Poverty and living standards in Helsinki, Finland: official figures
14.1% of the dwelling population of Helsinki lived below the at-risk-of-poverty line (60% of the national median income) in 2024, below the national figure of 14.2%; that is 3rd lowest among the nine largest cities, up from 12.0% in 2019.
How many children live in poverty in Helsinki?
15.0% of children in Helsinki lived in households at risk of poverty in 2024, above the national figure of 13.8%; that ranks 4th lowest among the nine largest cities.
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyHow many people live on benefits in Helsinki?
5.9% of residents of Helsinki lived entirely on basic social security benefits in 2024, against 4.5% nationally.
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyHow many homeless people are there in Helsinki?
Helsinki counted 1.40 single homeless people per 1,000 residents in 2025, above the national figure of 0.80; that is 4th highest among the nine largest cities.
Source: Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), Sotkanet · saved copyHow many people get housing allowance in Helsinki?
In 2025, the general housing allowance went to 11.8% of households in the city of Helsinki, 4th highest among the nine largest cities.
Source: Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), Sotkanet · saved copyHow many people cannot afford food in Helsinki?
In 2020, 22.3% of adults in Helsinki said a lack of money had left them short of food, medicine or medical care.
Source: Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), Sotkanet · saved copyHow crowded is housing in Helsinki?
Overcrowding affected 9.8% of household-dwelling units in Helsinki in 2024 (3rd highest among the nine largest cities; Finland 7.6%).
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyWhat is the crime rate in Helsinki?
Helsinki had 137.1 recorded offences and infractions per 1,000 inhabitants in 2025 (2nd highest among the nine largest cities; Finland 101.1).
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyHow much violent crime is there in Helsinki?
In 2025 the authorities in the city of Helsinki recorded 10.76 assault offences per 1,000 inhabitants, 2nd highest among the nine largest cities.
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyHow common are drug offences in Helsinki?
In 2025, Helsinki recorded 7.76 drug offences per 1,000 people.
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyIs crime rising in Helsinki?
Offences against the Criminal Code recorded in Helsinki numbered 92,532 in 2025, up 19% from 77,768 in 2015.
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyHow common are burglaries in Helsinki?
Burglaries of homes and summer cottages ran at 0.63 per 1,000 residents in Helsinki in 2025, compared with 0.76 across Finland.
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyHow much does an apartment cost in Helsinki?
An apartment in Helsinki cost €305,686 to buy on average in 2024.
Source: Eurostat · saved copyHow much does a house cost in Helsinki?
A house cost €356,173 to buy on average in 2024.
Source: Eurostat · saved copyHow many people live alone in Helsinki?
51% of the 359,689 households in Helsinki were people living alone in 2025, and 4.8% were lone parents with children under 18.
Source: Eurostat · saved copyHow many people own their home in Helsinki?
46% of households owned their home in 2024.
Source: Eurostat · saved copyCan people in Helsinki afford their bills?
In the EU's 2023 quality of life survey, 8% of residents of Helsinki said they had difficulty paying their bills at the end of the month most of the time.
Source: Eurostat · saved copyMore figures
- 16% of people in Helsinki agreed that it is easy to find good housing at a reasonable price (EU quality of life in European cities survey, 2023). Source: Eurostat · saved copy
- 79% of people in Helsinki felt safe walking alone at night in the city (EU quality of life in European cities survey, 2023). Source: Eurostat · saved copy
How Helsinki compares with other cities in Finland
At-risk-of-poverty rate, register-based (%) (2024)
Helsinki ranks 7 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | At-risk-of-poverty rate, register-based (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Tampere | 18.6% |
| 4 | Lahti | 17.6% |
| 5 | Oulu | 15.9% |
| 6 | Kuopio | 15.7% |
| 7 | Helsinki | 14.1% |
| 8 | Vantaa | 14.1% |
| 9 | Espoo | 12.0% |
Children at risk of poverty (%) (2024)
Helsinki ranks 6 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Children at risk of poverty (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Vantaa | 17.2% |
| 4 | Tampere | 16.2% |
| 5 | Jyvaskyla | 15.2% |
| 6 | Helsinki | 15.0% |
| 7 | Kuopio | 13.4% |
| 8 | Oulu | 13.3% |
| 9 | Espoo | 12.3% |
Social assistance recipients as a share of the population (%) (2025)
Helsinki ranks 2 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Social assistance recipients as a share of the population (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vantaa | 12.7% |
| 2 | Helsinki | 10.6% |
| 3 | Lahti | 10.3% |
| 4 | Tampere | 10.1% |
| 5 | Jyvaskyla | 9.7% |
| 6 | Turku | 9.4% |
| 7 | Espoo | 9.1% |
Single homeless people per 1,000 residents (2025)
Helsinki ranks 4 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Single homeless people per 1,000 residents |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Turku | 2.20 |
| 2 | Tampere | 1.80 |
| 3 | Vantaa | 1.50 |
| 4 | Helsinki | 1.40 |
| 5 | Espoo | 1.40 |
| 6 | Lahti | 1.10 |
| 7 | Jyvaskyla | 1.00 |
Households receiving general housing allowance (%) (2025)
Helsinki ranks 4 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Households receiving general housing allowance (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jyvaskyla | 13.3% |
| 2 | Vantaa | 13.0% |
| 3 | Tampere | 12.3% |
| 4 | Helsinki | 11.8% |
| 5 | Turku | 11.5% |
| 6 | Lahti | 11.2% |
| 7 | Oulu | 10.4% |
Overcrowded household-dwelling units (%) (2024)
Helsinki ranks 3 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Overcrowded household-dwelling units (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vantaa | 10.6% |
| 2 | Espoo | 10.0% |
| 3 | Helsinki | 9.8% |
| 4 | Turku | 7.9% |
| 5 | Tampere | 7.1% |
| 6 | Oulu | 6.5% |
| 7 | Jyvaskyla | 6.3% |
Offences known to the authorities per 1,000 residents (2025)
Helsinki ranks 2 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Offences known to the authorities per 1,000 residents |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vantaa | 145.4 |
| 2 | Helsinki | 137.1 |
| 3 | Turku | 122.5 |
| 4 | Lahti | 112.8 |
| 5 | Tampere | 110.4 |
| 6 | Jyvaskyla | 101.3 |
| 7 | Oulu | 90.6 |
Assault offences recorded per 1,000 residents (2025)
Helsinki ranks 2 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Assault offences recorded per 1,000 residents |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vantaa | 11.20 |
| 2 | Helsinki | 10.76 |
| 3 | Turku | 9.97 |
| 4 | Jyvaskyla | 9.69 |
| 5 | Tampere | 8.94 |
| 6 | Espoo | 8.73 |
| 7 | Lahti | 7.74 |
Average apartment price (euros) (2024)
Helsinki ranks 1 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Average apartment price (euros) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Helsinki | €305,686 |
| 2 | Espoo | €241,056 |
| 3 | Tampere | €176,618 |
| 4 | Turku | €160,768 |
| 5 | Vantaa | €145,004 |
| 6 | Kuopio | €124,321 |
| 7 | Oulu | €118,183 |
More on Helsinki: overview · economy and jobs · health · education and schools · government budget · government and politics · all cities in Finland
Sources
- Eurostat: Eurostat dataset urb_clivcon: Urban Audit: living conditions (cities), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 bc58ab68d418…)
- Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus): Regional time series 1987-2025 (table 142h, Municipal key figures database): population, housing, education, employment and jobs by NUTS region, region and municipality (PxWeb API POST query, json-stat2, years 2015-2025), read 24 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 18a97e220312…)
- Eurostat: Eurostat dataset urb_percep: Quality of life in European cities survey 2023: perception (cities), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 81bd3e277f3e…)
- Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), Sotkanet: Sotkanet indicator bank, REST API 1.1: 32 indicators (one exact JSON response per indicator, e.g. indicator=5761, plus the region list) on morbidity, primary care, lifestyle, social assistance, homelessness, county election turnout and the net operating costs of wellbeing services counties, 2015-2025, bundled in one zip, read 24 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 e5b01db4f1e9…)
- Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus): Offences recorded by year of reporting, figures relative to the population in the area of the offence (table 13h4, Statistics on offences and coercive measures), 2015-2025 (PxWeb API POST query, json-stat2), read 24 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 491eb3d6cd9b…)
- Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus): Income level, income inequality, population at risk of poverty or dependent on basic social security by region (table 14ww, Income distribution statistics), 2015-2024 (PxWeb API POST query, json-stat2), read 24 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 4dd1f64e4da5…)
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