Your area · Latest local figures
Poverty and pay in Glasgow City
What this means
In Glasgow City, more than 1 in 3 children are growing up without enough money at home. The exact figure is 36.1%.
It was 27.1% ten years ago. It is 36.1% now. Things have got worse here.
You can also see what minimum-wage work really pays and how many people need out-of-work benefits. A separate ONS pay estimate is kept below, clearly marked so it is not mistaken for the average wage.
Children living in poverty in Glasgow City
Money left after rent or mortgage · 2014/15 to 2023/24
See the numbers behind this chart
| Year | Glasgow City % | Children | Scotland % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014/15 | 27.1 | 29,527 | 21.6 |
| 2015/16 | 29.5 | 32,182 | 22.8 |
| 2016/17 | 29.6 | 32,294 | 23.3 |
| 2017/18 | 30.9 | 32,796 | 24.2 |
| 2018/19 | 31.0 | 30,383 | 23.1 |
| 2019/20 | 32.2 | 33,734 | 24.2 |
| 2020/21 | 29.4 | 34,829 | 20.9 |
| 2021/22 | 32.0 | 35,891 | 23.9 |
| 2022/23 | 32.9 | 36,348 | 24.5 |
| 2023/24 | 36.1 | 39,319 | 23.3 |
Embed this chart on your site
<iframe src="https://scotlandcounted.org.uk/embed/area-glasgow-city" width="100%" height="520" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Children living in poverty in Glasgow City"></iframe>Free for any use. The chart stays live as the data updates, and links back here so your readers can check the sources.
The technical detail
Source: End Child Poverty and Loughborough University. The local estimates use HMRC and DWP records and are adjusted to match the official UK poverty survey.
Work, benefits and pay in Glasgow City
Start with the legal minimum below. The ONS pay chart further down is not what the average worker earns: it covers only a selected group of full-time PAYE employee jobs held by people living here. There were also 1.08 jobs located here for every working-age resident in 2021.
A wage people actually recognise
What full-time minimum wage actually pays
Minimum wage is an hourly rate, so there is no single yearly salary. For someone aged 21 or over, the legal minimum is £12.71 an hour from 1 April 2026. Paid for 37.5 hours every week of the year, that adds up to:
£477
a week
£2,065
a month
£24,785
a year
Calculation: £12.71 × 37.5 paid hours × 52 weeks = £24,784.50. Fewer hours, unpaid time off or a changing rota means less. Workers aged 18 to 20 can legally be paid £10.85 an hour; under-18s and eligible apprentices can be paid £8.
Full-time minimum wage can still leave people short
Research on the cost of a basic, decent life found that in 2025 a single adult working full time on the legal minimum reached only 76% of the Minimum Income Standard. A lone parent with children aged 3 and 7 reached only 69%.
The independently calculated real Living Wage is £13.45 an houroutside London. It is based on living costs and is voluntary. On the same 37.5-hour week it is £26,227.50 a year — £1,443 morethan today's legal minimum.
People who need out-of-work benefits
Residents aged 16 to 64 · each January · 2000 to 2026
See the numbers behind this chart
| January | Glasgow City % | Scotland % |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 6.0 | 4.1 |
| 2001 | 5.4 | 3.6 |
| 2002 | 4.8 | 3.4 |
| 2003 | 4.6 | 3.3 |
| 2004 | 4.6 | 3.2 |
| 2005 | 4.1 | 2.9 |
| 2006 | 4.0 | 2.7 |
| 2007 | 4.0 | 2.6 |
| 2008 | 3.4 | 2.2 |
| 2009 | 4.5 | 3.2 |
| 2010 | 6.0 | 4.2 |
| 2011 | 6.2 | 4.2 |
| 2012 | 6.0 | 4.3 |
| 2013 | 5.8 | 4.1 |
| 2014 | 4.6 | 3.3 |
| 2015 | 3.7 | 2.4 |
| 2016 | 3.2 | 2.2 |
| 2017 | 3.2 | 2.3 |
| 2018 | 3.2 | 2.4 |
| 2019 | 3.4 | 2.9 |
| 2020 | 4.6 | 3.2 |
| 2021 | 8.3 | 6.0 |
| 2022 | 5.8 | 3.9 |
| 2023 | 4.7 | 3.1 |
| 2024 | 4.4 | 3.0 |
| 2025 | 4.7 | 3.0 |
| 2026 | 4.5 | 2.9 |
The technical detail
From 2015 this count includes Universal Credit claimants required to look for work, a wider group than the Jobseeker's Allowance count it replaced.
Restricted full-time employee-pay estimate
Not the average wage · selected PAYE jobs held by residents · 2008–2025
See the numbers behind this chart
| Year | Glasgow City | Scotland |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | £434 | £463 |
| 2009 | £452 | £471 |
| 2010 | £453 | £487 |
| 2011 | £460 | £487 |
| 2012 | £474 | £498 |
| 2013 | £484 | £508 |
| 2014 | £497 | £519 |
| 2015 | £515 | £527 |
| 2016 | £522 | £536 |
| 2017 | £520 | £547 |
| 2018 | £550 | £563 |
| 2019 | £567 | £578 |
| 2020 | £593 | £595 |
| 2021 | £620 | £620 |
| 2022 | £636 | £641 |
| 2023 | £689 | £709 |
| 2024 | £722 | £740 |
| 2025 | £746 | £776 |
The technical detail
The series excludes every part-time job, self-employment, employees outside PAYE, junior rates and people whose pay was affected by absence. It counts employee jobs rather than necessarily counting unique people.
Gross weekly pay can include overtime, bonuses, shift premiums and allowances. The estimate relates to one April pay period in each year.
Cash terms, not adjusted for inflation — compare the two lines within a year, not along them. Residence basis means selected jobs held by people living in the area, wherever those jobs are based.
How these local figures are counted
Child poverty is counted . The exact rule is that a household has less than 60% of the usual UK income once rent or mortgage is paid.
Glasgow has the highest rate in Scotland and the biggest rise. It therefore has a separate record showing why it is worse here and what would help.
Benefit rules and affect every Scottish area. See the changes experts say would help.
Straight answers
Questions people ask
How many children live in poverty in Glasgow City?
Is child poverty in Glasgow City rising or falling?
How does Glasgow City compare with the rest of Scotland?
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