 23, 2026

    Explains the earlier-to-later percent-change formula. Its examples concern the Consumer Price Index; our clip example is independent.