Survey on Living Conditions. 2025

The At risk of poverty or social exclusion rate (AROPE rate – EU 2030 Target) in Catalonia was 24.8% in 2025, 8 tenths of a percentage point higher than in 2024 (24.0%). With regards to the components of the AROPE rate, the At-risk-of-poverty rate stood at 18.9%, 1.5 percentage points higher than in the previous year; the percentage of the population living in severe material and social deprivation stood at 8.9%, 3 tenths of a percentage point higher than in 2024; and the population with low work intensity stood at 5.9%, 2 tenths of a percentage point lower than in the previous year.

By age groups, the AROPE rate among people under 16 was 36.1%, an increase of 1.3 percentage points compared to 2024. In the population aged 16 to 64, the rate was 24.5%, 9 tenths of a percentage point higher than in the previous year; and, finally, among those aged 65 and over, the rate stood at 17.3%, 3 tenths of a percentage point higher than in 2024).

With regards to the indicators of the level of material household deprivation (which capture subjective aspects of living conditions), 35.5% of the population reported being unable to afford unforeseen expenses of 900 euros, representing an increase of 3 tenths of a percentage point compared with 2024. The population reporting being unable to afford one week’s holiday per year accounted for 29.4%, one percentage point lower than in the previous year. The population reporting being unable to afford to keep their home at an adequate temperature stood at 16.8%, a decrease of 8 tenths of a percentage point compared with 2024. The population reporting arrears on payments related to the main dwelling accounted for 14.2%, one tenth of a percentage point lower than in the previous year.

On the other hand, in 2025 the percentage of people reporting difficulty in making ends meet decreased to 47.3%, 3 tenths of a percentage point lower than in 2024; whereas the percentage of the population reporting making ends meet easily increased to 52.5%, 3 tenths of a percentage point higher than in 2024.

The information on income, social benefits and work intensity provided by the Survey on Living Conditions 2025 refers to 2024. In this respect, the average net income of Catalan households amounted to 43,889 euros, and to 17,262 euros per person in 2024. Compared to the previous year, these figures represent increases of 4.6% and 4.3%, respectively.

As regards the income distribution inequality indicators, the S80/S20 indicator stood at 4.7 in 2024, one tenth higher than the figure recorded in 2023. As regards the Gini index, it stood at 29.1% in 2024, compared to 29.0% in the previous year. (It should be noted that a Gini index of 0% indicates maximum equality, whereas a value of 100% indicates maximum inequality.)

In 2025, the at-risk-of-poverty threshold (based on 2024 income) rose by 4.1% and stood at 13,862 euros for one-person households. This threshold is set at 60% of the median income per consumption unit of Catalan households.

The At-risk-of-poverty rate before all types of social transfers stood at 40.4%. This rate fell to 23.9% when old-age and survivors’ pensions were considered, and to 18.9% when all social transfers (including unemployment, disability benefits and family or children-related allowances, among others) were considered.

Regarding subjective well-being, in 2025 people gave an average rating of 7.2 out of 10 for their overall life satisfaction (the same for women and men), unchanged from 2024. The population at risk of poverty reported lower overall life satisfaction (6.9) than the population not at risk (7.3).

On the other hand, the average level of trust in other people was 6.2 (6.2 for women and 6.1 for men), one tenth lower than in 2024. People at risk of poverty also showed a lower average score (5.9) than those not at risk (6.2).