Nearly four in five Georgian households do not have enough savings to cover even one month of expenses if their income stops, according to a new survey by the Caucasus Research Resource Centers (CRRC).
The findings come from CRRC’s quarterly nationwide Business Omnibus telephone survey, which interviewed 1,000 respondents. The survey’s Economic Pulse component shows that only 23% of households have savings sufficient to cover at least one month of essential expenses.
The research also found that households spend an average of 73% of their monthly income on essential costs, including food, rent, loan repayments, and utility bills. Just 27% of respondents said they could allocate more than half of their income to discretionary purchases. Financial flexibility was highest among young adults aged 18–34, employed individuals, and households earning more than GEL 2,000 per month.
Expectations regarding Georgia’s economic outlook remain mixed. While 23% of respondents expect the economy to improve over the next year, an equal share said they were unable to predict future developments. Over the longer term, optimism remains stable and negative expectations decline, although uncertainty increases slightly. The survey also found a strong preference for locally produced goods, with most consumers choosing Georgian products when prices are equal. However, when imported products are cheaper, the likelihood of consumers choosing foreign goods rises by nearly 2.5 times.
