How much do you have left over after paying for essentials?

Regular expenses like rent, mortgage payments, energy and food can easily swallow up a huge chunk of your monthly income.

Nevertheless, it’s shocking to see it laid bare in new research from Reed, which found that a quarter of workers are left with £100 or less each month after covering essential bills.

Meanwhile, nearly one in ten people say their entire salary is swallowed up by necessities, leaving them with no disposable income at all.

And that can have serious consequences.

Not having any money left over means you can’t afford to save, you’ve no buffer in case you’re hit with an emergency, and little room to cope with unexpected costs.

But having no disposable income also affects your quality of life and leaves you unable to do many of the things that make you happy.

Review your household budget

Most of us want to enjoy our lives in the here and now without jeopardising our future.

That might mean anything from going out for a coffee with friends to booking that much-needed summer holiday.

And at the same time, you want to be able to confidently cover your essential expenses and put some money into savings.

So it’s well worth taking a look at your household budget, so you have a clear idea of how much you have coming in and where it’s going.

With this information, you might be able to prioritise your spending and work out where savings can be made.

Perhaps you’re paying more than you need to for your broadband, for example, or forking out for a subscription you don’t actually use.

Simply looking at your income and spending habits could make a big difference if you want to free up a bit of cash that you can use for non-essentials.

Budgeting doesn’t just mean making sure you can pay your bills.

It can also include making sure you have money for treats, luxuries and experiences that enhance your life.

After all, you’ll be much more likely to enjoy them if you know you can afford them.

Check out our to how to create a budget to get started.

Check what benefits you could claim

If your income isn’t keeping up with the rising cost of living, it could also be worth seeing what government support you could get.

You can either give us a ring or use our free benefits calculator to find out what benefits you might be entitled to claim.

Deal with problem debts

If you’re struggling with debt, speak to us for confidential, practical and impartial debt advice.