How do your finances compare to those of an average British adult who ends the month with £276 of disposable income?
That works out at less than £10 a day to spend however they wish.
The figure was worked out after asking more than 2,000 workers detailed questions about their income and expenses.
The calculation looked at how much they paid in rent, mortgage, utility bills, for food and other day-to-day living costs.
Nearly half of the adults asked (45%) claimed some months they had no disposable cash left to spend, while 10% despair that they will ever earn enough to give a reasonable standard of living.
The most popular way to spend any spare cash is on eating out, the survey found.
Not enough money to go around
Asesh Sarkar, CEO and co-founder at Salary Finance, the financial firm which commissioned the research, said: “For many, the main reason for going to work is to earn a living.
“But while we want to be able to pay the bills, it would be nice to have at least a little bit left over to spend on some of the lighter things in life.
“Unfortunately, it seems for many, there is just not enough money to go around and they are left with very little spare cash after paying out for all of the essentials.
“This can lead to feelings of stress and even depression concerning financial wellbeing, which can impact people both personally and professionally.”
Envy of better-off friends and family
Their financial situation as ‘poor’ by 5%, while another third claim they struggle to make ends meet.
Jealousy is also a problem – with 40% envious of friends and relatives who seemingly have more disposable income than them.
Almost half work to a budget, but a fifth still find they spend more than they earn. The average shortfall is £122 month.
“According to our research, financial wellbeing is not related to income but more to saving, spending and borrowing habits, meaning those that do manage to save some money each month feel happier and are less stressed by their financial situation,” said Sarkar.
“Of course, we know a lack of disposable income, among other things, can make saving hard to spend, including barriers such as time.”
