Minister James Murray has warned of a "bumpy" road ahead in an aim to tackle inflation rates after an unexpected 3% rise, despite the economists forecast of 2.8%.

Following this, a recent study has revealed insights into the areas of the UK that are most concerned and affected by the cost-of-living crisis. The research, conducted by coupon experts at Voucherbox, analysed the average number of monthly Google searches across the UK over the past 12 months for keywords related to the cost of living; as a result, the areas most concerned with financial troubles have been ranked.

Newcastle upon Tyne leads with 1,172.35 average monthly searches per 100,000 people, which is 20% more than Middlesbrough in second place. Interestingly, the city is one of two where "local food banks" features as a top term (10.22 searches), reflecting unique concerns about food security in the area.

Middlesbrough follows in second with 978.31 average monthly searches per 100,000 people. It stands out as the only location where "help with cost of living" emerged as a top term (6.75 searches), suggesting heightened demand for general financial assistance. Coming in third is Birmingham with 944.90 average monthly searches per 100,000 people.

The city saw the most searches for “Universal Credit childcare” (8.77 searches). Residents in Liverpool conducted 893.27 average monthly searches per 100,000 people, placing the city fourth, which is just a 6% decrease from Birmingham's search volume, revealing comparable levels of concern.

Glasgow ranks fifth, with 855.65 average monthly searches per 100,000 people. Glasgow is also the second city where "local food banks" is a prominent term (12.4 searches).

Areas in the UK most concerned about the cost of living:

  • Plymouth - Plymouth comes in sixth with 816.30 average monthly searches per 100,000 people, close to Glasgow's, with a 5% decrease, suggesting similar levels of worry.
  • Leeds - Next is Leeds, with 783.17 average monthly searches per 100,000 people, which secures the seventh spot.

The city's search activity reflects concerns about childcare costs with 64.17 average monthly searches for “childcare funding” and 33.33 for “Universal Credit childcare.”

  • Bolton, Blackpool and Manchester - Closely behind Leeds is Boltonin eighth, with 777.22 average monthly searches per 100,000 people. Blackpool is in ninth place which is followed by Manchester, with average monthly searches of 769.21 and 768.76 per 100,000 people, respectively.

Interestingly, the study revealed that the most-searched term across the board is "Winter Fuel Payment", which accounts for a staggering 77.28% (109,151 average monthly searches) of the top terms. The study also revealed that the second most-searched term across all areas is "Council Tax Reduction", which accounts for 9.96% of the total average monthly searches.

Additionally, it is notable that every city has a search related to the cost of childcare in its top four terms; specific terms include “childcare funding” and “universal credit childcare.” Charlotte Lumbroso-Baumgartner, CEO of Voucherbox added: "The data highlights the immense financial pressures households across the UK are facing, especially during these colder months.

“Energy costs remain a top concern, as reflected by the top term ‘Winter Fuel Payment’. To ease the strain, households should check their eligibility for government schemes like the Warm Home Discount and consider energy-saving measures such as improving home insulation or purchasing more energy-efficient appliances.

“Additionally, families struggling with childcare costs can look into local council grants or employer-provided childcare vouchers.” A seed list of cost-of-living-related terms was created before examining the average monthly search volume of each one over the past 12 months from Google Keyword Planner.

This data was then normalised per 100,000 population to provide a fair ranking across the UK.