Households in Ireland saved 12.5 per cent, or €1 in €8, of their disposable income in April, May and June, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
This saving rate was down from 13.2 per cent in the previous quarter but close to the average of 12.7 per cent since the start of 2023, the agency said.
At the height of the pandemic in 2020, households here saved almost €30 billion (on an annual basis) by spending less on items such as transport, childcare, holidays and eating out. Since then savings rates have returned to pre-pandemic levels.
Before adjusting for seasonality or inflation, households saved €6.8 billion in the second quarter, the CSO’s figures show.
RM Block
Investment in property and improvements (most of which was by households) was €5.5 billion. Additions to pension funds were almost €1 billion.
“Saving can add to a household’s overall wealth in the form of buying new homes, growing bank deposits, pension savings and paying off debt,” the agency said.
“While household income rose in the quarter, households were also spending more on final consumption,” it said. “This increased spending was driven by both higher prices (inflation) as well as higher volumes of goods and services being bought.”
The CSO figures show total disposable income of households here was €47 billion in the second quarter.
[ How much do you need to save to send your child to college in Ireland?Opens in new window ]
After adjustment for seasonal factors, this was up 1.2 per cent compared to the first quarter of 2025 but, after adjusting for inflation, the increase was just 0.4 per cent.
Households spending on goods and services was €40.2 billion, an increase of 2.2 per cent, before price or seasonal adjustments.
When seasonal factors are taken into account, final consumption of households was up by 2 per cent. When the effect of price changes is also removed, the volume of consumption increased by 0.9 per cent.