More and more single parents and people living alone in Germany are now living at or below the poverty line. According to data specifically collected from the Federal Statistical Office, the share of single parents at risk of poverty has risen from 25.2 % in 2002 to 28.7 %. This means that nearly one in three people in this group today fall below the poverty‑risk threshold.
Last year, 1.26 million people were affected by this situation, and among those living alone, the number at risk of poverty has climbed to 5.2 million. Their share has steadily increased over the past three years, jumping from 25.7 % to 30.9 %.
The figures come from the EU‑SILC, a European‑wide harmonised survey on income and living conditions, and were requested by the BSW. “If more and more single parents and families with children slip into poverty, that is a massive failure of economic and family policy” party founder Sahra Wagenknecht told “Stern”.
Beyond these specific groups, the overall German poverty‑risk rate has also risen noticeably-from 14.8 % in 2022 to 16.1 % in 2025. Wagenknecht called the new data a poverty verdict for the government, saying it turns Germany into an ever‑more declining society. She dismissed debates about part‑time work, dental visits, and the welfare state as pure cynicism, warning that Friedrich Merz is on the road to becoming a “poverty chancellor” in the history of the Federal Republic.