Welcome to the October 2026 edition of The Money Statistics, The Money Charity’s comprehensive monthly round-up of statistics showing how we use money in the UK, kindly funded by Vanquis.
Striking Numbers from the October Money Statistics:
- Employees’ average regular earnings, excluding bonuses, in Great Britain rose by 3.7% annually in June to August 2026. In real terms, for the year to August 2026, regular pay increased by 0.6%.
- The voluntary real Living Wage rates increased to £14.10 an hour across the UK, and £15.45 in London, following the announcement on 15 October. Nearly half a million people working are set for a pay boost worth over £1,250 a year. Accredited employers have until 1 May 2027 to implement the new rates.
- Debt difficulties continued to affect people in work. 63% of StepChange’s new debt advice clients in September 2026 were in some form of employment, up from 60% a year earlier. The charity also reported that 16,073 clients completed full debt advice in September, 10% higher than the August 2026 and 20% higher than September 2025.
- Inflation rose from 3.1% in the year to August 2026 to 3.5% in the year to September. Transport, particularly motor fuels, made the largest upward contribution to the increase.
- BRC food price inflation reached 2.9% in October, its highest since April and up from 2.5% in September.
- 51% of households made adjustments to cover essential spending in the month to 11 September, according to Which?. This was an increase of five percentage points, from 46% in August.
- The average Band D council tax in England was set at £2,392 for 2026-27, an increase of £111, or 4.9% compared with 2025-26.
Get the full picture and many more fascinating facts about money in the UK in our monthly Money Statistics. Previous editions can be found in the archive.
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