In 2026 most Dutch savings accounts lose purchasing power, because consumer prices rose 3.3% in the year to August 2026 while the average savings rate sits around 1.3%. On €50,000 that difference costs you roughly €978 in purchasing power in a single year, before any box 3 tax.
Your balance keeps growing on paper, which is why this loss is easy to miss. This article compares the current savings rate with current inflation and works out what that means in euros. It also looks at what rate you would need to break even and why the ECB's recent rate increases have not yet closed the gap.
How far savings interest lags behind inflation in 2026
The gap in 2026 is about two percentage points. According to CBS, the consumer price index was 3.3% higher in August 2026 than a year earlier, the same as the average for 2025. The European measure (HICP), which leaves out spending abroad and the housing costs of homeowners, came to 2.8%.
For the savings rate, the most useful official figure is the one the Belastingdienst uses for box 3. The deemed return on bank balances for 2026 is 1.28%, a provisional estimate based on 2025 data. The final rate is set by law from the average savings rate that De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) publishes. The European Central Bank's figures point the same way, with euro-area households receiving 1.18% on savings with up to three months' notice in July 2026. Some banks pay more on instant-access savings and fixed-term deposits pay more again, but the average saver earns well below inflation.
What that costs you in euros
The correct way to compare the two is with real return, which divides rather than subtracts. With 1.28% interest and 3.3% inflation the real return is 1.0128 divided by 1.033, minus one, or minus 1.96%. The simple subtraction of 3.3 minus 1.28 gives minus 2.02%, and the gap between the two methods grows with higher rates, as we explain in our article on purchasing power and real returns.
In euros, €50,000 at 1.28% grows to €50,640 after a year. In today's money that is worth €49,022, so you have lost €978 in purchasing power while your balance went up by €640. Measured against the HICP of 2.8% the real return is minus 1.48%, which is smaller but still negative.
What rate you need to break even
To keep your purchasing power at 3.3% inflation, your savings need to earn 3.3% as well. If your savings are above the box 3 allowance of €59,357 per person, you also pay tax on a deemed return regardless of the interest you actually receive. For a single person with €100,000 in savings that is about €187 in 2026, or 0.19% of the balance, so the break-even rate rises to around 3.5%.
The European Central Bank raised its deposit rate to 2.50% from 16 September 2026, after an earlier increase in June. Banks usually pass on such increases to savers slowly and only partly, which helps explain why the average savings rate still sits far below both the ECB rate and inflation.
How Gylder fits in
Gylder (gylder.nl) is a net worth tracker, not a budgeting app. Because it updates your connected savings accounts every day, you see the total you hold in savings next to your other assets. That makes it easier to judge whether your savings are larger than the buffer you actually need. Gylder does not adjust your figures for inflation.
What this doesn't tell you
Inflation is measured over the past twelve months, while your savings rate applies from now on, so the comparison is a snapshot rather than a forecast. Your own inflation depends on what you spend money on, and a buffer for unexpected costs belongs in a savings account regardless of the real return. This article is general information, not financial advice.
Frequently asked questions
Is my savings account losing money to inflation in 2026? In purchasing power, yes for most savers. With an average savings rate of about 1.3% and inflation of 3.3% in August 2026, the real return is close to minus 2% a year.
What savings rate beats inflation in the Netherlands? You need a rate above the inflation rate, which was 3.3% in August 2026. If you pay box 3 tax, add roughly 0.2 percentage points on €100,000 for a single person.
How do I calculate the real return on my savings? Divide one plus your interest rate by one plus inflation and subtract one. At 1.28% interest and 3.3% inflation that gives minus 1.96%.