The proportion of individuals living in private households with an equivalised income of less than 60% of the UK median after housing costs. Find out more about this indicator.

Find out more about how poverty in Scotland is measured, and how relative poverty is defined. 

21% of the population lived in relative poverty after housing costs in 2019-22, following a broadly stable trend with 19% of people in poverty in the three previous periods. More information is available in the poverty statistics report.

Children have consistently been the most likely to be in relative poverty, followed by working-age adults. Pensioners have been least likely to be in relative poverty in the last 15 years. More detailed age breakdowns are also available in the annual poverty report.

The annual poverty report shows that people in the “Asian or Asian British” and “Mixed, Black or Black British, and Other” groups have consistently been more likely to be in relative poverty compared to people in the “White – British” and “White – Other” groups.

People in more deprived areas tend to have a higher poverty risk. Relative poverty rates by SIMD decile are available on the open data platform.

The annual poverty report shows that Muslim adults have consistently been more likely to be in relative poverty compared to adults of various Christian faiths, other religions, or no religion.

People living in households where someone is disabled have consistently been more likely to be in relative poverty compared to those in households where no-one is disabled.

Men and women have consistently had a similar poverty risk.

The poverty rate has been consistently higher for LGB+ adults compared to straight / heterosexual adults, see annual poverty report.

This indicator can be broken down by age, disability, gender and urban/rural classification. These breakdowns can be viewed on the Equality Evidence Finder.