For almost a third of the people in Germany, unexpected expenses exceed their own financial resources. According to the Federal Statistical Office, 31.9 percent of the population in this country was unable to spontaneously raise 1150 euros or more from their budget last year.

According to calculations by the Wiesbaden statisticians, this group was larger in Germany than in France (27.6 percent) and the Netherlands (15.1 percent). According to the authority on Wednesday, more than 40 percent of the population in Romania, Croatia, Greece, Cyprus and Latvia did not have sufficient financial reserves for unplanned major expenses.

According to the information, two fifths of the people in Germany had to make do with a net income of less than 22,000 euros in 2021. A fifth of the population had a so-called net equivalent income of less than 16,300 euros per year. The equivalent income is a per capita income adjusted for savings effects in multi-person households, as the Federal Office explained. On the other hand, two fifths (40 percent) of the population had an income of 28,400 euros and more.

Single parents often earn little

According to the statisticians, the 40 percent of the population with the lowest incomes often include people from single-parent households. Almost two thirds (64.6 percent) of them had a net equivalent income of less than 22,000 euros per year in 2021, and a good third (33.2 percent) had less than 16,300 euros.

There are also many adults living alone in the lowest income groups: more than half (53.2 percent) of this group earns less than 22,000 euros a year, almost a third (32.2 percent) of those living alone have an income of less than 16,300 euros.

Around half (50.1 percent) of retired people also had a net income of less than 22,000 euros in 2021, and almost a quarter (24.6 percent) had less than 16,300 euros at their disposal.

Federal Statistical Office: Income distribution 2021