Cornish Wages Up 30%, But Households Are Worse Off, New Study Finds

Cornwall residents are earning nearly a third more than they did in 2020, but their money is going far less far. New research suggests the average household in the county has lost almost a fifth of its purchasing power in five years, with everyday costs racing ahead of pay packets.

What the figures show

Analysis by Investing.co.uk compared average net monthly salaries against typical monthly outgoings across local authority areas. In Cornwall, the average net monthly salary now stands at £1,934.11, a rise of 30.5% since 2020. Monthly expenditure, however, sits at £1,703.58, having climbed 61.8% over the same period.

That gap leaves Cornish residents with 19.3% less purchasing power than they had five years ago, placing the county fourth in the South West for the steepest decline.

Cornwall’s monthly expenditure figure is one of the highest in the regional ranking, while its average net salary is lower than most other areas listed. Households in Truro, Penzance, Launceston, Bude and elsewhere are absorbing a cost-of-living squeeze that bigger pay packets have not been able to cover.

How Cornwall compares across the South West

North Somerset tops the list for the sharpest fall, with purchasing power down 24.3% since 2020. Salaries there rose 23.8%, but monthly expenditure jumped 63.5%.

Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole follows in second place with a 20.0% drop, then Dorset in third at 19.5%. Cornwall comes fourth, with Somerset completing the top five at 18.9%.

Bristol ranks seventh despite having the highest net monthly salary in the regional table at £2,560.29. Exeter and Bath and North East Somerset also feature in the top ten.

Only two South West areas saw purchasing power improve. Cheltenham leads with a 1.0% uplift, followed by East Devon at 0.5%.

What the researchers say

Toby Robinson, CEO of Investing.co.uk, said the headline salary figures can mislead people about their actual financial position.

“People often judge their finances by whether their salary has gone up, but North Somerset shows why that can be misleading. Salaries there have risen by 23.8% since 2020, but estimated monthly expenditure has climbed by 63.5%, which is almost three times faster,” Toby said.

He went on to highlight Cornwall specifically. “Cornwall is another important example, because its current monthly expenditure is one of the highest in the South West ranking, at £1,703.58, while the average net monthly salary is lower than many other areas listed. That kind of imbalance can leave households with very little room to absorb further increases.”

Toby added that even the better-performing areas are not pulling away from the squeeze. “The fact that only Cheltenham and East Devon have seen purchasing power improve shows how narrow the margin is. In both areas, salary growth has just about edged ahead of expenditure, but only slightly, which suggests that even the South West’s better-performing areas are not exactly racing ahead.”

His advice to residents was to look past the headline pay figure. “For residents, the key thing is to look beyond salary alone. Tracking regular outgoings, checking whether savings are keeping pace with inflation, and reviewing fixed costs such as rent, mortgage payments, insurance and energy can make a real difference when spending power is being squeezed.”