The French lack 897 euros on average per month to “live well”, according to a study

The French lack more than half a net minimum wage per month to live comfortably. This is one of the main lessons of a recent study carried out by the Society and Consumption Observatory (ObSoCo) for the online bank BforBank*, focusing on the French people's relationship with money. As various similar surveys have already shown, few French people are really satisfied with their income. Only four in ten (39%) actually feel some form of “financial well-being”.

A state that they associate with being able to meet their basic needs (27%), not having financial problems (23%), then being able to satisfy small pleasures (18%). “Financial well-being obviously covers different dimensions depending on individuals and personal situations,” observes Agnès Crozet, deputy general director of ObSoCo, quoted in a press release. Nevertheless, the study reveals that it is above all linked to a feeling of control: the regularity of one's income, the ability to cope with unforeseen events, more than a question of income level.

To achieve this famous “financial well-being”, the amount that the French lack is particularly important: on average, they say they need, ideally, an additional 897 euros per month to “live well”. Even 19% estimate their ideal additional income at more than 1000 euros. An amount “proportional to the current income level”, notes the study. For example, households earning between 1,500 and 2,000 euros per month report needing an additional 751 euros, compared to 1,369 euros for those whose income exceeds 6,000 euros.

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The ideal income supplement is also higher among those aged 55-64 (1014 euros), among families with children (1077 euros) and among residents of the Paris region (1044 euros). Men are also missing more money (943 euros) than women (852 euros).

The study also shows that money is “a subject that accompanies the French on a daily basis.” In fact, two thirds of those questioned (66%) say they think about it regularly, including 20% ​​every day or almost. A daily thought that particularly accompanies young people aged 18-24 (31%) and single-parent families (28%). And when they think about money, the associated feeling is more stress (28%), especially among single-parent families (47%). But it’s difficult to open up to those around them. If 89% easily talk about it with their partner, only 68% do so with their parents or children, 55% with their friends and 41% with their colleagues.

Such results seem to paint a gloomy picture. Especially since more than three in four French people (76%) believe that their financial situation directly contributes to their well-being. However, 68% of French people feel “general well-being”. And more than half of those surveyed (55%) say they are satisfied with their current life. Wouldn’t money (completely) bring happiness?

*ObSoCo study for BforBank, carried out from August 21 to 30, 2023 with a sample of 2,000 people representative of the metropolitan French population aged 18 to 75.