Turkish Society’s Struggle to Make Ends Meet

By Turkiye Report 

September 2022

Which of the following statements would you agree with?

The rate of those who state that they struggle to make ends meet has been fluctuating between 85% and 88% since March.

In August, the rate of those who stated that their income barely met their expenses has been at its highest level with 29% since we started to ask this question in March. On the other hand, the rate of those who state that their income did not meet their expenses dropped by 4 points compared to June.

In June, the rate of those who stated that their income did not meet their expenses peaked at 63%. In June, the total rate of those who stated that they could not make ends meet or barely made ends meet was 88%.

This rate remained the same in August. However, in the last month of the summer, the rate of those who stated that their income did not meet their expenses was 59% and the rate of those who said that they could barely make ends meet as 29%.

The rate of women experiencing financial difficulties is 4 points higher than that of men.

In August, 57% of male respondents reported that their income did not cover their expenses, while 29% of male respondents reported that they barely made ends meet. For women, the percentages were 60% and 30%, respectively. According to the results, 90% of female respondents had difficulty making ends meet. In other words, while the rate of inability to make ends meet for males is below the general average of 88%, it is two points higher for females.

With respect to age groups, young people are the group with the highest rate of those experiencing financial difficulties.

The 18-24 age group ranks first with 61.4% and the 25-34 age group ranks second with 61.2%. The group with the lowest rate is the 65+ age group with 55%. On the other hand, the oldest age group is in the first place with 36.1% among those whose income barely meets their expenditures. This group is followed by the 55-64 age group with 31.5% and the 35-44 age group with 30.4%.

In opposition parties, the rate of those who state that their income did not meet their expenses fluctuates between 67% and 85%. The rate of inability to make ends meet in opposition parties is at least 8 points higher than the average (59%).

On the other hand, the rate of People’s Alliance party voters who state that their income did not cover their expenses is about 15% points below the general average. In June, 53% of AK Party voters stated that they could not make ends meet. While this rate decreased to 45% in August, the rate of those who stated that they barely made ends meet increased to 36% from 29% in June.

The education group with the highest rate of those who state that their income barely covers their expenses is higher education and above with 39%.

Compared to June, the rate of those who stated that their income does not cover their expenses decreased in all education levels. On the other hand, the rate of those who stated that they barely make ends meet increased in all groups except high school education level.

While the rate of those who stated that they could barely make ends meet at the lowest education level was 20% in June, this rate increased by 7 points to 27% in August.