Poverty at the end of life Understanding the number of people who die in poverty

The latest update shows:

• Around 103,000 people a year experienced poverty during the last year of their lives in 2024, using the Social Metrics Commission’s definition of poverty.
• For people dying aged 20-64, the risk of being in poverty is 29% in the last year of life, compared to 23% for others of this age – an increase of more than a quarter.
• For people dying after age 65, the difference is smaller: 16% compared to 13%, an increase of 16%. However, they have seen a bigger increase in their risk of poverty since 2019 than people of working age.
• The research further revealed that 23,000 people died in deep poverty (50% below the poverty line), 86,000 experienced material deprivation, and 162,000 were below the Minimum Income Standard (MIS) in the last year of life.
• Working-age adults relied heavily on benefits in the last year of life, with nearly half their income coming from state support, primarily via Universal Credit, and this is directly linked to an increased risk of poverty, highlighting the inadequacy of the current welfare system for this vulnerable group.  

Stone, J. and Robinson, E. (2025) Poverty at the end of life in 2024. London: Marie Curie
Stone, J. (2024) Poverty at the end of life in 2023. London: Marie Curie
Stone, J. (2023) Policy interventions to alleviate poverty at the end of life. London: Marie Curie
Stone, J. and Hirsch, D. (2022) Poverty at the end of life in the UK. London: Marie Curie

Poverty at the end of life local authority estimates 2023
Excel spreadsheet with estimates of the number and proportion of people in poverty at the end of life broken down by local authority and age group.