Employee financial wellbeing survey questions
A financial wellbeing survey for UK employees covers five things: whether pay lasts the month, savings in months of spending, borrowing to cover everyday costs, pensions, and whether money worries affect work. The twelve questions below use UK terms and fixed answer scales, so results can be compared between teams and from one year to the next. National figures to compare against come from the FCA's Financial Lives survey and LCP's 2026 employee wellbeing report.
Figures checked 27 October 2026.
Twelve questions
1. How often does your pay last until your next payday?
Every month · Most months · Some months · Few months · Never
2. If your income stopped, how long could you cover your essential bills from savings?
Less than a month · 1 to 3 months · 3 to 6 months · More than 6 months · I don't know
3. In the last three months, have you used a credit card, overdraft or buy now pay later to pay for food, rent or energy?
Never · Once · A few times · Most months
4. How much do you owe on credit cards, overdrafts and loans, excluding your mortgage or student loan?
Nothing · Under £1,000 · £1,000 to £5,000 · £5,000 to £20,000 · Over £20,000 · Prefer not to say
5. Do you know what you spend each month on rent or mortgage, bills and repayments?
Yes, to the nearest £50 · Roughly · No
6. Do you know how many pensions you have and roughly what they are worth?
Yes · I know some of them · No
7. Do you know what you pay into your workplace pension each month, and what we pay?
Yes · Roughly · No
8. How often do money worries affect your sleep?
Never · Occasionally · Often · Most nights
9. In the last month, have money worries affected your concentration at work?
Not at all · A little · A lot
10. If you needed help with money, which would you use?
A free service such as MoneyHelper · A coach or planner paid for by work · Family or friends · I would not ask anyone
11. Which of these would help you most?
Budgeting · Clearing debt · Building savings · Understanding my pension · Buying a home · Payslip and tax code
12. Would you use a free 30-minute call with a money coach if work offered one?
Yes · Maybe · No
Running the survey
Run it anonymously and say so in the invitation. Report results only for groups of ten or more people, so no answer can be traced to one person. Ask the same questions each year, at the same time of year, so the results compare.
Question 2 is the one to compare with national figures. The FCA found 10% of UK adults had no cash savings and another 21% had less than £1,000 in May 2024, and 24% had low financial resilience.
UK figures to compare against
The FCA's Financial Lives survey found 24% of UK adults had low financial resilience in May 2024, and 49% had characteristics of vulnerability. In LCP's 2026 survey of 10,000 employees, 57% said financial concerns had affected their work.
After the survey
The free Financial Freedom Score asks twenty-two questions across eight areas of money and gives each employee a score out of 100 and the area to work on first. On a Buzz guidance scheme every employee can take it, and you receive the take-up figures and topics each quarter. The employer offer
Common questions
Should the survey be anonymous?
Yes. Say in the invitation that answers cannot be traced to anyone, and report results only for groups of ten or more.
How often should we run it?
Once a year, at the same time each year, so changes in the results reflect changes in the workforce.
Can we ask about salaries?
The questions above leave pay out, because you already hold it. Results can be split by pay band from your own payroll data if the survey tool links answers to bands of ten or more.
Is the Financial Freedom Score free for employees?
Yes. It is free for anyone, and it is included for every employee on a Buzz guidance scheme.
Related guides
Guides for employers
- Financial wellbeing cost per employee in the UK
- Employee financial wellbeing for small businesses
- Financial coaching for employees
- Is employer-paid financial coaching a taxable benefit?
- The £500 pensions advice exemption for employers
- What the 2029 salary sacrifice cap costs employers
- Automatic enrolment duties for small employers
- Earned wage access and salary advances for employees
- Supporting employees through life changes
- How to set up a financial wellbeing programme
- Financial wellbeing policy template
- Financial wellbeing providers' prices compared
- Salary sacrifice calculator
- Benefit or pay rise calculator