Overview
- Saxony-Anhalt’s poverty risk stands at about one in five people when measured against the nationwide median income, with a provisional 2025 rate of 21.5% that ranks second only to Bremen, according to state data reviewed by MDR.
- Measured against the state’s own median income, the Social Ministry reports a 2024 poverty-risk rate of 15.1% in Saxony-Anhalt, placing it roughly in the middle of the pack among German states.
- Across Germany, more than 14 million people face poverty or social exclusion, and the Paritätischer Wohlfahrtsverband ties about 840,000 of those cases to inflation since before the pandemic, putting roughly 16.9% of the population in poverty.
- Germany applies the EU standard that flags people below 60% of median income as at risk, with 2022 cutoffs near €1,250 a month for a single person and €2,625 for two adults with two children after taxes and social contributions.
- The Left Party in Saxony-Anhalt is calling for an anti-poverty summit, as economist Andreas Knabe argues that lower local prices mean a single income threshold can misstate differences in living standards.