Short answer: Some people genuinely gain, but many in the middle still feel squeezed.

Most of us tuned into the Budget hoping for a little relief from the financial treadmill. The weekly shop still feels like a dare, energy bills behave like moody teenagers and every pay rise disappears before it arrives. So when the Chancellor stood up, we all wondered the same thing. Am I actually better off now?

Talking to friends afterwards, everyone had the same reaction. Parts of it sounded encouraging. Parts of it felt like a magician distracting you while quietly borrowing your wallet.

Lower earners come out best. The minimum wage is rising again and this one actually moves the needle. For anyone paid hourly, that’s real cash in the bank. Families with children also get meaningful support, making day-to-day life feel a bit less like an endless budgeting puzzle.

Then there’s the freeze on tax thresholds. It’s the quiet villain of modern budgets. Wages go up because prices go up, but the tax bands stay still. You don’t feel richer, but you pay more tax anyway. It’s the fiscal equivalent of someone taking a slice of your sandwich because you dared to make it a tiny bit bigger.

Savings and small investment income also take a hit. Allowances shrink, and the protective buffer around interest and dividends gets thinner. Most people won’t notice at first, but over a year or two it adds up. For anyone with a side hustle or a small rental income, that soft nibbling starts to show.

Pension perks through salary sacrifice are also being watered down in the coming years. Still useful, still worth doing, just not quite the tax win it used to be.

There are a few practical positives. Rail fares aren’t rising and energy suppliers face pressure to keep costs sensible. It won’t change your life, but it might stop your bills from reinventing themselves every month.

Lower-income workers and families with children will feel the most genuine lift. More money coming in, less friction getting support and a better chance of making each month work without heroic budgeting.

The middle. Always the middle. Earning enough to be nudged into higher tax, not earning enough to shrug it off. If you rely on savings, dividends or rental income, you’ll also feel the squeeze before you feel the benefit. It’s not dramatic. It’s just consistently inconvenient.

If you’re on lower pay or raising kids, you should feel the improvement. If you’re in the middle, expect your payslip to feel tighter even if nobody announces a tax rise.

It’s a Budget designed to help those struggling most while funding it through people who feel “fine” but not quite comfortable.

Sort out your pension setup now while the existing salary-sacrifice perks still hold their value. And if you have savings or side-income, move what you can into an ISA while it still acts as a shield from the taxman.

More than a million workers will see a bigger pay increase next year thanks to the minimum wage rise.