The average rate on new hryvnia deposits is 12.63 % (NBU, August 2026). After tax it is 9.73 %, and after 10 % inflation (NBU, October 2026) it is −0.25 %. Out of a nominal twelve-plus percent, nothing is left in real terms - prices ran ahead of the deposit. Here is how to work out a real return, and why it is worth doing.
What a real rate is
A nominal rate shows how much the number in your account grew. A real rate shows how much its purchasing power grew.
You can almost do it in your head: subtract inflation from the return. Precisely, it is a division: (1 + return) / (1 + inflation) − 1. On small numbers the difference is negligible; on large ones it shows.
| Instrument | Nominal | After tax | Real at 10 % inflation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deposit at 12.63 %, paid to a card | 12.63 % | 9.73 % | −0.25 % |
| Bonds at 15.16 % | 15.16 % | 15.16 % | 4.69 % |
The bonds win twice here: a higher rate (15.16 % is the yield of one-year bonds at the Ministry of Finance auction of 29.09.2026) and no tax at all. The nominal gap to the deposit is 2.5 points, the real one is almost five: inflation takes the same 10 % from both, and after tax the deposit no longer reaches it, while the bonds clear it.
What a million is worth in ten years
Real value is the same idea from the other end. In 10 years, 1 000 000 ₴ buys what these sums buy today:
- 613 913 ₴ at 5 % inflation
- 385 543 ₴ at 10 % inflation
Over 20 years at 10 %, a million is down to 148 644 ₴ of today's value. The money did not go anywhere - its purchasing power did.
Why it breaks long plans
Set aside 5 000 ₴ a month for ten years at 8 % a year and you end up with 914 730 ₴, having paid in 600 000 ₴. That looks like a win.
Now restate it in today's money at 10 % inflation: 352 668 ₴. You put in 600 000 ₴ of your own money and came out with the purchasing power of 352 668 ₴. At an 8 % return against 10 % inflation, the real rate is −1.82 %.
This is not a calculation error, and not a reason to avoid investing. It is a reason to set targets in real terms: if you expect 8 % while inflation runs at 10 %, plan from below zero, not from eight.
When the real rate is positive
At the same 8 % return but 5 % inflation, the real rate is 2.86 %. Five percentage points of inflation separate the two examples, and the results have opposite signs.
Which leads to something practical: your inflation assumption moves the plan more than choosing between two instruments a point or two apart.
How to use this
- Compare instruments after tax: 15.16 % untaxed is roughly 19.7 % taxed (with interest paid out, not compounded).
- Beyond five years, judge on the real rate rather than the nominal one.
- Restate a future target in today's money, or you are planning for a different standard of living than you think.
- Never compare returns from different years without adjusting for each year's inflation.
Every FinPotik calculator has an inflation field, with a "real value" line next to the result. Start with the deposit calculator or the investment calculator.