In 2017, around 6.5 million adults in the United Kingdom had no cash savings. Once you are an adult, having savings is a key element of preparing yourself for life’s little and big surprises. Building cash savings can be a difficult task as it takes careful planning, and time to accumulate. Those aged between 18 and 24 years of age in the United Kingdom have the lowest mean amount in cash savings of any age group. As of 2017, one in eight UK adults had no cash savings, with a further 32 percent of the population having between zero and two thousand British pounds.

With age comes wisdom

The correlation between age and the mean amount of cash savings can be somewhat linked to individuals’ priorities. Younger people will be looking to put money towards large items such as a car, home or travel whereas those aged over 65 have not only had time to build their savings, but also are more likely to have no unsecured debt, and to own a property outright.

Rainy day fund

As we get older, the importance of having some form of savings for an emergency, or unforeseen circumstances becomes clearer. Planning for the long-term becomes of higher importance as we age. Despite this, as of 2018, just over half of the adult population had adequate savings for retirement.

This statistic presents the average amount saved by Great Britain's adult population monthly, expressed as a percentage of average income during summer and autumn 2014, by age group. During that time the highest share of their income was saved by people over 65 in summer 2014 (making monthly savings over 9 percent of their average income). The lowest share of their income was saved by people aged 45 to 54 in summer 2014(saving 6.37 percent of their average income).

Over a quarter of households in the United Kingdom (UK) had less than 1,500 British pounds in savings and investments in the financial year of 2021/22. Meanwhile, a fifth of all households had at least 30,000 British pounds saved up, a percentage that has not changed since 2020/21. In 2021/22, Northern Ireland was one of the regions in the United Kingdom with the lowest ownership rate of ISAs and other savings accounts.

This dataset provides values for PERSONAL SAVINGS reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

On average, seventeen-year-olds received more pocket money than any other underage children in the United Kingdom (UK) between March 2023 and February 2024. There was a clear correlation between their age and the amount they received, with children aged six collecting less than a third of what a seventeen-year-old would earn each week. The highest-paid chore for kids in the UK was washing the car.

Children and money worldwide The average amount of pocket money of Japanese children did not exactly follow the correlation observed in this statistic about the United Kingdom. In Japan, kids had more money before they reach the age to enroll in elementary school than during their elementary school studies. There are several ways through which children can save money themselves or with the help of their parents. The most common financial instruments for children between eight and 14 years old in the United States were savings accounts and piggy banks. Child poverty Child poverty is a problem affecting a significant share of the population even in developed economies. For example, over a fifth of all children in Germany were at risk of poverty in 2022. Meanwhile, Romania and Bulgaria were, in 2021, some of the countries with the most children at risk of poverty or social exclusion in Central and Eastern Europe. The probability of children finding themselves in these situations can vary within a country depending on their socioeconomic and ethnic background, the region where they live, or whether they are being raised by a single parent or not.

In December 2024, the personal saving rate in the United States amounted to 3.8 percent. That was slightly lower figure than a year earlier. The personal saving rate is calculated as the ratio of personal savings to disposable personal income. Within the topic of personal savings in the U.S., there are different goals and reasons for saving. What are personal savings? Saving refers to strategies of accumulating capital for future use by either not spending a part of one’s income or cutting down on certain costs. Saved money may be preserved as cash, put on a deposit account, or invested in various financial instruments. Investing usually incorporates some level of risk which means that part of the invested money can be gone. An example of a relatively safe investment would be saving bonds, such as the debt securities issued by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Saving trends in the U.S. and abroad Looking at the personal saving rate in the United States throughout the past decades, it can be observed that savings had been decreasing until the mid-2000s, and they increased after the 2008 financial crisis. Still, the largest savings rates were reached in 2020 and 2021. The reason for that increase in the savings rate that year might be related to the measures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. The value of personal savings in the United Kingdom has also followed a similar trend. Although events like the COVID-19 pandemic may have affect many countries in a similar way, the ability to save, as well as the average savings as a share of personal income across countries can vary significantly depending on multiple factors affecting each territory.

Detailed breakdown of average weekly household expenditure on goods and services in the UK. Data are shown by place of purchase, income group (deciles) and age of household reference person.

In the 3 years to March 2021, black households were most likely out of all ethnic groups to have a weekly income of under £600.

The value of any pension pots already accrued that are not state basic retirement or state earning related. This includes occupational pensions, personal pensions, retained rights in previous pensions and pensions in payment.

Whether it’s teaching the importance of good money management, learning about savings, or a way of rewarding a child for good behavior, pocket money is a big issue for parents and children alike in the United Kingdom. In 2023, the average child in the UK received five British pounds a week in pocket money, nearly the same as last year.
Top chores to earn extra As children grow and age, the importance of hard work becomes an important life lesson for a lot of parents. There is a clear correlation between a child’s age and the amount they receive in pocket money. If kids are smart, they will choose their chores wisely. As of 2021, washing the car saw the average child earn almost three British pounds.

Kids in the capital get more In Greater London, the average child received approximately 8.2 British pounds per week in 2018, over 425 GBP per year. Children in the South East and East of England faired off the worst, with an average of two pounds a week less than London in 2018. Meanwhile, savings accounts and piggy banks were some of the most popular financial instruments owned by children in the U.S. in 2022 were savings accounts and piggy banks.

Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.The Family Resources Survey (FRS) has been running continuously since 1992 to meet the information needs of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). It is almost wholly funded by DWP. The FRS collects information from a large, and representative sample of private households in the United Kingdom (prior to 2002, it covered Great Britain only). The interview year runs from April to March.The focus of the survey is on income, and how much comes from the many possible sources (such as employee earnings, self-employed earnings or profits from businesses, and dividends; individual pensions; state benefits, including Universal Credit and the State Pension; and other sources such as savings and investments). Specific items of expenditure, such as rent or mortgage, Council Tax and water bills, are also covered.Many other topics are covered and the dataset has a very wide range of personal characteristics, at the adult or child, family and then household levels. These include education, caring, childcare and disability. The dataset also captures material deprivation, household food security and (new for 2021/22) household food bank usage. The FRS is a national statistic whose results are published on the gov.uk website. It is also possible to create your own tables from FRS data, using DWP’s Stat Xplore tool. Further information can be found on the gov.uk Family Resources Survey webpage. Safe Room Access FRS data In addition to the standard End User Licence (EUL) version, Safe Room access datasets, containing unrounded data and additional variables, are also available for FRS from 2005/06 onwards - see SN 7196, where the extra contents are listed. The Safe Room version also includes secure access versions of the Households Below Average Income (HBAI) and Pensioners' Incomes (PI) datasets. The Safe Room access data are currently only available to UK HE/FE applicants and for access at the UK Data Archive's Safe Room at the University of Essex, Colchester. Prospective users of the Safe Room access version of the FRS/HBAI/PI will need to fulfil additional requirements beyond those associated with the EUL datasets. Full details of the application requirements are available from Guidance on applying for the Family Resources Survey: Secure Access.FRS, HBAI and PIThe FRS underpins the related Households Below Average Income (HBAI) dataset, which focuses on poverty in the UK, and the related Pensioners' Incomes (PI) dataset. The EUL versions of HBAI and PI are held under SNs 5828 and 8503 respectively. The secure access versions are held within the Safe Room FRS study under SN 7196 (see above). The Family Resources Survey aims to: support the monitoring of the social security programme; support the costing and modelling of changes to national insurance contributions and social security benefits; provide better information for the forecasting of benefit expenditure. For the fifth edition of the 1995-1996 survey, the new grossing regime, GROSS 3, has been included. Main Topics: Household characteristics (eg. size, tenure type); income and benefit receipt; tenure and housing costs; assets and savings; informal care (given and received); occupation and employment. Standard Measures Standard Occupational Classification The additional derived water and sewerage variables include : a) the water company and sewerage company; b) total annual estimated water consumption in cubic metres; c) estimated water consumption over the summer (taken to be May to August) in cubic metres; d) estimated water consumption over the remainder of the year in cubic metres. Multi-stage stratified random sample Face-to-face interview 1995 1996 ABSENTEEISM ADMINISTRATIVE AREAS AGE AGRICULTURE APARTMENTS APPOINTMENT TO JOB ATTITUDES BEDROOMS BONDS BONUS PAYMENTS CAR SHARING CARE OF DEPENDANTS CARE OF THE DISABLED CARE OF THE ELDERLY CENTRAL HEATING CHARITABLE ORGANIZA... CHILD BENEFITS CHILD CARE CHILD DAY CARE CHILD MINDING CHILD WORKERS CHILDREN COAL COLOUR TELEVISION R... COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS COMMUTING COMPANY CARS COMPUTERS CONSUMER GOODS CONSUMPTION COSTS COUNCIL TAX Consumption and con... DAY NURSERIES DEBTS DENTISTS DIESEL OIL DISABLED CHILDREN DISABLED PERSONS DISMISSAL DISTANCE MEASUREMENT DOMESTIC APPLIANCES DOMESTIC RESPONSIBI... ECONOMIC ACTIVITY ECONOMIC VALUE EDUCATION EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND EDUCATIONAL FEES EDUCATIONAL GRANTS EDUCATIONAL INSTITU... ELDERLY ELECTRIC POWER SUPPLY EMPLOYEES EMPLOYMENT EMPLOYMENT HISTORY EMPLOYMENT PROGRAMMES ENDOWMENT ASSURANCE ETHNIC GROUPS EXPENDITURE FAMILIES FAMILY MEMBERS FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS FINANCIAL RESOURCES FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOOD FOSSIL FUELS FOSTER PARENTS FRIENDS FRINGE BENEFITS FUEL OILS FULL TIME EMPLOYMENT FURNISHED ACCOMMODA... FURTHER EDUCATION Family life and mar... GAS SUPPLY GENDER GIFTS GRANTS HEADS OF HOUSEHOLD HEARING IMPAIRMENTS HEATING SYSTEMS HIGHER EDUCATION HOLIDAYS HOME BASED WORK HOME OWNERSHIP HOME SHARING HOURS OF WORK HOUSEHOLD BUDGETS HOUSEHOLD HEAD S OC... HOUSEHOLDS HOUSING HOUSING FACILITIES HOUSING FINANCE HOUSING TENURE INCOME INCOME TAX INDUSTRIES INSURANCE INSURANCE PREMIUMS INTEREST FINANCE INVESTMENT INVESTMENT RETURN Income JOB DESCRIPTION JOB HUNTING LANDLORDS LAVATORIES LEAVE LOANS LODGERS MANAGERS MARITAL STATUS MARRIED WOMEN MARRIED WOMEN WORKERS MATERNITY LEAVE MATERNITY PAY MEALS MEDICAL PRESCRIPTIONS MILK MORTGAGE PROTECTION... MORTGAGES MOTOR VEHICLES NEIGHBOURS OCCUPATIONAL PENSIONS OCCUPATIONS ONE PARENT FAMILIES OVERTIME PART TIME COURSES PART TIME EMPLOYMENT PARTNERSHIPS BUSINESS PENSION CONTRIBUTIONS PETROL PHYSICALLY DISABLED... PHYSICIANS PRICES PRIVATE EDUCATION PRIVATE PERSONAL PE... PRIVATE SCHOOLS PROFITS PUBLIC TRANSPORT QUALIFICATIONS RATES REBATES REDUNDANCY REDUNDANCY PAY RENTED ACCOMMODATION RENTS RESIDENTIAL MOBILITY RETIREMENT ROOM SHARING ROOMS ROYALTIES SAVINGS SCHOLARSHIPS SCHOOL MEALS SCHOOL MILK PROVISION SCHOOLCHILDREN SCHOOLS SEASONAL EMPLOYMENT SECONDARY EDUCATION SECONDARY SCHOOLS SELF EMPLOYED SEWAGE DISPOSAL AND... SHARES SHIFT WORK SICK LEAVE SICK PAY SICK PERSONS SOCIAL HOUSING SOCIAL SECURITY BEN... SOCIAL SECURITY CON... SOCIAL SERVICES SOCIAL SUPPORT SOCIO ECONOMIC STATUS SOLID FUEL HEATING SPECIAL EDUCATION STATE EDUCATION STATE RETIREMENT PE... STRIKES STUDENT HOUSING STUDENT LOANS STUDENTS STUDY SUBSIDIARY EMPLOYMENT SUPERVISORS Social stratificati... TAX RELIEF TAXATION TELEPHONES TELEVISION RECEIVERS TEMPORARY EMPLOYMENT TERMINATION OF SERVICE TIED HOUSING TOP MANAGEMENT TRAINING TRANSPORT TRAVEL UNEARNED INCOME UNEMPLOYED UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS UNFURNISHED ACCOMMO... VIDEO RECORDERS VISION IMPAIRMENTS VOLUNTARY WORK WAGES WATER SUPPLY INDUSTRY WIDOWED WORKING MOTHERS WORKING WOMEN property and invest...

In 2024, the average age of recent first-time buyers in London was slightly higher than the England average. Across the UK, first-time buyers accounted for approximately 290,000 home sales. First-time buyer prices and mortgages In London, the average value of a mortgage for first-time buyers was far higher than all other regions in the UK. Apart from the initial cost of a down payment, those that can afford to, see monthly payment savings against those renting. In certain parts of the country, annual savings of buying against renting saw first time buyers amounted to over two thousand British pounds. Help to buy To encourage first-time buyers, the UK government started the "Help to buy" scheme. The scheme sees people saving for a first-time home receive a 25% bonus to their savings when purchasing a house valued at 250,000 British pounds (450,000 British pounds in London). Between December 2015 and March 2018, the North West of England saw the highest number of Help to buy ISA bonuses paid.

In Europe, the variation in average amounts of financial wealth per adult varied considerably as of 2022, from approximately 449,000 U.S. dollars in Switzerland to roughly 1,200 U.S. dollars in Azerbaijan. In Europe, the overall average financial wealth per adult as of 2022 was 84,308 U.S. dollars. In terms of private wealth, Europe held the second highest value in the world, after North America.

What is financial wealth?

Financial wealth, also known as financial assets or liquid assets can include wealth that an individual has in the forms of cash, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and bank deposits. In addition to financial wealth, wealth can also be measured in other assets, called non-financial wealth. This includes physical assets, such as real estate, land, vehicles, jewelry, and art, just to name a few.

Where do most wealthy individuals live?

Individuals with a net worth over one million U.S. dollars are called high-net worth individuals (HNWI). The United States was the home country to the highest number of HNWIs in 2021. China followed, although their number of HNWIs did not even reach one third of the number in the United States. In Europe, Switzerland is the country with the highest average financial wealth per adult, but with its small population size, the number of HNWIs does not come near the numbers in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Italy – the European countries with the highest number of HNWIs. Considering Switzerland’s small population size, however, it is the country in the world with the highest proportion of millionaires.