Intrum has today published its annual European Consumer Payment Report (ECPR). The report finds that European consumers are regaining confidence to pay their bills and cover expenses. The share of consumers paying their bills on time has continued its upward trend, now standing at 76 percent in 2025, compared with 74 percent in 2024 and 63 percent two years ago. At the same time, 4 out of 10 European consumers state that rising living costs have left a lasting mark on their financial well-being. The report also finds that almost a third of consumers in Generation Z, respondents born between 1997 and 2012, state that replicating influencers' lifestyles has pushed them into debt, compared to 16 percent of European consumers overall.
Intrum’s annual European Consumer Payment Report (ECPR), provides insights into European consumers’ payment behaviour and financial well-being. The report is based on a survey of 20,000 consumers across 20 European countries, conducted by FT Longitude in August 2025. To better understand how people manage their everyday finances, this year’s survey introduces the Money Management Index, examining the behaviours that support financial stability.
Johan Åkerblom, President and CEO of Intrum, comments:
“It is reassuring to see that European consumers are regaining confidence in their ability to provide for the most essential, such as covering family expenses, saving for a comfortable retirement, and spending money on loved ones. European consumers’ improving ability to pay their bills on time signals a clear positive trend and reinforces that momentum is moving in the right direction. At the same time, we see that many consumers remain stuck in ‘survival mode’ – hesitant to invest or spend money and are scarred by years of economic volatility. Our new Money Management Index adds further depth to this picture, offering a valuable tool to understand the drivers of financial wellbeing and how they differ across consumer groups.”
Anna Zabrodzka-Averianov, Senior Economist at Intrum, comments:
“While we note a positive trend among European consumers’ confidence, we are also seeing that many young adults are struggling not only with the rising cost of living but also with expectations shaped by social media. For many young people, the line between aspiration and affordability has blurred. This combination creates a financial behaviour that poses a threat in the long term to a large group of young people.”
KEY FINDINGS – ECPR 2025
European consumers are more confident in their ability to pay their bills
The report shows that consumer finances are improving across Europe. The share of consumers paying all their bills on time has risen from 63 percent in 2023 to 76 percent today. There has also been an increase in consumers’ perceived ability to provide for their families (71 percent in 2025 vs. 63 percent in 2024) and cover job-related costs such as public transport (73 percent vs. 61 percent However, despite overall improvements, many remain affected by recent years of cost-of-living pressures, rising redundancies and job market uncertainty. 43 percent say rising living costs have left a lasting mark on their financial wellbeing.
Generation Z assumes debt due to social media pressure and increasingly misses bill payments on a regular basis
This year´s findings show that generation Z is more affected than other groups by social media pressure. 31 percent say trying to replicate influencer lifestyles has pushed them into debt, and 54 percent report deteriorated mental health. Overall, 16 percent of European consumers say that influencer-induced pressure has pushed them into debt.
During the past 12 months, Generation Z to a larger extent than other European consumers missed paying one or more bills (36 percent compared with 24 percent and defaulted more than in 2024 (26 percent rose to 36 percent Compared with 2024, a larger portion of Generation Z said that missing bill payments was a regular occurrence rather than one-off event (63 percent compared with 20 percent. The report also shows that the most common reason for consumers overall missing their bill payments is that they did not have the money in the first place. This issue has grown sharply among Generation Z. In 2024, 20 percent said their main reason for defaulting was that they did not have enough money to pay their bills, rising to 52 percent in 2025.
Consumers shift from fear to trust in AI and grow more cautious in their online spending
The research identifies three key trends in consumers’ evolving engagement with technology, which continues to shape how Europeans manage their finances, from everyday purchases to debt advice. First, attitudes toward AI are shifting from fear to trust. Only 18% fear generative AI will replace their jobs and 32 percent indicate they are not concerned about AI’s impact on their personal data security, compared with 19% in 2024. Second, just 30 percent say they make more spontaneous purchases than two years ago, down from 45 percent in 2024. Third, consumers are pushing back on social media pressure. 70 percent believe social media fosters unrealistic financial expectations, and far fewer now make impulse purchases based on social media advertising (25 percent down from 40 percent in 2024).
Money management issues have roots in childhood and is affected by financial education
This year’s European Consumer Payment Report introduces our new Money Management Index, a single comparable measure of consumers’ financial resilience that allows us to understand which factors beyond income, employment, age or gender shape financial stability. A telling insight is that money management issues often trace back to childhood. Nearly half (46 percent) of financially Fragile consumers recall money-related stress or conflicts at home while growing up, and only 25 percent have tried to develop better financial habits than their parents. Moreover, few Fragile consumers say that they received good financial literacy at school (12 percent vs. 24 percent of Resilient consumers) or from their parents (27 percent vs. 56 percent). Today, about a quarter of Fragile consumers (24 percent) find financial terminology confusing and stressful.
The full European Consumer Payment Report is available for download at intrum.com/insights.