The inflation figure
Statistics Netherlands (CBS) measures inflation as the change in consumer prices against the same month a year earlier. It publishes a quick estimate at the start of each month and the full figure about ten days later. The answer at the top of this page shows CBS's latest figure, read from its open data (CBS StatLine, table 86141NED) once a day, with the month it applies to.
The real return on your savings
What your savings gain in buying power is roughly the interest rate minus inflation. As an example, at 2% interest and 3% inflation, €10,000 grows to €10,200 in a year, while what cost €10,000 a year earlier now costs about €10,300, so the money buys a little less than before. At a rate above inflation, it buys a little more.
The answer at the top of this page compares today's rates with that figure, from the accounts we track:
- The rate shown is each account's standard rate, the one that lasts, not a promotion for the first months. Promotions can sit above inflation for a while and then drop.
- Only accounts our daily check has confirmed in the last 30 days count towards the highest and the average (see how rates are checked).
Where box 3 comes in
Dutch tax on savings does not depend on the interest you earn. For 2026, box 3 assumes a return of 1.28% on bank balances and taxes it at 36%, on what you own above €59,357 per person (Belastingdienst, checked 5 Oct 2026; the 1.28% is provisional until early 2027). So in 2026, on savings above the allowance, the tax is about 0.46% of the balance a year (36% of 1.28%), whatever rate you get. Below the allowance there is no box 3 tax. The box 3 guide has a full example.
For savings above the allowance, the sum becomes: interest rate, minus the box 3 tax (about 0.46% with the 2026 figures), minus inflation.
What you can do about it
- Move from a low rate to a higher one. The gap between accounts is often larger than anything else you control. This month's savings rates lists every account we track, highest first, and the high-interest ranking puts them in order.
- Stay inside the deposit guarantee: €100,000 per person per bank. A higher rate at a bank in another EU country is covered by that country's scheme; see how the deposit guarantee works.
- Keep in mind what savings are for. Money you may need soon belongs in an account you can reach. Beating inflation over many years is usually a question of investing, which carries risk and which this site does not compare.
More ways to earn more on the same savings are in 5 ways to maximise your savings interest.
Whether rates are likely to move, and how much of an ECB change Dutch banks pass on, is in will Dutch savings rates go up or down.