Family income is a very important issue, although many people don’t pay enough attention to it. It has everything to do with the personal finances of family groups, and a better understanding of this topic is essential to balance accounts, investments and day-to-day expenses.
The problem is that many people do not fully understand the relevance of this subject, nor do they have the basic knowledge about finance to help in this regard. This article presents the most essential information associated with the concept of family income so that you can learn everything about it. Keep on reading!
What this article covers:
What is family income?
The concept of family income is very simple to understand and it refers to the set of cash earnings that a family group has in a given period, such as a month, for example. This includes any type of income, be it fixed salaries, commission earnings, income from self-employed services, among other things.
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The values acquired throughout the month, by all family members, represent the income of that group. For calculation purposes, money received in pensions and social security benefits, for example, should also be included in this account.
In other words, all money earned by family members, added together, corresponds to their family income.
How important is it to understand what family income is?
Having knowledge about what family income is and how it is constituted is fundamental to having more control over the finances of the family group.
This is mainly done by understanding how much each person spends and how that money is used. From this it is possible to better manage all the financial movement of the group of relatives.
In addition, knowing the exact family income facilitates actions such as saving money, investing it and even using it for leisure activities, such as travel. These things are more complicated to carry out if there is lack of control with the use of money.
How does the calculation of family income work?
To understand even better what family income is, just think that it is the sum of all the money that comes in from all the people who are part of the same family nucleus. Therefore, to arrive at the correct amount, it is enough to carry out a simple summation with the amounts that each person collects per month.
Practical example
Let’s take a practical example: imagine that a family is made up of a father (who earns BRL 3,000 per month), a mother (housewife and without a formal job), a grandmother (who has a retirement pension of BRL 4,000), a son (with a minimum wage of R$1,212) and a daughter who still does not work.
In this scenario, just add it all up. In this case, 3,000 + 4,000 + 1,212 = 8,212. Their family income, in this case, is R$8,212 per month.
What programs can I participate using family income?
There is, in Brazil, a close relationship between family income and the applicability of public policies on access to education, housing, acquisition of allowance, among other things.

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See, below, the list of some of the government programs that need data on the monthly income of the family to be required:
- – Prouni;
- – Sisu;
- – FIES;
- – Access to the quota system;
- – Minha Casa Minha Vida, among others.
In order to obtain these and many other benefits guaranteed by the public authorities, the gains of the family group are very important, as it is through this information that the Government is able to direct affirmative and combat policies. to social inequality for those who really need them.