The UK’s Most Googled Financial Questions

From inflation to rising interest rates, the state of the economy is continually filling the media each day with terminology that can be both challenging to understand and hard to keep up with. With a third of Brits feeling uncomfortable talking about money with friends and family, it has meant that many of us are turning to Google to answer our most burning financial questions.

But what exactly are the UK’s biggest money queries?

From understanding what a good credit score is to getting to grips with mortgages, Savoo has analysed Google search data to find out the UK’s most common financial questions and has teamed up with personal finance experts to answer these queries for the nation.

You can learn more specifically about the current cost of living crisis by visiting the Savoo Cost of Living guide and related saving guidance from expert journalists, written exclusively for Savoo.

The top 20 most searched for money queries of 2022:

Using Ahrefs Keyword Explorer to determine the most popular financial questions Brits are asking on the internet, ranging from queries on loans, tax, inflation, and credit score, we’ve gathered the search volume of 134 money questions to determine which are the most searched for by Brits.

The top 20 most searched financial questions:

1. What is inflation?

With over 14,000 monthly searches around this, financial adviser George Rashbrook gives an insight into this question for the nation.

“Inflation is a measure of how much the price of things we buy day-to-day are increasing. The figures you see reported in the news compare the price of things today to what they were at the same time last year.

For example: if a loaf of bread cost you £1 this time last year, but today it costs you £1.05, inflation on that item has been 5%."

George further explains that “The measure of inflation we hear about most commonly in the news is the Consumer Price Index (or CPI). This measures the increase in prices on “a basket of goods and services"; things that UK households are likely to buy on a regular basis. This includes things like food, clothes, electricity, and petrol but excludes things like rent and mortgage payments."

2. What is a good credit score?

Financial Coach, Elizabeth Buko, states that “A credit score is a number used by financial lenders to help them determine how likely customers are to pay back the money they lend via loans or credit cards.

The number usually varies from low to high 3 figures from 0 to 999 depending on the credit scoring model used, and it is calculated based on the information in your credit report, including your payment history, the amount of outstanding debt you have, and the length of your credit history.

A good credit score will be on the higher end and will help a customer get approved for credit and loans at very attractive interest rates."

Matilda from Millennial Saver adds; “A good credit score can vary depending on what platform you use to check your credit score, generally, credit scores from 580 to 669 are considered fair; 670 to 739 are considered good; 740 to 799 are considered very good, and 800 and up are considered excellent."

3. What is national insurance?

4. What is a balance transfer credit card?

George reports that “A balance transfer credit card is an account that offers you a lower rate of interest if you transfer debt from another lender. Very often these lower rates are temporary, meaning you need to repay the debt within a certain time or the interest rate will go back up. It’s often possible to transfer a balance again at the end of the discounted period in order to take advantage of more than the promotional rate.

For example: imagine you have a credit card with a balance of £1,000 and an interest rate of 17%. In the course of a year, you will be charged £170 in interest (assuming you don’t pay any of the loans off in that time). You find a balance transfer card online that offers you a promotional rate of 0% for six months. You transfer the balance and for six months don’t have to pay any interest at all. Some balance transfer cards charge a fee to set up or to transfer the balance in. It’s important to compare the cost of these fees to the amount of interest you’ll save in order to make sure it’s actually going to save you money."

5. How to improve credit score

If you're trying to improve your credit score, here are a few things you can do:

• Check your credit report: It’s essential to keep an eye on your credit report for any changes or errors. Even the smallest mistakes can negatively impact your score, so if you spot something that looks out of place, report it as soon as possible.
• Use a credit card: A credit card can be a perfect way to prove that you’re creditworthy. Paying off purchases on time each month demonstrates to lenders that you are able to pay back the debts that you owe.
• Pay on time: Lenders are able to view your payment history from the last 12 months, so it’s important that you don’t miss any payments as it can signal to lenders that you are not reliable and might struggle to pay back the money that you owe.

6. What are interest rates?

To help us wrap our heads around the financial term, George informs us of the different ways interest rates can affect us “When you put money in a bank account you are essentially lending it to the bank. You would normally expect the bank to pay you for this – this payment is known as “interest".

The amount of interest you earn is very often related to how long you agree to leave the money in the account. Similarly, interest is charged when you borrow money. If you have a loan, a credit card, a mortgage, an overdraft or are paying monthly for something you’ve bought (a finance agreement) the contract will specify the interest rate. Again this is usually represented as a percentage of the amount you borrow over a one year term.

7. What is a mortgage?

Matilda explains what you really need to know when you decide to borrow money to buy a house “A mortgage is a loan from a bank or building society that lets you buy a property. It is a secured loan, which means the bank has the right to take back and sell the property if you cannot keep up with your monthly repayments.

Mortgage lenders base their decisions on what's known as the loan-to-income ratio – the amount you want to borrow divided by how much you earn. The most you can borrow is usually capped at around 4.5 times your annual income. When working out how much you can afford to borrow, the lender will look at – your income, your outgoings and any future changes, broadly speaking."

8. How does a credit card work?

Credit cards are cards which you can use to make payments – the money you spend is borrowed from the card provider rather than taken from a personal bank account. Unlike a debit card, the different fees and interest rates associated with a credit card can make them tricky to understand.

Elizabeth explains how they work so that you don’t get caught out “Financial lenders loan out money to customers, with a grace period (usually between 3 and 6 weeks) to pay back before any interest begins to accrue on the outstanding debt.

If you are unable to pay back within the grace period, a percentage of the balance will be charged on top as a charge. This is the interest rate charge and is the cost of borrowing the money on a credit card. This interest compounds with time, meaning with every passing bill, you will pay interest on the outstanding balance even if the outstanding balance already includes a previous interest charge."

It’s important for individuals to be mindful of whether or not a credit card is right for them, as incorrect usage of the card such as missed payments could result in damaging your credit score and spiral you into debt due to the higher interest rates.

9. What causes inflation?

Elizabeth answers “Inflation can occur when the cost of production or manufacturing increases, and the price increase is passed onto consumers. It also occurs when the supply capacity of goods and services doesn’t meet the demand from the population and this can push prices up. Other causes of inflation include when governments finance their spending by printing more money instead of increasing taxes."

10. How to check credit score?

In recent times a number of apps have launched that give you access to your credit score at any time via your smartphone. Popular apps include ClearScore and CreditKarma."

The UK’s Trending Financial Questions

Using monthly search volume data, we were also able to discover which queries have seen the biggest rise in searches over the last three months.

The question ‘What does the interest rate increase mean?’ has been identified as the UK’s most trending question. The query saw a 2,000% surge in searches over the last three months. With a 600% increase in searches, when are energy bills going up was UK’s second most trending question. February saw the most searches about the rising prices of energy bills followed by March and August (390, 320 and 320 respectively).

Rounding off the top three is why does raising interest rates help inflation? — searches for this increased by 350% in the last three months.

UK Cities Most Searched for Financial Question:

Savoo has taken an in-depth look into the search habits of the UK’s five largest cities to find out what financial topics have stumped them most.

Take a look at the table to see what each city is searching the answer for:

Not only is inflation the UK’s most popular financial question, but it is also the top trending question in three UK cities. The rising prices clearly have many of us bewildered with an average annual search of 34,800 in London, 1,320 searches in Sheffield and 2,040 in Bristol.

What is a good credit score is the UK’s second most popular money query and is the most searched for in Birmingham and Liverpool. With an average annual of 5,760 searches in Birmingham and 2,040 in Liverpool, it goes without saying that both cities are ready to get a better understanding of their credit report.

Most of us have grown used to using Google to answer any and every question we have, and finance-related questions are no different. This is not a terrible thing as Google can be a great source for finding information however, not all advice may be relevant to your situation.

Use Google as a way to learn and search for more detail on topics you want to know more about but always consider consulting with a financial advisor to secure your decisions.