Making it to payday: Why more and more Russians are borrowing money until payday

With wages growing at record rates, more than 90% of Russians complain they don't have enough money to last until payday, according to a survey by one financial institution. Almost a third of the population (29.5%) is 10,000-20,000 rubles short of payday. A similar number of respondents (28.1%) are borrowing 5,000-10,000 rubles. Only 7% of respondents said they don't need to go into debt.

People have different reasons for their lack of money. Unforeseen expenses, spontaneous purchases at stores, poor budgeting... Typically, to get money for food, 30% take out loans from microfinance organizations, 15% turn to friends and relatives, and one in 10 starts using their stash for a rainy day. But pawning things is the last thing our fellow citizens do—only 1.2%.

Saving money "before payday" is, of course, a relative term. Typically, in Russia, the practice is to have an advance and then pay it off, meaning payments are made twice a month or once every two weeks. It's logical to assume that the money runs out about three days before the cashier's deadline—at least, that's how it used to be.

Surely, someone wouldn't squander their money in a week and then spend the next seven days slacking off. It's understandable that 12.5% ​​of Russians surveyed are less than 5,000 rubles short. Who hasn't experienced it? Overspending... But, as we see from the survey results, one in five respondents are more than 20,000 rubles short, and almost 30% are less than 20,000.

But that's a lot of money, and spending it in three days requires a lot of effort. It's practically the average pension in the country, enough for the elderly to live on for a whole month. And it's more or less enough for them to cover food, utilities, and even update their shabby wardrobe.

Meanwhile, according to Rosstat, the average salary in the country was 99,400 rubles in April, and in June it had already surpassed 100, reaching 103,200. These amounts would seem to be sufficient to allow for every possible luxury. However, inflation is also on the rise.

The increase in housing and communal services tariffs in 2025 was approximately 15%, fish prices increased by 29%, cheese by 19%, coffee by 17%... The growth of consumer prices is outpacing the growth of wages.

And yet, it’s hard to believe that only 7% of our fellow citizens don’t have financial problems.

"This isn't a representative sample of the population," says Georgy Ostapkovich, research director of the HSE Center for Market Research. "We need to look at Rosstat data. We have a high-income segment of society: 20% of the population owns approximately 45% of all Russians' income. Representatives of this group are unlikely to have participated in this survey."

Most likely, the sample was drawn from people who frequently turn to microfinance organizations for assistance. The average microloan is approximately 16,000 rubles. Thus, the majority of this group lives with a family budget deficit.

- Does this mean that payday loans are for the poor?

The poverty rate in the country is 8%. These are people whose incomes are below the subsistence minimum of 17,500 rubles. However, there are fewer than 10 million of them, and the country has a population of over 140 million...

- The thing is, according to statistics, the average salary has already exceeded 100 thousand rubles, but people still don't have enough to last until payday...

The average salary doesn't tell the whole story either. Its size is driven by wealthy Russians, whose declared incomes run into the millions and even billions of rubles. You need to look at the median salary—half of the richest and half of the poorest. It's around 60,000-65,000 rubles a month, which these days might not be enough to last you a whole month.

- When do you think it was easier to borrow money: in Soviet times or today?

"Previously, people would turn to friends or relatives for a three-ruble loan until payday. Many businesses had mutual aid funds that would help them out in difficult times. But it was still a problem. Today, of course, it's easier, because there are microfinance organizations where you can borrow a small amount with just a click. But the interest rates are steep..."

What advice can you give to people who struggle to make ends meet? Should they plan their expenses, or is that pointless?

"You always need to plan your budget. Otherwise, even a million-dollar salary won't be enough to live on. Expensive goods need to be eliminated from your shopping basket. But the most important thing is to find a high-paying job, and to do so, develop yourself, and improve your knowledge and skills. There's no other way. There are rich and poor people all over the world, and only through hard work can you change your social status."