# Just how much was tuppence, anyway? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 4, 2018, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991 "2018-03-04T01:06:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/1 "2018-03-04T01:06:38Z")
Just watching Mary Poppins, and it seems like a lot of fuss was made of tuppence. Just how much was tuppence back in that day? ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/2 "2018-03-04T01:11:09Z")
two cents ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/3 "2018-03-04T01:14:42Z")
Two pence (pennies), of which there were 240 in a pound. If I’m not mistaken, the British system of currency (based on 12 instead of 10) went back to Roman times. For many years, a pound was worth US$4.00. When you figure that 100 years ago, $1 was worth around $20 today, I guess you could actually buy a number of things with a UK penny. Britain went decimal in the early '70s. The money lost a lot of charm when it did, IMHO. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/4 "2018-03-04T01:15:08Z")
Two pence, actually…somewhat different. (Although I’d take two Pence over a Trump and a Pence…) Bah…ninjaed, and far more completely. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/5 "2018-03-04T01:20:47Z")
Figure tuppence was worth about $16 in today’s money. That means…he would have made bupkis until the 1950s, when he would have lost everything when the British Empire collapsed. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/6 "2018-03-04T01:23:23Z")
“If you have no ha-penny then God bless you.” ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/7 "2018-03-04T01:26:08Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Just how much was tuppence, anyway? Fifty pounds from a quick bit of blackmail, which impressed tommy. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/8 "2018-03-04T01:40:50Z")
> [@Johnny\_Ace](#): > > … I’d take two Pence over a Trump and a Pence… Now, if you are looking for sense, I would look elsewhere. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/9 "2018-03-04T01:42:04Z")
A quick check shows that US$1 in 1910, the year _ **MP** _ is set, was actually worth $25.23 in today’s money. A British pound was worth US$4.86. You do the math. 😃 BTW, one pound in 1910 would be worth £114.23 today! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/10 "2018-03-04T02:52:33Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > two cents Yes, I know, Two Pence. Which is not really two cents. But how much was tuppence worth. what could you buy with tuppence? ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/11 "2018-03-04T02:52:46Z")
So it would have cost about a dollar to feed the birds or to open a bank account. Seems a little low to me, at least for the bank account. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/12 "2018-03-04T02:57:09Z")
Huh, this site says: I\*n 1914, it cost one penny to post a letter. For the same amount, you could buy a pint of milk or a loaf of bread, though most people were still baking their own. Or you could buy a copy of The Oxford Times newspaper. A quarter of loose tea would set you back tuppence and a pint of beer was yours for two pence-ha’penny.\* > **[Remembering when a penny could buy a lot](https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/opinion/columns/11379827.remembering-penny-buy-lot/)** > > Personal finance with Gill Oliver So, maybe $1 or two. ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/13 "2018-03-04T02:59:17Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > two cents No. Two “cents” mean two one-hundredths of a dollar/other basic monetary unit. Since there were 240 pence in the pound, tuppence were equivalent to 1/120th of a pound. Much less than “two cents”. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/14 "2018-03-04T03:03:21Z")
> [@DSYoungEsq](#): > > No. > > Two “cents” mean two one-hundredths of a dollar/other basic monetary unit. Since there were 240 pence in the pound, tuppence were equivalent to 1/120th of a pound. Much less than “two cents”. But a pence is a big copper coin, and a pound was about $5. So 1/100 of a dollar is less that 1/240 of $5. So tuppence was more than two cents. ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/15 "2018-03-04T03:15:31Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Huh, this site says: I\*n 1914, it cost one penny to post a letter. > For the same amount, you could buy a pint of milk or a loaf of bread, though most people were still baking their own. > > Or you could buy a copy of The Oxford Times newspaper. > > A quarter of loose tea would set you back tuppence and a pint of beer was yours for two pence-ha’penny.\* > [Remembering when a penny could buy a lot | Oxford Mail](http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/life/11379827.Remembering_when_a_penny_could_buy_a_lot/) > > So, maybe $1 or two. What kind of beer do you drink? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/16 "2018-03-04T04:17:19Z")
> [@j666](#): > > What kind of beer do you drink? Well, in a bar, sure, but you can get a can for a buck. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/17 "2018-03-04T04:23:21Z")
> [@j666](#): > > So it would have cost about a dollar to feed the birds or to open a bank account. Seems a little low to me, at least for the bank account. Yes, when I did the math it came to $1.02546 in today’s money. And that seems about right. In those days (from what I’ve read) you might give tuppence as a tip, as you might give a dollar today. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/18 "2018-03-04T05:45:41Z")
Well, here’s my 2 cents. Well not really, I have nothing. ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/19 "2018-03-04T06:51:33Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > But a pence is a big copper coin, and a pound was about $5. So 1/100 of a dollar is less that 1/240 of $5. So tuppence was more than two cents. Only if by “cent” you mean an AMERICAN cent. The concept of a “cent” extends beyond just our own currency. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 9:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991/20 "2018-03-04T09:25:18Z")
> [@DSYoungEsq](#): > > Only if by “cent” you mean an AMERICAN cent. The concept of a “cent” extends beyond just our own currency. 😉 ‘cent’ as in per cent, i.e. 100 to the (whatever). In the British system, pence are also called pennies, but never cents. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-much-was-tuppence-anyway/809991.md?page=2)