The income reference period of SILC in year T is the calendar year T-1, i.e. for SILC 2023 the income relates to calendar year Jan-Dec 2022.
Tá leagan Gaeilge den leathanch seo ar fáil. Féach Suirbhé ar Ioncam agus Dálaí Maireachtála (SILC) 2023.
The median nominal household disposable income in the Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) 2023 was €55,149, an increase of € 3,005 (+5.8%) from SILC 2022.
Using a base year of 2019 to adjust for inflation, the real median household disposable income in SILC 2023 was €50,162, a decrease of €958 (-1.9%) from the previous year.
In SILC 2023, the quintile share ratio stood at 3.8, compared with 3.9 in 2022. This indicates that the total income of the richest 20% was almost four times that of the poorest 20%.
The at risk of poverty rate was 10.6% in SILC 2023, down from 12.5% in 2022.
If cost of living measures were excluded from income the at risk of poverty rate would have been 13.0% in SILC 2023, higher than the SILC 2022 rate of 12.5%.
In SILC 2023, 3.6% of people were found to be living in consistent poverty, without cost of living measures the rate would have been 4.4%, much closer to the 2022 rate of 4.9%.
The annual Survey of Income and Living Condition (SILC) results are weighted using population estimates which are generated on an ongoing basis. Census of Population 2022 results have been used to revise population estimates for 2020 to 2022, and consequently results for SILC survey years 2020, 2021, and 2022 are revised. Please see the Information Note which compares published and revised results.
| X-axis label | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| At Risk of Poverty | 11.8 | 12.5 | 10.6 |
| Deprivation | 13.7 | 16.6 | 17.3 |
| Consistent Poverty | 4.2 | 4.9 | 3.6 |
| Deprivation rate for those at risk of poverty | 35.6 | 38.9 | 33.8 |
| Table 1.1 Summary of main results1 | |||
| 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | |
| Income | € | ||
| Real1 household disposable income | |||
| Median | 50,074 | 51,120 | 50,162 |
| Mean | 57,502 | 59,264 | 57,210 |
| Real2 equivalised disposable income per individual | |||
| Median | 25,793 | 26,324 | 25,101 |
| Mean | 29,216 | 29,829 | 29,049 |
| At risk of poverty threshold | |||
| (60% of median income) | 15,476 | 15,795 | 15,061 |
| Nominal household disposable income | |||
| Median | 49,906 | 52,144 | 55,149 |
| Mean | 57,309 | 60,451 | 62,898 |
| Nominal equivalised disposable income per individual | |||
| Median | 25,707 | 26,851 | 27,597 |
| Mean | 29,118 | 30,427 | 31,937 |
| At risk of poverty threshold | |||
| (60% of median income) | 15,424 | 16,111 | 16,558 |
| 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | |
| Poverty & deprivation rates | % | ||
| At risk of poverty rate | 11.8 | 12.5 | 10.6 |
| Deprivation rate3 | 13.7 | 16.6 | 17.3 |
| Deprivation rate for those at risk of poverty | 35.6 | 38.9 | 33.8 |
| Consistent poverty rate | 4.2 | 4.9 | 3.6 |
| Income equality indicators | |||
| Gini coefficient (%) | 26.7 | 27.4 | 27.5 |
| Income quintile share ratio | 3.7 | 3.9 | 3.8 |
| 1 Data for 2021 and 2022 was updated on 07/03/2024. Please see information note for details https://www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/in/silc/informationnotecensusrevisions-silc2020to2022/. | |||
| 2 Deflator base year 2019, corresponding with the T-1 income reference period of SILC 2020. | |||
| 3 Experienced two or more types of enforced deprivation. | |||
The SILC household survey is the official source of data on household and individual income, and it provides a number of key national poverty indicators, such as: the at risk of poverty rate, the rate of enforced deprivation and the consistent poverty rate. This publication focuses on income related indicators. The enforced deprivation results were also published today (07 March 2024) and are available in the SILC Enforced Deprivation 2023 publication.
Data collection for SILC was carried out between January to July 2023. The income reference period for SILC 2023 is the calendar year 2022. The cost of living income measures introduced by the government to mitigate the negative impact of the cost of living crisis on household incomes affected households across the whole income distribution and particularly household with persons aged 65 years and over. See Chapter 6 for analysis of the impacts of the cost of living income measures.
As part of the process of revising population estimates for SILC 2020 to 2022, using Census of Population 2022 data, a change to the population benchmark definition was also implemented. Under the EU Integration of European Social Statistics (IESS) framework regulation the total of the usually resident population living in private households are used as the SILC population benchmarks. These benchmarks do not include those people living in communal establishments.
For further information, please see Background Notes.
This is an audio file with a 30-second quote from Brian Cahill with the Income Consumption and Wealth (ICW) Division, about the Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) 2023.
Media outlets have permission to use the clip as long as they credit the CSO.
Household Income - Brian Cahill, Statistician:
Learn about our data and confidentiality safeguards, and the steps we take to produce statistics that can be trusted by all.
Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (07 March 2024) issued results from the Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) for 2023.
SILC is a household survey covering a broad range of issues in relation to income and living conditions. It is the official source of data on household and individual income and provides a number of key national poverty indicators, such as the at risk of poverty rate, the consistent poverty rate, and rates of enforced deprivation. This report presents the results for 2023, using an income reference period of the 2022 calendar year.
Commenting on today’s release, Brian Cahill, Statistician in the Income, Consumption and Wealth Division, said:
“Today’s results from the CSO’s SILC 2023 show an increase in household income from the previous year, but when adjusted for inflation we see that real household income has fallen in the year. The proportion of people at risk of poverty has fallen in 2023 compared with 2022, however, if cost of living measures paid to households in 2022 were excluded the at risk of poverty rate would have risen. The publication also highlights the higher incidence of the risk of poverty amongst certain groups such as persons unable to work due to long-standing health problems; the unemployed; single-adult households; and those in rented accommodation.
Household Income in 2023
The median nominal household disposable income in SILC 2023, covering the January to December 2022 income reference period, was €55,149. This represented an increase of €3,005 (+5.8%) from the previous year’s estimate of €52,144. However, when adjusted for inflation using a base year of 2019, the median real household disposable income in SILC 2023 was €50,162. This was a decrease of €958 (-1.9%) when compared with the previous year. A glossary of terms is available in our Survey on Income and Living Conditions Fact Sheet (PDF 494KB) .
On average, households received €1,509 (86.9% of gross weekly income) from market income sources such as employment, occupational pension, private pension or other income, and €227 (13.1% of gross income) from social transfers. After deducting tax, social insurance contributions, pension contributions and inter-household transfers paid, the average weekly disposable income was €1,205. However, this varied considerably by decile, where households are ranked from lowest disposable income to highest and divided into ten equally sized groups.
The 10% of households with the lowest disposable income (i.e. the first decile) had a mean weekly nominal gross income of €297. This was composed of an average €62 (20.7% of gross income) from market income and €235 (79.3% of gross income) from social transfers. After deductions, these households had an average net disposable income of €281 per week.
For households in the fifth decile (i.e. the mid-point of the income distribution) the mean weekly gross income was €1,223, composed of an average €941 (76.9%) market income and €282 (23.1%) in social transfers. After deductions, households in the fifth decile had an average of €972 in disposable income.
Households in the tenth or highest decile had a mean weekly gross income of €5,205, composed of an average €5,048 (97%) market income and €153 (3%) in social transfers. After deductions households in the tenth decile had an average €3,053 in disposable income.
Richest 20% have 3.8 Times the Income of the Poorest 20%
The Quintile Share Ratio was 3.8 in SILC 2023, compared with 3.9 in 2022, indicating that the richest 20% of people had 3.8 times the income of the poorest 20%.
The Gini coefficient measures income equality across the entire income distribution, with 0% indicating perfect equality (i.e. that income is distributed equally amongst all persons) and 100% representing perfect inequality (i.e. that all the income is held by one person). In SILC 2023 the Gini coefficient was 27.5%, compared with 27.4% in 2022.
Risk of poverty falls in 2023
In SILC 2023, the at risk of poverty rate was 10.6%, compared with 12.5% in 2022 and 11.8% in 2021.
Looking at factors such as employment status, household composition, and tenure, CSO analysis reveals significant differences.
Self-defined economic status: One in four unemployed people (25.5%) and those unable to work due to long-standing health problems (27.3%) were at risk of poverty in SILC 2023. This compares with an at risk of poverty rate of 5.8% for those that described themselves as employed.
Household composition: the at risk of poverty rate was highest in households composed of one adult aged less than 65 years (27.1%), followed by households of one adult with children aged under 18 (19.2%). The rate was lowest for those living in households with three or more adults (3.5%).
Tenure: People living in rented or rent-free accommodation were more likely to be at risk of poverty at 19.7% when compared with those living in owner-occupied accommodation (6.5%).
Impact of Long-Standing Health Problems on Consistent Poverty
The consistent poverty measure is defined as people who are both at risk of poverty and experiencing enforced deprivation. The consistent poverty rate in SILC 2023 was 3.6%, compared with 4.9 % for the previous year.
Analysis by self-defined economic status shows that the consistent poverty rate was highest among persons unable to work due to long-standing health problems (16.5%) and the unemployed (9.4%), while it was lowest amongst those who were employed (1.5%).
Analysis by tenure status shows that the consistent poverty rate for persons living in rented accommodation was 8.5% compared with 1.4% of those living in owner-occupied dwellings.
Impact of Cost of Living Income Measures
Excluding cost of living measures, the at risk of poverty rate (using the standard at risk of poverty threshold of €16,558) would have been 13.0% in SILC 2023, compared to the rate of 10.6% when these measures were included. The 2023 consistent poverty rate was 3.6%, without cost of living measures the rate would have been one percentage point higher at 4.4%, much closer to the 2022 rate of 4.9%.
Analysis of the impact of the cost of living measures on reducing the at risk of poverty rates by age group shows that the largest impact was for people aged 65 years and older. Cost of living measures reduced the at risk of poverty rate for people in this age group from 16.9% to 8.3%. Cost of living measures had the least impact on reducing the poverty rates of those aged 18 to 34. Excluding cost of living measures, the at risk of poverty rate for people aged 18 to 34 would have been 9.2%. Including cost of living measures, their poverty rate was 8.6%.”