Methodology at a glance

Research provider:

The European Consumer Payment Report 2026 is based on independent research conducted by FT Longitude, with fieldwork carried out by SG Analytics, an external research provider.

Sample:

• 20,000 consumers across 20 European countries
• 1,000 respondents per country
• Respondents aged 18+ who are solely or partly responsible for managing their personal or household finances

Markets:

Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the Netherlands and the UK

Fieldwork:

• Conducted 9 July–20 August 2026
• Self-completion online survey
• Respondents were double opt-in research panellists

Representativeness and sampling:

Quota sampling was used, with age and gender quotas and regional controls designed to achieve a nationally representative sample in each market. For a country sample of n=1,000, the estimated margin of error is ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level.

The overall European results are not population weighted. Each of the 20 countries contributes equally to the European total, enabling robust comparison between markets rather than weighting results towards Europe's largest populations.

Data quality:

Quality controls were conducted throughout fieldwork, including a soft launch and checks at multiple stages of completion. Responses were screened for inconsistent answers, straight-lining, unusually fast completion and poor-quality open-ended responses. Poor-quality responses were removed and replaced.

Statistical analysis:

Results include descriptive and inferential analysis. FT Longitude uses z-tests to assess differences between mutually exclusive respondent groups where the base size is at least n=30. Findings are also assessed for practical significance and interpreted alongside relevant economic and societal context.

Intrum Money Management Index:

The Money Management Index (MMI) provides a 0–100 measure of consumers' ability to manage their finances, combining 13 indicators covering payment behaviour, borrowing and credit use, unsecured debt, financial confidence and difficulty repaying debt.

Intrum’s Money Management Index allows us to group consumers according to their overall financial health. The three groups have notable differences in their approaches to managing personal finances, from spending habits to attitudes on technology.

As part of this, we can identify three distinct consumer groups:

• Financially fragile consumers: 19% of total sample, experiencing significant financial pressure
• Coping consumers: 65% of total sample managing today, but with less financial resilience    
• Financially resilient consumers: 16% of total sample financially secure with greater capacity to absorb shocks

To create the Money Management Index, we used a machine learning technique to create a single, comparable measure of financial health that is based on a combination of financial health factors:

• Likelihood of missing bill payments over the past 12 months
• Reliance on borrowing to pay bills
• Total unsecured debt
• Confidence in ability to cover unexpected costs and save money
• Ability to pay off debts

These groups enable us to move beyond averages and look at whether people with very different levels of financial health behave differently.

How to interpret the findings

The ECPR is designed to identify broad patterns in the financial wellbeing, attitudes and payment behaviour of European consumers. Results should be interpreted as survey-based indicators and directional trends, rather than precise measures of individual household finances.