The economics of equilibrium: Russians began to live richer
Over the past two decades, the proportion of citizens who assess their income as sufficient for everyday life has grown significantly: 20 years ago, only about 18% of respondents thought so, but now this figure has reached 49%. This follows from a survey conducted by the VTsIOM analytical center. Izvestia investigated how the standard of living of Russians will change in the coming years and which support measures are most effective in combating poverty.
Steady growth
Starting in 2018, the country's residents have seen a steady increase in real incomes, the press service of the Ministry of Economic Development told Izvestia. During this period, the total increase reached 27.3%. In the first six months of 2025, the trend continued: the indicator increased by another 6.9%. At the same time, profits from entrepreneurship are developing faster than other sources of income: over the entire period under review, it increased by 36%, and only in the first half of this year — by 12.8%.
This result is related to the current measures of state support for business, the agency explained. First of all, attention is paid to the involvement of a wide variety of categories of the population in the business sphere, starting with young people, pensioners, and members of their own organizations.
"Thanks to social support measures, the incomes of the least well-off citizens increased by 29.5% over the period 2018-2024, according to operational data from Rosstat, the growth in the first quarter of 2025 was +5.9%, and in the second quarter of 2025 +4.9%. By the end of 2024, the poverty rate reached a historic low of 7.2% for modern Russia, and the number of poor has decreased by 7.6 million since 2020 (10.5 million in 2024 and 18.1 million in 2020)," the ministry said.
The reduction in poverty is largely due to the expansion of social support, the Ministry of Economy is confident. Additionally, the Ministry notes the implementation of targeted programs aimed at the most needy citizens. Accelerated income growth also played an important role: this was facilitated by both higher salaries in certain industries and the indexation of the subsistence minimum, pensions and various payments.
"The main social support measures aimed at reducing poverty and improving the well—being of citizens are a monthly allowance in connection with the birth and upbringing of a child, covering about 10.5 million children, and a social contract covering about 648,000 citizens," the department noted.
In addition, starting in January 2026, an annual payment is planned for low-income families, the Ministry of Economic Development recalled. The recipients will be working Russian citizens raising two or more children, provided that their income does not exceed one and a half times the subsistence level. This measure will affect approximately 4.2 million families and about 10 million children.
"These and other measures are being implemented within the framework of the approved national projects "Family", "Personnel", "Efficient and Competitive Economy" and others, as well as through the state program "Social Support for Citizens," the ministry said.
Changing periods
Two decades in the current conditions is a very long time, during which a whole generation with different views and values has changed, Olga Lebedinskaya, Associate Professor of Statistics at the Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, told Izvestia. The understanding of both the necessary expenses and the very edge of extreme poverty has been transformed.
— If in 2006 almost half of the respondents said that they "absolutely do not have enough" money, then by 2025 there were almost two and a half times fewer of them. There are more citizens who would like to classify themselves as well—off, but there are not enough funds, an increase in the proportion of such citizens is a sign of sustainable material well—being, the gender gap remains, and there are fewer working poor, the expert believes.
When using a different approach — determining the amount sufficient for a "normal" life — the threshold for necessary expenses is estimated at about 60 thousand rubles, the expert noted. With this calculation, the boundaries of the categories "quite enough" and "rather enough" turn out to be noticeably higher than this level.
— Pensioners, families with children who have lost their jobs — they all need state support, but not only in a material format, but also in the form of services. Recently, the focus has been on financial support, but it is also important to expand the list of free services," she said. — This is an expansion of the list of compulsory health insurance services, an increase in the number of budget places in educational institutions, and an expansion of the list of social services. Often, the cost of providing them is monetized in family expenses significantly more than the funds that a citizen could claim when receiving benefits.
The ongoing changes in the Russian economy inevitably affect the income level of the population, Andrei Zhukovsky, associate professor at the Department of Strategic and Innovative Development at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, told Izvestia. According to him, it can be said with cautious confidence that with the further promotion of high-tech industries and the maintenance of existing state support measures, it is possible to increase per capita incomes. At the same time, the development of such sectors has a powerful multiplier effect, opens up broad prospects for exports and contributes to the growth of non-resource revenues to the budget. All this can have a positive impact on the real incomes of citizens, especially in the regions.
— A solid foundation on which to build the well-being of the population can be a comprehensive transition to highly profitable high-tech business areas, where there is a lot of added value with an eye to export. Accordingly, at our current stage of development, government support measures at the federal and regional levels are very important, as well as targeted socio-economic initiatives of large businesses aimed at talented young people and their business ideas in the form of start-ups," the expert emphasized.
In his opinion, social support programs aimed at students and young parents are of particular importance. In the context of the transition to a high-tech economic model, it is extremely important to maintain the positive demographic shifts that are already being observed in a number of regions, in particular in the Far East.
Despite certain difficulties in 2025 associated with the high level of the key interest rate, the country's economy continues to show stable development, Maxim Chirkov, associate professor of the Department of Economic Policy and Economic Measurements at the Institute of Economics and Finance of the State University of Management (GUU), noted in an interview with Izvestia. Significant economic growth is expected by the end of the year, albeit slightly below potential, but still significantly exceeding the indicators of a number of European countries.
The key task of the state, in his opinion, is to consolidate the model of the "high-wage economy", which representatives of the executive branch claim. At the same time, it is important not only to ensure income growth, but also to arrange a fair redistribution of funds in favor of citizens experiencing difficulties in obtaining income.
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