EU countries by people unable to face unexpected expenses

Bulgaria had the highest people unable to face unexpected expenses of 27 EU countries in 2024, at 45.6%. The Netherlands had the lowest, at 16.9%. The median was 28.7% and the figure for the European Union (27) was 30%. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

Highest45.6Bulgaria

Lowest16.9Netherlands

Median28.727 EU countries

European Union (27)30History

Map of EU countries, 2024

Under 22
22 to 28
28 to 31
31 to 36
36 and over

%, 2024. Source: Eurostat, Inability to face unexpected financial expenses, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes04). Boundaries: Natural Earth (public domain).

All EU countries, 2024

%. Source: Eurostat, Inability to face unexpected financial expenses, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes04). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

Rank	EU countries	2024 (%)	Change on 2023
1	Bulgaria	45.6	-1.1 pts
2	Latvia	45.3	+0.5 pts
3	Greece	43.9	-0.4 pts
4	Lithuania Provisional	41.3	+0.8 pts
5	Romania	40	-6.4 pts
6	Spain	35.9	-1.3 pts
7	Croatia	34.9	-6.5 pts
8	Cyprus	34.8	-2.7 pts
9	Estonia	34.7	+4.3 pts
10	Germany	32.2	-2.8 pts
11	Ireland	31.6	-2.7 pts
12	Italy	29.9	+1.1 pts
13	France	29.4	0 pts
14	Portugal	28.7	-1.8 pts
15	Hungary	28.6	-2.7 pts
16	Slovakia	28.2	-1.1 pts
17	Finland	27.3	+1.3 pts
18	Slovenia	23.2	+0.5 pts
19	Poland	22.8	-2.9 pts
20	Luxembourg	22.5	-1.6 pts
21	Sweden	22.3	+0.5 pts
22	Belgium	21.6	0 pts
23	Denmark	21.1	-2 pts
24	Austria	20.9	-1.9 pts
25	Czechia	19.2	-0.5 pts
26	Malta	18.3	+2.4 pts
27	Netherlands	16.9	+1 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Share of the population living in households that cannot pay an unexpected but necessary expense from their own resources (EU-SILC, all household types and incomes). The amount is set for each country, close to the monthly at-risk-of-poverty threshold.

EU statistics on income and living conditions (EU-SILC). The reference year is the survey year. Self-reported by households; a share of people, not of households.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the EU countries are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

Eurostat. Inability to face unexpected financial expenses, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes04). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes04/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

Eurostat, European Commission. (2026). Inability to face unexpected financial expenses, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes04) (EU countries by people unable to face unexpected expenses, 2024) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes04/default/table

MLA 9

Inability to face unexpected financial expenses, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes04), EU countries by people unable to face unexpected expenses, 2024. Eurostat, European Commission, 17 Sept. 2026, https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes04/default/table. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unable-to-face-unexpected-expenses/eu-countries?period=2024. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Eurostat, European Commission. 2026. Inability to face unexpected financial expenses, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes04). EU countries by people unable to face unexpected expenses, 2024. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes04/default/table. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unable-to-face-unexpected-expenses/eu-countries?period=2024.

Harvard

Eurostat, European Commission (2026) Inability to face unexpected financial expenses, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes04), EU countries by people unable to face unexpected expenses, 2024 [Dataset]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes04/default/table, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/unable-to-face-unexpected-expenses/eu-countries?period=2024 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{eurostat_eu_countries_by_people_2024,
  author = {{Eurostat, European Commission}},
  title = {{Inability to face unexpected financial expenses, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc\_mdes04): EU countries by people unable to face unexpected expenses, 2024}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes04/default/table},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unable-to-face-unexpected-expenses/eu-countries?period=2024. Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Inability to face unexpected financial expenses, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc\_mdes04). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc\_mdes04/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}

RIS

TY  - DATA
AU  - Eurostat, European Commission
TI  - Inability to face unexpected financial expenses, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes04): EU countries by people unable to face unexpected expenses, 2024
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/17
PB  - Eurostat, European Commission
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes04/default/table
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/unable-to-face-unexpected-expenses/eu-countries?period=2024
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unable-to-face-unexpected-expenses/eu-countries?period=2024.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Inability to face unexpected financial expenses, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes04). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes04/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -

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Rank EU countries by people unable to face unexpected expenses using official data, and cite the source.

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Questions

Which EU country has the highest people unable to face unexpected expenses?

Bulgaria, with 45.6% in 2024, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which EU country has the lowest people unable to face unexpected expenses?

The Netherlands, with 16.9% in 2024.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Eurostat, European Commission, Inability to face unexpected financial expenses, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes04). Retrieved 2026-10-12.