Most basic income trials pay a randomly selected group money with no conditions for a set period and compare them with a control group. The big worry that people would simply stop working is not borne out by the checked studies from rich countries: effects on employment range from zero to slightly negative, and in some cases slightly positive.
Another result is clearer and more consistent: mental health and life satisfaction improve in almost every trial. In poorer countries the money goes mainly into small businesses, food and basic needs.
Each card shows the design, the result for work and the result for wellbeing.
Finland: 2,000 unemployed people, 2017–2018
Design: 2,000 randomly selected unemployed people received €560 a month for two years, tax-free and with no obligation to look for work. Work: no effect in the first year, and about six more days of employment over the measurement period; the second year is hard to interpret because of a labour-market reform at the same time. Wellbeing: higher life satisfaction, less mental strain, depression and loneliness, more trust in other people and in institutions. Limitation: only just under a quarter responded to the survey.
Source: Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health (STM), 2020
Germany: Basic Income Pilot Project, 2021–2024
Design: 107 people aged 21 to 40 received €1,200 a month with no conditions for three years, compared with a control group of 1,580; the study was preregistered. Work: in both groups around 90 per cent kept working about 40 hours a week, and no withdrawal from the labour market was measurable; about a third of the money was saved. Wellbeing: markedly better mental health, a stronger sense of meaning, higher life satisfaction and more time with family and friends – with no fading of the effect across the survey waves.
Source: DIW Weekly Report 15/2025
USA: OpenResearch study, results 2024
Design: US$1,000 a month for three years, with the control group receiving $50 a month; co-funded by Sam Altman, among others. Work: employment was about 2 percentage points lower in years two and three, and working time about 1.3 hours a week lower; recipients were more selective in their job search, especially younger people and single parents. Wellbeing: not reported on the checked employment findings page; according to the AEI review (see next card), this largest pilot found few significant health effects.
Source: OpenResearch, Key Findings: Employment, 2024
USA: 122 pilot projects at a glance
Design: a review by the US think tank American Enterprise Institute (AEI) (February 2026) covers 122 guaranteed-income pilots from 2017–2025, 35 of them randomised trials. Work: on average the employment effect is close to zero; the four largest projects show around 3 percentage points less employment on average. Wellbeing: few significant health effects are reported for the largest pilot. The authors note that many participants dropped out and that most projects ran during or after the pandemic.
Source: Corinth & Mayhew, AEI, 2026
Kenya: basic income for whole villages, since 2018
Design: in 295 villages with around 14,500 households, the organisation GiveDirectly is testing several variants: about US$0.75 per adult per day for twelve years, the same amount for two years, a one-off lump sum of about $500, plus control villages. Wellbeing: during the 2020 pandemic phase, the groups receiving money saw less hunger and less illness, and the monthly-payment groups also saw less depression.
Source: J-PAL, evaluation summary
Kenya: what the money did to work
Work: according to a 2023 research paper, total labour supply stayed the same but shifted from wage work towards self-employment. The long-term basic income led to more businesses and higher revenues, especially in retail. The lump sum had similar or larger economic effects, while the two-year monthly payment had clearly smaller ones.
Source: Banerjee et al., NBER conference paper, 2023
Alaska: a permanent dividend since 1982
Design: since 1982 Alaska has paid every resident an annual dividend from a state fund – universal and permanent, unlike a time-limited pilot. Work: one study finds no effect on overall employment but around 17 per cent more part-time work; the authors explain this with additional local demand. Wellbeing: not examined in this study.
Source: Jones & Marinescu, NBER Working Paper 24312
Iran: nationwide cash payments since 2010/2011
Design: as part of a reform of energy subsidies, Iran paid all households money every month with no conditions worth around 29 per cent of median household income. Work: a 2017 study finds no evidence of less work, except among young people; service-sector workers even worked more. Wellbeing: not examined in this study.
Source: Salehi-Isfahani & Mostafavi-Dehzooei, ERF, 2017
Barcelona: B-MINCOME, 2017–2019
Design: 1,000 households in poorer neighbourhoods had their income topped up, some with and some without conditions, combined with offers such as training; 383 households served as a control group. Work: after the first year the probability of working was about 8.6 per cent lower, especially in the groups with conditions. Wellbeing: less severe material deprivation, fewer people going to bed hungry, lower risk of mental illness, and life satisfaction up from 5.0 to 6.5. The results are preliminary.
Source: Ajuntament de Barcelona, results report
Wales: basic income for care leavers, since 2022
Design: young people leaving state care at 18 in 2022/23 receive £1,600 gross a month for two years; 644 people are taking part. Work: mixed – some invested in training, others felt less pressure to work. Wellbeing: more security and autonomy while payments lasted; after they ended, many found the transition hard and savings ran out quickly. Figures and a cost-benefit analysis are not due until 2027.
Source: Welsh Government, Annual Report 2025–2026
Ireland: basic income for artists
Design: the ‘Basic Income for the Arts’ pilot ended in February 2026. According to Budget 2026, the government plans a successor scheme intended to embed a permanent basic income for artists, with applications from the first half of 2026, subject to government approval. Work and wellbeing: the official evaluation was not checked for this page.
Source: Government of Ireland, Budget 2026