Expert leaves Brits baffled after claiming £12,000 is the best wage to earn

A financial health TikToker has left Brits baffled by claiming that £12,000 is the best wage to earn in the UK.

Most of us are well aware that the cost of living has skyrocketed in the past couple of years, with the price of essentials such as milk and bread creeping up while our wages remain stagnant.

In the tough economic climate we're living in, you'd imagine most people are striving to earn more in order to enjoy the benefits of our hard work.

With that thought in mind, when someone asked you what you thought the perfect salary to earn is you'd imagine it would be something above the national average, right?

Well, not according to TikTok user Philly Financial, who has left Brits baffled by her response.

Responding to a comment which asked what the best wage was in order to pay a minimal amount of tax was Philly explained: "So the best salary from a tax point of view is £12,570, but I don't know if many people in the UK would say 'give me that as a salary'.

"You pay no tax at this level, but obviously the amount you take home is just over £1,000 which isn't very much."

The astoundingly low figure left many viewers shocked, with many taking to the comments to say how unrealistic it was.

"How is that the best salary. You can't survive on that," one person wrote.

"From a tax point of view maybe. From a being able to live point of view, definitely not," a second added, while a third pointed out: "Below the poverty line in any Western country."

It's worth pointing out that Philly has based her figure on the best way to pay the minimum amount of tax and not the ideal wage for living, with the financial coach adding that few people would opt for that wage.

Addressing the backlash in a follow-up video, Philly clarified that the best salary overall was something which gave workers the 'most take home pay' adding 'the more you earn the more you'll get in your take home pay'.

She explained in the comments that she also wasn't encouraging people not to pay their tax, agreeing with another commenter that paying tax was 'absolutely' a good thing to do.

The post also sparked an interesting debate around how many Brits are clued up when it comes to financial literacy, with one person writing that we should be taught how to better manage our money at school.