Negative budgets data

The rising problem of negative budgets

Half of the people we help with debt advice are in a negative budget - up from just over one-third in 2019.

Someone is in a negative budget when their income is not enough to cover their essential costs, even after being helped by one of our advisers.

They’re building up debt just to get by, with no way of repaying what they already owe. Like quicksand, it’s hard to get out of once you’re in. 

Use the filter in the chart below to see which groups, among the people we help, are most at risk of being in a negative budget.

We can use our data to see how much money the people we help with debt have left after paying for their essential costs.

In June 2019, our average debt client had £20 left after paying for their essentials. Now, they are £20 in the red each month.

Some groups are particularly deep in a negative budget, including racially minoritised groups, single parents, private renters and, more recently, mortgage holders.

Use the filter to explore these trends for different groups.

Disability benefits help protect disabled people from the red

The disabled people we help with debt are more likely to be able to make ends meet if they are receiving disability benefits.

This chart shows the average amount of money people have left each month after paying for essentials.

For the people we help who are receiving PIP only, they are just about breaking even, with an average surplus of £14 each month. Those people receiving no disability benefits have an average deficit in their budget of £62 every month.

You can see more of our insights on disability benefits here.

High energy and housing costs are driving people into the red

In this chart we look at the monthly essential spending of all the people we've helped with debt advice.

You can see that monthly spending on essentials such as private rent, mortgages and energy are significantly higher than they were two years ago. Average private rent costs are now higher than they've ever been, and the cost of groceries has continued to sharply rise.

Use the filter bar below to explore how much the people we help with debt advice are having to spend on different essential costs.

5 million people are in a negative budget

This doesn't just affect the people we help.

Now, for the first time, we've used the unique data we get from the people we help at Citizens Advice to estimate how many people across the country are trapped in a negative budget. 

In 2023-4, 5 million people are in a negative budget, including 1.5 million children - this has increased by 54% since 2020-1.

A further 2.35 million are living on empty, only avoiding a negative budget by cutting back their spending to unsafe levels.

Fixing the problem of millions in negative budgets, and millions more living on empty, should be the first priority of any government. Our data insights can show the scale of this problem and the policies that are best at fixing it.

You can read more in our report, The National Red Index: how to turn the tide on falling living standards.

Negative budgets by constituency

Using a representative survey of more than 10,000 GB adults*, we have calculated the percentage of households who are in a negative budget in each constituency in England, Scotland and Wales.

There are 201 constituencies in Great Britain where the number of people in a negative budget is higher than the 2019 margin of victory.