daily-common-english-mistake

% / Percentage Points

Percentage points are the unit for the arithmetic difference of two percentages

That is, rises or falls in pecentages are measured in percentage points, not percent

E.g.: Home computer possession in 1990 stood at 5%; in 2010 it was 70%. So, there was an increase of 65 percentage points, not 65% (the increase was ~93% if the population remained constant)

4:13 pm, by daily-deep-quote
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