Nearly four million people in the capital are living in households without enough for a basic standard of living. This includes half of London's children, and nine in ten single-parent households.
This Minimum Income Standard report explains what people in London need to afford a minimum, socially acceptable standard of living - from pensioners to working-age adults and families with children.
The research is based on direct, detailed discussions with Londoners themselves, and it sets out what it really takes to live with dignity in the capital. By comparing these costs with the rest of the UK, the research shows whether wages and benefits are keeping up - and reveals how many households are falling short, and how that is changing over time.
The research is updated annually by the team at Loughborough University, and funded by Trust for London. With thanks to authors Chloe Blackwell, Matt Padley, Wolf Ellis, Ellie Balchin, Juliet Stone, Elaine Robinson and Abigail Davis.
Key findings
The additional cost of living in London
- Londoners – especially those in Inner London – need to earn significantly more to reach a decent standard of living.
- The gap is largest for single, working-age adults. For this group, a minimum standard of living costs 78% more in Inner London than the rest of urban UK, and 58% more in Outer London.
- The main drivers of difference between London and the rest of the UK are rent and childcare costs – both significantly higher in London, particularly Inner London.
Incomes are falling short
- Almost half of Londoners don't earn enough to reach the Minimum Income Standard.
- 86.5% of single-parent households don't earn enough to meet the threshold.
- 81% of social rented households fall below the threshold, as do more than half of private renters.
- Social security and the National Living Wage fall well short of reaching a minimum standard of living in the capital.
The rising cost of living
- The amount needed for a decent standard of living in London has increased significantly in the last 10 years
- Single, working-age adults in London now need around twice as much to reach a Minimum Income Standard compared to 2014
- This has increased more in London than the rest of the UK
