Financial wellbeing in July 2026
- All three of our measures of consumer confidence continue their recent improvement this month. Consumer confidence in their current household financial situation is now +27 compared to +19 in June; confidence in their future household financial situation is now -9 compared to -13 in June; and confidence in the future UK economy is now -39 compared to -49 in June.
- One in fifteen UK households (6.8%) reported missing a housing payment, bill, loan or credit card payment in the month to July 10th. This is an appreciable improvement compared to the rate of 9.1% in the month to June 12th.
- There was a modest improvement in the rate of households making adjustments to cover essential spending (such as cutting back on essentials, dipping into savings, selling possessions or borrowing) to 51% in the month to July 10th. It was 53% in the month to June 12th.
Consumer confidence in the UK economy increased again in July
This month we saw increased levels of net confidence compared to last month:
- Confidence in their current household financial situation increased eight points to +27
- Confidence in their future household financial situation increased four points to -9
- Confidence in the future UK economy increased 10 points to -39
This month’s increases in these consumer confidence measures continues the recent improvements that started in May 2026. Cumulative rises over the past three months are 10 points for confidence in current household financial situation, 14 points for future household financial situation confidence and 22 points for the future of the UK economy.
Despite the recent ‘bull run’ of numbers, confidence in the future of the UK economy still remains heavily in negative territory. The score of -39 is a result of only 15% of consumers thinking the UK economy will improve over the next 12 months while over half (54%) thinking it will get worse. Additionally, confidence in the future household financial situation is close to, but has not broken into net positive territory.
UK consumer confidence improves
Source: Which? Consumer Insight Tracker. Approximately 2,000 respondents per wave. UK level data are weighted to represent the adult population of the UK by age, gender, region, social grade, working status and housing tenure. Future measures ask consumers if they think things will get better or worse over the next 12 months.
Missed payments rates ease to be closer to the 2025 average
Over the first half of this year we observed a rapid rise in household missed payments, from 4.5% at the end of last year to 9.1% in the month to June 12th. This was very concerning as it indicated that many more households were struggling to meet their costs of living. The proportion of households reporting that they had missed a housing payment, bill, loan or credit card payment in the month to July 10th fell to 6.8%. This represents a 2.3 percentage point decrease from the previous month (9.1% in the month to June 12th) and a close return to the average level of missed payments in 2025 of 6.6%.
The proportion of households missing a household payment fell in the month to July 10th
Source: Which? Consumer Insight Tracker. Approximately 2,000 respondents per wave. UK level data are weighted to represent the adult population of the UK by age, gender, region, social grade, working status and housing tenure. Question text: Which of the following has your household done relating to the following payments in the last month: Mortgage payment; Rent payment; Loan or credit card payment; Bills (e.g. phone, utilities, council tax) - Missed or defaulted on a payment
Despite this decrease in the overall missed payments rate, the 6.8% of households who did miss a payment in the last month are experiencing severe difficulties. We asked what effect these missed payments were having on them. The most common outcome mentioned was how stressful the situation was.
“Extremely impactful on [my] mental health, quality of life - resulting in skipped meals, reduced sleep.” Male, aged 25 to 34, South West
“It causes me a lot of stress and worry” Female, aged 45 to 54, East Midlands
“It has made everything unstable and argumentative.” Female, aged 25 to 34, East Midlands
Many respondents mentioned that their missed payments meant having to cut back on things that impacted quality of life.
“Rising my debts and unable to socialise on day trips or visit friends and family.” Male, aged 45 to 54, South East
“This has resulted in us having to cut back on several things because we don’t have enough to afford it” Female, aged 18 to 25, London
Or worse, cutting back on food.
“We don't have a lot of food especially towards the end of the month in order to be able to afford electricity bills etc.” Female, aged 18 to 25, North East
“This has made me go broke and not afford the basics for my family.” Male, aged 18 to 25, London
Another factor raised was that falling behind can be financially penalising (interest charges, missed payment charges) which then exacerbates the problem and further misery, but critically making it harder to extricate themselves from that situation.
“Causing expenses to build up and adding interest.” Male, aged 25 to 34, South West
“Being behind on payments creates additional late payment charges.” Male, aged 25 to 34, North West
These comments highlight the human stress and struggles around missed payments.
The number of households making financial adjustments nudges down
Whilst we have observed significant changes in our consumer confidence metrics and household missed payment rate over the past few months, the number of households who made adjustments to cover essential spending has remained relatively stable. The proportion of households who made adjustments, such as cutting back on essentials, dipping into savings, selling possessions or borrowing has decreased slightly from 53% in the month to June 12th to 51% in the month to July 10th.
This July figure of 51% is in line with the prior 12 months average of 50%. Whilst this rate is still relatively high, it remains well below the level of adjustments seen in 2022, when it averaged 57%.
One in two households (51%) reported making adjustments in the month to July 10th
Source: Which? Consumer Insight Tracker. Approximately 2,000 respondents per wave. UK level data are weighted to represent the adult population of the UK by age, gender, region, social grade, working status and housing tenure. Question text: Which, if any, of the following adjustments has your household made to cover essential spending in the last month?: Used an overdraft facility; Took out a new credit card or borrowed more than usual using an existing card; Borrowed money or received financial support from friends/family; Took out a short term loan; Cut back spending on essential household items compared to last month; Took money out of a savings account; Sold or pawned belongings; Used a Buy Now Pay Later product for essentials such as groceries; Other similar financial action.
Summary
This month saw improved financial wellbeing over the previous month with both consumer confidence continuing to improve and the proportion of households missing a household payment falling. However, the missed payment rate remains at a level where it affects a fair minority of the population. Households missing payments are facing heightened levels of stress, sometimes severe, as well as having to cut back on essentials such as food.
Whilst the improvements in consumer confidence may reflect some increased optimism with the arrival of a new Prime Minister, the financial difficulty figures show that the new Prime Minister and Cabinet will need to look at ways to help those financially struggling with the core costs of life.
Methodology
Fieldwork for Which?'s Consumer Insight Tracker is conducted monthly by Yonder on behalf of Which?. The latest wave of data collection took place between 10th to 12th July. A sample of 2,074 UK adults were surveyed online and weighted to be nationally representative.