Poverty and living standards in Oulu, Finland: official figures
15.9% of the dwelling population of Oulu lived below the at-risk-of-poverty line (60% of the national median income) in 2024, above the national figure of 14.2%; that is 5th highest among the nine largest cities, up from 15.6% in 2019.
How many children live in poverty in Oulu?
13.3% of children in Oulu lived in households at risk of poverty in 2024, below the national figure of 13.8%; that ranks 2nd lowest among the nine largest cities.
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyHow many people live on benefits in Oulu?
5.0% of residents of Oulu 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 Oulu?
Oulu counted 0.60 single homeless people per 1,000 residents in 2025, below the national figure of 0.80; that is the lowest among the nine largest cities.
Source: Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), Sotkanet · saved copyHow many people get housing allowance in Oulu?
In 2025, the general housing allowance went to 10.4% of households in the city of Oulu, 3rd lowest among the nine largest cities.
Source: Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), Sotkanet · saved copyHow many people cannot afford food in Oulu?
In 2020, 19.5% of adults in Oulu 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 Oulu?
Overcrowding affected 6.5% of household-dwelling units in Oulu in 2024 (4th lowest among the nine largest cities; Finland 7.6%).
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyWhat is the crime rate in Oulu?
Oulu had 90.6 recorded offences and infractions per 1,000 inhabitants in 2025 (3rd lowest among the nine largest cities; Finland 101.1).
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyHow much violent crime is there in Oulu?
In 2025 the authorities in the city of Oulu recorded 7.24 assault offences per 1,000 inhabitants, the lowest among the nine largest cities.
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyHow common are drug offences in Oulu?
In 2025, Oulu recorded 6.01 drug offences per 1,000 people.
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyIs crime rising in Oulu?
Offences against the Criminal Code recorded in Oulu numbered 19,016 in 2025, up 2% from 18,561 in 2015.
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyHow common are burglaries in Oulu?
Burglaries of homes and summer cottages ran at 0.54 per 1,000 residents in Oulu in 2025, compared with 0.76 across Finland.
Source: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus) · saved copyHow much does an apartment cost in Oulu?
An apartment in Oulu cost €118,183 to buy on average in 2024.
Source: Eurostat · saved copyHow much does a house cost in Oulu?
A house cost €168,938 to buy on average in 2024.
Source: Eurostat · saved copyHow many people live alone in Oulu?
49% of the 110,889 households in Oulu were people living alone in 2025, and 4.4% were lone parents with children under 18.
Source: Eurostat · saved copyHow many people own their home in Oulu?
55% of households owned their home in 2024.
Source: Eurostat · saved copyCan people in Oulu afford their bills?
In the EU's 2023 quality of life survey, 6% of residents of Oulu said they had difficulty paying their bills at the end of the month most of the time.
Source: Eurostat · saved copyMore figures
- In the EU's 2023 survey of quality of life in European cities, 65% of residents of Oulu agreed that it is easy to find good housing at a reasonable price. Source: Eurostat · saved copy
- In the EU's 2023 survey of quality of life in European cities, 82% of residents of Oulu felt safe walking alone at night in the city. Source: Eurostat · saved copy
How Oulu compares with other cities in Finland
At-risk-of-poverty rate, register-based (%) (2024)
Oulu ranks 5 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | At-risk-of-poverty rate, register-based (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Jyvaskyla | 19.5% |
| 3 | Tampere | 18.6% |
| 4 | Lahti | 17.6% |
| 5 | Oulu | 15.9% |
| 6 | Kuopio | 15.7% |
| 7 | Helsinki | 14.1% |
| 8 | Vantaa | 14.1% |
Children at risk of poverty (%) (2024)
Oulu ranks 8 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)
Oulu ranks 9 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Social assistance recipients as a share of the population (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Lahti | 10.3% |
| 4 | Tampere | 10.1% |
| 5 | Jyvaskyla | 9.7% |
| 6 | Turku | 9.4% |
| 7 | Espoo | 9.1% |
| 8 | Kuopio | 8.4% |
| 9 | Oulu | 6.8% |
Single homeless people per 1,000 residents (2025)
Oulu ranks 9 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Single homeless people per 1,000 residents |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Vantaa | 1.50 |
| 4 | Helsinki | 1.40 |
| 5 | Espoo | 1.40 |
| 6 | Lahti | 1.10 |
| 7 | Jyvaskyla | 1.00 |
| 8 | Kuopio | 1.00 |
| 9 | Oulu | 0.60 |
Households receiving general housing allowance (%) (2025)
Oulu ranks 7 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Households receiving general housing allowance (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Tampere | 12.3% |
| 4 | Helsinki | 11.8% |
| 5 | Turku | 11.5% |
| 6 | Lahti | 11.2% |
| 7 | Oulu | 10.4% |
| 8 | Espoo | 10.2% |
| 9 | Kuopio | 9.4% |
Overcrowded household-dwelling units (%) (2024)
Oulu ranks 6 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Overcrowded household-dwelling units (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Helsinki | 9.8% |
| 4 | Turku | 7.9% |
| 5 | Tampere | 7.1% |
| 6 | Oulu | 6.5% |
| 7 | Jyvaskyla | 6.3% |
| 8 | Lahti | 6.2% |
| 9 | Kuopio | 6.0% |
Offences known to the authorities per 1,000 residents (2025)
Oulu ranks 7 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Offences known to the authorities per 1,000 residents |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Turku | 122.5 |
| 4 | Lahti | 112.8 |
| 5 | Tampere | 110.4 |
| 6 | Jyvaskyla | 101.3 |
| 7 | Oulu | 90.6 |
| 8 | Kuopio | 85.2 |
| 9 | Espoo | 82.3 |
Assault offences recorded per 1,000 residents (2025)
Oulu ranks 9 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Assault offences recorded per 1,000 residents |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Turku | 9.97 |
| 4 | Jyvaskyla | 9.69 |
| 5 | Tampere | 8.94 |
| 6 | Espoo | 8.73 |
| 7 | Lahti | 7.74 |
| 8 | Kuopio | 7.40 |
| 9 | Oulu | 7.24 |
Average apartment price (euros) (2024)
Oulu ranks 7 of 9, highest first.
| Rank | City | Average apartment price (euros) |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Tampere | €176,618 |
| 4 | Turku | €160,768 |
| 5 | Vantaa | €145,004 |
| 6 | Kuopio | €124,321 |
| 7 | Oulu | €118,183 |
| 8 | Jyvaskyla | €109,297 |
| 9 | Lahti | €94,847 |
More on Oulu: 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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