One in four Londoners are in poverty, after housing costs. Use this page to explore data on poverty in London over time, by demographics, by London borough, and more.
Proportions of people in poverty before and after housing costs (2022/23)
What does this indicator show?
Poverty can be measured both with and without housing costs taken into account. Housing costs can include rent or mortgage payments, building insurance and water rates.
This indicator shows the percentage of people in poverty in London and the rest of England - after and before housing costs are taken into account. By looking at poverty rates before and after housing costs, we can see how much of an impact housing costs have on pushing people into poverty.
What does it tell us?
In London, poverty rates increase significantly when housing costs are accounted for, increasing the poverty rate from 14% to 24%. In the rest of England, the difference is much smaller, increasing the percentage of people in poverty from 17% to 21%. This shows that, compared to the rest of England, high housing costs are a much more sig…
London poverty rates before and after housing costs (1996/97 - 2022/23)
Last updated: May 2024
Next estimated update: May 2025
What does this indicator show?
Poverty can be measured both with and without housing costs taken into account. Housing costs can include rent or mortgage payments, building insurance and water rates.
This indicator shows the percentage of people in poverty in London and the rest of England over the years - after and before housing costs are taken into account. By looking at poverty rates before and after housing costs, we can see how much of an impact housing costs have on pushing people into poverty.
What does it tell us?
The proportion of people living in poverty in London increases significantly when housing costs are taken into account rising from 14% to 24%.
This gap between before and after housing costs measures of poverty is much larger in the capital than in the rest of the countr…
Poverty rates by London borough (2022/23)
Last updated: September 2024
Next estimated update: September 2025
What’s this indicator?
This indicator shows the percentage of people living in poverty in each London borough. View the data mapped further down the page.
The poverty rates for London boroughs presented here pool together five years of survey data for all financial years between 2017/18 and 2022/23, excluding 2020/21 as data quality in this year was severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The use of multiple years of data means that the full impacts of the pandemic will not be seen in these results.
Even when pulling together six survey years, the sample sizes for individual boroughs remain uneven and, for some boroughs, small. This means that although we present our best estimates of poverty for each borough, there is some uncertainty around the precise estimates. For th…
Poverty rates by region (2022/23)
Last updated: May 2024
Next estimated update: May 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the proportion of people living in poverty in each of England’s regions - before and after housing costs.
What does it tell us?
After housing costs are taken into consideration, the poverty rate in London is 24%, the third highest of the English regions following the West Midlands (27%) and the North West (25%) of England.
The proportion of people living in poverty in London almost doubles when housing costs are taken into account (rising from 14% before housing costs to 24% after housing costs). This gap between before and after housing costs measures of poverty is much larger in the capital than any in other English region.
Want to know more?
If you want to explore this data in more depth, check the 'data source and notes' button on the a…
Deep poverty rates for children, pensioners and working-age adults (1994/95 - 2022/23)
Last updated: October 2024
Next estimated update: June 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the proportion of people in London living in 'deep poverty', split into children, working age adults and pensioners.
Deep poverty goes beyond the standard poverty rate to show us how many people are experiencing the most severe poverty. People in deep poverty often face extreme hardship and struggle to afford even the basic essentials.
By looking at the deep poverty rate, we get a more nuanced picture of poverty levels in London, and are better able to understand how many people are in the most urgent need of help - and how this has changed over time.
For more detail about how we calculate ‘deep poverty’ levels, scroll to the bottom of the page.
What does it tell us?
18.3% of Londoners were in deep poverty in 2022/23, compared to 14.3…
Households are considered to be below the UK poverty line if their income is below 60% of the median household income after housing costs for that year.
Poverty rates by demographic characteristics in London (2022/23)
Last updated: May 2024
Next estimated update: May 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the poverty rate in London (after housing costs) by demographics. A person is classed as being in poverty if they earn below 60% of the median income. You can find out more about how poverty is measured here.
For further breakdowns by demographics, explore poverty by ethnicity, poverty by age, poverty by family type and disability and poverty.
What does it tell us?
Poverty rates vary significantly across different demographic groups in London. The highest poverty rates are experienced by workless families (50%) and households comprised of single people with children (47%). Black and minority ethnic groups are far more likely to be in poverty (34%) than white people (17%), and single pensioners also see a higher than average poverty rate a…
Proportion of Londoners in poverty after housing costs by age band (2022/23)
Last updated: May 2024
Next estimated update: May 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the poverty rate in London by age group. A person is classed as being in poverty if they earn below 60% of the median income. You can find out more about how poverty is measured here.
What does it tell us?
Poverty rates after housing costs were highest among children and young people in 2022/23, in both London and the rest of England.
- In London 140,000 children aged four and under live in households in poverty
- A third (33%) of children aged 5-9 are in households in poverty
- Over a third of 10-19 year olds live in households that are in poverty (35% of those aged 10-14 and 37% of those aged 15-19).
In contrast, 15% of Londoners aged 30-34 live in households that are in poverty - the lowest rate for any age group.
Poverty rates in London are h…
Poverty for children, pensioners and working-age adults (2012/2013 and 2022/2023)
Last updated: May 2024
Next estimated update: May 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the percentage of people in London living in poverty (after housing costs), split by life stages. For a more comprehensive breakdown of poverty in different age groups, visit this indicator.
What does it tell us?
Of the three age groups shown here, children have the highest poverty rates, with 32% of children in London in poverty in 2022/23, compared to 22% of working-age adults and 19% of pensioners.
How has this changed over time?
In the last 10 years, the proportion of children in poverty in London has decreased by 5 percentage points - from 37% to 32%. The poverty rate among working-age adults has also decreased (from 27% to 22%), while for pensioners it has stayed the same (19%).
How does London compare to the rest of England?
Children…
Proportion of households in poverty by ethnicity (2022/23)
Last updated: May 2024
Next estimated update: May 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the proportion of people living in poverty in London and the rest of England (after housing costs) split by ethnicity.
What does it tell us?
Poverty rates are highest among the Bangladeshi minority ethnic group with 63% being counted as in-poverty. This is followed by the “any other Asian background” group for whom the poverty rate is 41%.
Poverty rates for minority ethnic groups follow the same order in both London and the rest of Engand. The groups least likely to be in-poverty in London are “Mixed/Multiple Ethnic” (24%) and “White” (17%).
Want to know more?
If you want to explore this data in more depth, check the 'data source and notes' button on the above charts. This will tell you where the data comes from, where you may be able to d…
Proportion of Londoners in poverty in families with and without disabled persons (2012/13, 2017/18, and 2022/23)
Last updated: May 2024
Next estimated update: May 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the proportion of people living in poverty in London, split by whether they live in a family including a Disabled person or not. We can also see how this has changed over the last decade.
What does it tell us?
Londoners who live in families that include a Disabled person are more likely to be in poverty than those living in families that do not include a Disabled person. In the 3 years to 2022/23, 30% of families that included a Disabled person were in poverty compared to 22% of those without a Disabled household member.
This gap has increased in the last 10 years - from 5 to 8 percentage points .
Want to know more?
If you want to explore this data in more depth, check the 'data source and notes' button on the above charts. This will tell …
Number of people in London in poverty by housing tenure (2004/05 - 2022/23)
Last updated: August 2024
Next estimated update: June 2025
What’s this?
This indicator shows the number of people in poverty in London, split by their housing tenure.
What does it tell us?
A declining number of social renters in poverty
The number of Londoners in poverty who live in social housing has been in decline since 2019/20. In 2022/23, 760,000 people who live in social housing in London were in poverty - the lowest number in the 20 years recorded here. However, the poverty rate for those in social rented housing is still extremely high, at 49% in 2022/23.
Londoners in poverty are more likely to be private renters
870,000 people living in private rented housing were in poverty in 2022/23, around the same as pre-pandemic. However, this number is more than twice as high as it was two decades ago (430,000 in 2004/05). In 2004/05, Londoners …
Employment status of all adults aged 16+ in poverty (2011/12 - 2022/23)
Last updated: May 2024
Next estimated update: May 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the employment status of all Londoners in poverty. By looking at the percentage of people in poverty who are employed, we can see the prevalence of in-work poverty in London.
What does it tell us?
More than half (51%) of working-age Londoners in poverty are employed. Just below half (44%) of those aged 16 and over who are in poverty in London are economically inactive (retired, long-term sick, studying or looking after the home). Another 5% are unemployed.
The proportion of people (aged 16 and over) in poverty who are working is higher in London (51%) than it is in the rest of England (43%). In the last decade, the proportion of people in poverty who are employed has gone up slightly - from 46% in 2012/13 to 51% in 2022/23. The proportion…
Proportion of people in London in poverty by type of working household over time (1998/99 - 2022/23)
Last updated: May 2024
Next estimated update: May 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the percentage of people in poverty, split by their household working status. It focuses on families where at least one adult is in work, to explore the nature of in-work poverty in London. For example, we can see the percentage of people who live in a household where all adults are in full-time work that are in poverty.
What does it tell us?
Household work status is closely related to the likelihood of the household being in poverty. This indicator shows that, on average, the fewer adults who are in work, the more likely the household is to be in poverty:
- Households where one or more adult works part time (and none work full time) have the highest poverty rate. Nearly half of people (43%) living in such households are in poverty.
- In contr…
Number of children, adults, and pensioners in London in poverty by working status (2012/2013, 2017/2018 and 2022/2023)
Last updated: May 2024
Next estimated update: May 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the number of people living in poverty in London, split by life-stage (children, adults and pensioners) and the working-status of their household. A ‘working household’ is one where at least one adult is in work and a ‘workless household’ is one in which no adults are in work.
What does it tell us?
We can see that more Londoners living in poverty are in working households than in workless households. This has been consistently the case for the last decade. In 2022/23 we find some 930,000 people in poverty are living in working households. By contrast, 380,000 people in poverty are living in working-age workless households.
A similar pattern is true if we look at children in poverty. 480,000 children in poverty live in households where som…
Main industry categories for those in in-work poverty (2022/23)
Last updated: May 2024
Next estimated update: May 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator looks at the industries in which those experiencing in-work poverty are most likely to work. It shows the proportion of Londoners in in-work poverty that are working in each of the ONS’ Standard Industry Classifications.
What does it tell us?
In London, the most common industry for people in in-work poverty to work in is human health and social work activities. This group accounts for 13% of Londoners in in-work poverty.
The second most common industry for people in in-work poverty to work in in London is administrative and support service activities. This group accounts for 11% of Londoners in in-work poverty.
By contrast in the rest of England the most common industry for people in in-work poverty to work is wholesale/retail and motor repair (…
Proportion of children in poverty before and after housing costs by London borough (2022/23)
Children in poverty by London borough, before and after housing costs
Number of children in poverty by housing tenure in London (2004/05 - 2022/23)
Last updated: August 2024
Next estimated update: June 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the number of children growing up in poverty in London, split by their housing tenure.
What does it tell us?
Since 2004/05, the number of children in poverty in London who live in private rented accommodation has increased almost threefold to its current level of 280,000 in 2022/23. The proportion of children in poverty in London who live in the private rented sector has increased from 17% in 2004/05 to 42% in 2022/23. (Note: data are excluded for 2020/21 due to survey quality concerns because of COVID-19.)
While the number of children in poverty in this group has increased, the poverty rate within this group has decreased over the years; in 2004/05 the poverty rate for children in private rented accommodation in London was 56% and in…
Material deprivation of children in London (2022/23)
Last updated: May 2024
Next estimated update: May 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the proportion of children in London experiencing some kind of material deprivation. This means the material things - such as a warm winter coat or a safe outdoors space to play - that children go without.
What does it tell us?
In 2022/23, almost a third (32%) of children living in households in poverty in London are classed as materially deprived (down from 45% in 2018/19). This, compares with 39% in the rest of England (up from 37% in 2018/19). For children who do not live in households in poverty, the proportion of materially deprived children is 13% in London and 12% in the rest of England.
Almost half (48%) of children in London in poverty went without a holiday away from home for at least one week a year with their family, the hig…
Proportion of total wealth held in each decile (2018-20)
Wealth is very unequally distributed. In London, those in the top wealth decile (i.e. the 10% of people with the highest wealth) hold 44.3% of London’s total net wealth. Those in the bottom decile (the bottom 10%) hold none of London’s total net wealth.
In the rest of England a similar divide is found, where the top decile holds 42.8% of total net wealth and the bottom holds just 0.1% of total net wealth which is barely visible on the chart.
Total net wealth is an estimate of the value of wealth held by all private households, including net property, net financial, private pension and physical wealth.
London households affected by the benefit cap (2014-2024 Q2)
Last updated: December 2024
Next estimated update: March 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the number of households in London who are affected by the benefit cap, and how much income they are missing out on because of the cap.
The benefit cap limits the amount of money that most working-age people can receive from benefits. In Greater London the limit is £25,323 per year or £16,697 for single adults with no children. This was reduced in November 2016, and recently increased in April 2023. The benefit cap is applied by either reducing Universal Credit or Housing Benefit (for those not claiming Universal Credit).
What does it tell us?
More than 38,000 households in London had their income reduced by the benefit cap in May 2024. This has increased by more than 49% since before the pandemic (May 2019) and significantly sinc…
Work status of London households by net income quintile (2022/23)
Last updated: June 2024
Next estimated update: September 2024
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the work status of London households, split by income quintile. We can use it, for example, what percentage of London households on the lowest 20% of incomes have all adults in full-time employment.
What does it tell us?
This indicator tells us that household work status is closely related to household net incomes. Overall, households with lower net incomes are more likely to include inactive, retired or unemployed adults.
For example, just 8.5% of households on the 20% lowest income live in households where all adults work full time. By contrast 63.3% of those in the top 20% of the net income distribution live in households where all adults work full time.
Nearly one in five of those in the bottom net income quintile live in econ…
London boroughs' median income deprivation ranking relative to London and rest of England (2019)
The typical neighbourhood in 24 (of 32) London boroughs is more income-deprived than the typical neighbourhood in England.
This indicator assesses this by comparing the average (median) income deprivation in each borough to the average income deprivation of London overall and the rest of England through a relative deprivation ratio. Boroughs close to the red line have similar average income deprivation levels to the comparison. If they are to the left of the line, they are less income-deprived and if they are to the right of the line they are more income-deprived.
Tower Hamlets is on average the most income-deprived in comparison to the other London boroughs. The average neighbourhood in the borough is 2.03 times more income-deprived than the average in London, and 2.67 times more income-deprived than the average in the rest of England. O…
Percentage of people living with food insecurity (2022/23)
Last updated: October 2024
Next estimated update: October 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the proportion of people experiencing food insecurity, split by the type of household. We can use it to see how many people in London and the rest of the UK are struggling to access enough affordable and nutritious food, and which household types are most likely to be in food insecurity.
Someone is counted as experiencing food insecurity if they or their household members have at times had their food intakes disrupted or reduced, or that they reduced the quality, variety or desirability of their diets because of a lack of money or resources
What does it tell us?
In London 6.6% of people were classed as being food insecure in 2022/23, with a slightly higher rate found in the rest of England at 7.5%.
However, for households with no d…
Fuel poverty rates in London and the rest of England (2021)
Last updated: October 2024
Next estimated update: October 2025
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the proportions of households in fuel poverty by age. Households are split by the age of the oldest person in the household.
A household in England is defined as being in fuel poverty if it is in a property rated D or worse for energy efficiency, and its disposable income (that is, its remaining income after housing and energy costs are paid) is below the poverty line (60% of the national median income).
What does it tell us?
Just over one in ten London households (10.8%) are considered to be living in fuel poverty. This is slightly lower than 13.5% in the rest of England. This is likely to be due to a combination of factors. For example, houses in London tend to have smaller floor areas. This is likely to contribute to lower fue…