1 in 3 UK adults now focused on savings despite over 13.7 million* having less than £1,000 in the bank, finds Gatehouse Bank

• A rising number of people are prioritising saving over spending across the UK, as over 4.4 million adults* have changed their attitude to money in the last year.
• 44% of those who class themselves as savers see their savings as an essential outgoing in the same way as they consider their rent or Home Purchase Plan**.
  

Gatehouse Bank, the Shariah-compliant challenger bank, has today released new research demonstrating that the UK’s money mindset is shifting towards saving.

The research looked at UK adults’ attitudes to money, assessing the key factors that influence them, why they look to save or spend their money and what might cause a shift in this mindset.

Gatehouse Bank found that over a third (34%) of UK adults naturally consider themselves a saver rather than a spender, with 44% of savers stating that they viewed saving as an essential outgoing of equivalent importance to their home finance or rent payments. Furthermore, the UK’s focus on saving is increasing, with 1 in 10 adults (11%) saying that they had shifted their mindset in the last 12 months to adopt a greater focus on saving due to the current economic climate.

The research shows a promising shift towards a saving mindset, especially considering the data shows that a third (33%) of UK adults have less than £1,000 in savings, however over half (59%) of respondents aim to save more on a monthly basis.

Gatehouse Bank's Spenders vs Savers Report 2023

Ravi Kumar, Senior Product Manager at Gatehouse Bank, commented: “The research shows a promising rise in the number of UK adults who class themselves as savers, demonstrating that people are actively shifting their mindset, which is really positive.

“In the current high-rate environment, it’s important to continue setting savings goals and putting away some money every month. Even a small amount will ultimately add up and doing so is also important for creating a healthy savings habit.

“We encourage everyone to build this habit and are looking to launch a Regular Saver product later this year to further help our customers achieve their goals.”

This survey was commissioned by Gatehouse Bank and carried out by 3Gem. The research anonymously surveyed 1,000 nationally representative UK adults between the ages of 18 and 60 between 21st – 23rd August 2023. The research assessed respondents’ attitudes towards saving, asking them to identify as either a saver or a spender, with subsequent questions analysing the rationale behind this approach to money.

*The 13.7 million headline and 4.4 million sub-heading figures are based on nationally representative insights from Gatehouse Bank’s Savers vs Spenders research. 34% of the survey sample identified themselves as a saver. The research extrapolated this figure to reflect the number of adults between the ages of 18 and 60 in the UK as calculated by the ONS, i.e. 34% of 40.5 million. The same approach was taken to reach the 4.4 million figure.

**A Home Purchase Plan is a Shariah-compliant alternative to a mortgage.