Financial vulnerability of Canadians with the lowest incomes

Release date: February 8, 2023
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Infographic: Financial vulnerability of Canadians with the lowest incomes
Description: Financial vulnerability of Canadians with the lowest incomes

Among Canadian families, those with the lowest incomes were disproportionally affected by rising prices in 2022.

The percentage of people who are very concerned with meeting everyday expenses consistently drops with increasing income


Table 1
Table summary
This table displays the results of The percentage of people who are very concerned with meeting everyday expenses consistently drops with increasing income. The information is grouped by Income quintile (appearing as row headers), Percentage (appearing as column headers).
Income quintileNote 1 Percentage
Bottom quintile 63%
Second quintile 58%
Third quintile 42%
Fourth quintile 37%
Top quintile 19%

In 2019, 1 in 7 (14%) Canadians lived in families in the bottom income quintile.

Median after-tax family income

  • Bottom income quintile: $21,000
  • Overall: $62,900

Median net worth of families

  • Bottom income quintile: $20,000
  • Overall: $329,900

Major source of income
Table summary
This table displays the results of Major source of income Bottom income quintile and Overall (appearing as column headers).
Bottom income quintile Overall
Government transfers 62.0% 19.8%
Wages and salaries 26.6% 59.7%
Self-employment 6.7% 4.2%
Other income sources or no income 4.7% 16.3%

Women were more likely than men to live in families in the bottom quintile (15% versus 13%).

Living in a family in the bottom income quintile was also more prevalent among:

  • those aged 15 to 24 (16%) and 65 years and older (17%)
  • lone parents (32%)
  • those who were separated (25%), divorced (30%) or widowed (27%)
  • those with less than a high school diploma (24%)
  • Indigenous people (23%)
  • recent immigrantsNote 2 (24%)

Source: S. Uppal, 2023. “Rising prices and the impact on the most financially vulnerable: A profile of those in the bottom family income quintile.” Insights on Canadian Society. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 75-006-X.

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Published by authority of the Minister responsible for Statistics Canada.

© His Majesty the King in Right of Canada, as represented by the Minister of Industry, 2023

Use of this publication is governed by the Statistics Canada Open Licence Agreement.

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