The latest quarterly savings review from Lloyds Bank shows 27% have not stashed any cash this year, with 60% saying they didn’t have enough money to save.

One in three said the rising cost of living prevented them putting money away and a similar proportion felt they had to manage their outstanding debt first.

Among those who did save, 38% were satisfied with their current level of savings.

However, people’s attitudes to saving are shifting, according to the survey, with just 26% saying they would rather spend than save, down from 30% in June.

Nearly three quarters (71%) care about the amount of savings they have and 81% said it was important to them to save for the future.

Separate research from trade body UK Finance shows the savings rate for Brits grew at the slowest level in more than 11 years in October.

The annual growth in personal deposits rose by a sluggish 0.8% last month, compared to a 2% rise in the same month last year and a near 5% rise two years ago.

“The amount we’re all saving has been consistently falling throughout this year, as households have seen their wages fail to keep pace with inflation for much of the past decade,” said Laura Suter, personal finance analyst at investment platform AJ Bell.

“As wage growth has recently hit a near-10-year high and is higher than inflation, we would hope to see the rate at which people are saving start to pick up, while others will use it as an opportunity to pay off their costly debt.”

Top tips to get started

Start small: you don’t have to save hundreds a month. Anything is better than nothing.

Separate your savings from your bank account: setting up a specific account will make it harder for you to dip into your savings.

Don’t set unrealistic goals: work out your monthly outgoings, then you’ll have a better idea of how much you can save.

Pay in straight after payday: moving money into your savings account as soon as you’ve been paid will stop you spending it later in the month.

Shop around for the best interest rates: don’t just open a savings account with your current account provider. There are likely to be better rates on the market.