A majority of Filipino families, or 52%, rated themselves as poor in March 2026, according to a nationwide survey conducted by the Social Weather Stations.

The First Quarter Social Weather Survey, conducted from March 24 to 31, found that 13% of respondents considered themselves “borderline” poor, while 35% said they were not poor.

The latest self-rated poverty figure is one percentage point higher than the 51% recorded in November 2025 and matches the 2025 annual average. However, it remains lower than the 57% annual average posted in 2024.

The survey was based on face-to-face interviews with 1,500 adults nationwide, with sampling error margins of ±3% for national estimates.

Food poverty threshold rises

The survey also showed shifts in how families assess their food needs. The national median self-rated food poverty threshold — the minimum monthly budget families say they need for food — increased to P8,000 in March from P7,000 in November 2025.

The median food poverty gap, or the additional amount families say they need to meet their food needs, remained at P3,000.

In Metro Manila, the median food threshold held steady at P10,000, while the gap remained at P5,000. Balance Luzon also saw no change, with the threshold at P8,000 and the gap at P3,000.

Regional trends varied, with the Visayas posting declines in both the threshold (to P6,000) and the gap (to P2,000). In contrast, Mindanao saw the threshold rise to P7,000, while the gap stayed at P3,000.

Millions classified as “newly poor”

The survey estimated about 14.5 million families consider themselves poor. Of these, 6.7% or roughly 1.9 million families were classified as “newly poor,” having only fallen into poverty within the past one to four years.

Meanwhile, 9.8% were categorized as “usually poor,” and 35.5% said they had never experienced being non-poor.

On the other hand, among the estimated 13.3 million non-poor families, 11.2% were considered “newly non-poor,” indicating recent improvement in their economic condition.

The survey was non-commissioned and conducted on the initiative of Social Weather Stations as a public service.