Overview
- Official 2025 data put 16.1% of people in Germany—over 13 million—below the at‑risk‑of‑poverty line, defined as 60% of median income, which is about €1,446 a month for a single adult and €3,036 for a family of four.
- Prices for essentials are still climbing, with overall inflation reported at 2.7% and household energy up 7.2% year over year, which is squeezing wages and forcing many employees to rely on state benefits to fill the gap.
- Risk is concentrated among single parents at around 29%, single‑person households at about 31%, and the unemployed at nearly two thirds, far above the national average.
- Among people aged 65 and over, 19.4% were at risk of poverty in 2024, and about 690,000 receive basic income support in old age as officials warn that many eligible seniors do not claim it.
- Regional data show variation, with Saxony‑Anhalt’s broader “poverty or social exclusion” rate down to 24.1% in 2025 yet still above the national 21.2% on that measure, which also captures low work intensity and material hardship.