Rationing the ramen: Half of Aussies run out of money before payday
An alarming number of Australians are facing a cash flow crisis, according to new research by Finder.
A Finder survey of 1,049 respondents – 854 of whom have a job – revealed 52% occasionally or always run out of money before payday.
That's equivalent to 8.8 million workers whose spending exceeds their bank account in a given month.
That includes 16% who say they run out of money every single month.
Of those who run out of money each payday, the average person is short $249 each month – a staggering $678 million nationwide.
Women (20%) are almost twice as likely as men (11%) to say they always run out of money before payday every month.
Graham Cooke, head of consumer research at Finder, said life has become unaffordable for many.
"It's very grim for households right now as many completely run out of money between paychecks.
"The soaring cost of living has run some bank accounts dry."
Many struggle to stretch their income until the end of the month, attributing it to the soaring cost of living (69%) or unexpected expenses (40%).
Overspending early in the month (20%), lack of an emergency fund (20%), and debt repayments (20%) were also cited as major contributors.
A further 15% said poor money management meant they were short on cash by the end of the month.
Cooke said cash-strapped households would be turning to debt to cover expenses.
"It's a very stressful situation for those households whose expenses exceed their earnings every month.
"And when it happens, people turn to extreme measures like skipping meals to prolong their cash reserves.
"Many Australians have no choice but to turn to plastic when they run short of savings which only compounds the problem."
Cooke urged Aussies to take control of your finances and find ways to increase your income and reduce your expenses.
"You don't get what you don't request, so it never hurts to ask for a pay rise. Many Aussies are working side hustles or working at the weekend to boost their income.
"Meanwhile, cancel any subscriptions you aren't using. You could go interest only on your home loan and increase your excesses on all your insurances to start to ease cash flow shortages," Cooke said.
| Do you run out of money before payday? | |
|---|---|
| Yes, occasionally | 36% |
| Yes, every month | 16% |
| No, I don't run out of money before payday | 48% |
| Finder survey of 854 respondents who are employed, July 2024 |
| Why do you think you sometimes run out of money before payday? | |
|---|---|
| The cost of living is too high | 69% |
| Unexpected expenses | 40% |
| I spend too much at the beginning of the month | 20% |
| Lack of an emergency fund | 20% |
| Debt repayments | 20% |
| I'm just a poor money manager | 15% |
| Changes in income | 10% |
| Other | 2% |
| Finder survey of 445 workers who occasionally or always run out of money, July 2024 |
Methodology
- Finder's Consumer Sentiment Tracker is a monthly recurring nationally representative survey of more than 60,000 respondents.
- Figures in this release are based on 854 workers from July 2024, and then 445 workers who occasionally or always run out of money from July 2024.
- The Consumer Sentiment Tracker is owned by Finder and operated by Qualtrics, an SAP company.
- The survey has been running monthly since May 2019.
Here are some ways you can boost your income.
