The cost of food is soaring. Energy bills are going through the roof.
This week the furlough scheme came to an end, while universal credit was cut by £80 a month.
And, with a number of tax rises in the pipeline and petrol prices closing in on a record high, many households are facing a tough winter.
Here are all the ways the cost of living crisis could affect your family...
Benefit cuts
Universal Credit was increased by £20-a-week during the Covid pandemic in a bid to help claimants weather the storm.
But now that £1,000 a year uplift has been scrapped in a move widely opposed by six former work and pensions secretaries, charities, think tanks, teachers and MPs across the political spectrum.
Some 6m families receiving Universal Credit have lost 5% of their income on average, while another 1m have lost more than 10 per cent according to think tank the Resolution Foundation.
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This week the Manchester Evening News spoke to claimants outside Hulme Job Centre to see how the cut would affect them.
Matthew Norman, 29, told how the loss of around £80 a month will make a big difference to what he can afford
"When that gets dropped I’ll have to cut back on my eating habits," he said. "I won’t be able to eat as much."
Food and drink
CO2 and HGV driver shortages and an increase in transportation costs mean food and drink prices are rising in the UK.
The Office for National Statistics said the price of food and drink bought in shops and supermarkets rose by 1.1% on the month in August – the highest rate of growth since 2008.
Last month supermarket chain Morrisons warned the staffing crisis in the haulage industry would likely mean customers forking out more at the tills.
The firm said: "We expect some industry-wide retail price inflation during the second half [of the year], driven by sustained recent commodity price increases and freight inflation, and the current shortage of heavy goods vehicle drivers."
And the cost of eating and drinking out could also increase, as labour shortages in the hospitality and haulage industries drive up wages and transport costs, while the CO2 shortage could also affect the price of a pint.
Last month Clive Watson, founder and executive chairman of City Pub Group, said: "We are seeing inflation of 4% and more for most things so we will have increase the prices in our pubs, just as everyone else will."
Energy bills
Analysts are predicting energy bills could rise by 30% next year amid a global gas shortage.
Research agency Cornwall Insight has predicted further volatile gas prices and the potential collapse of even more suppliers could push the energy price cap to about £1,660 in the summer.
That's almost a third higher than the record £1,277 price cap set for winter 2021-22.
Energy regulator Ofgem reviews the price cap every six months, and changes it based on the cost suppliers pay for their energy, cost of policies and operating costs, among other things.
In a statement to the BBC, Ofgem acknowledged it was a 'worrying time for many people'.
The regulator added: "The energy price cap covers around 15 million households and will ensure that consumers don’t pay more than is absolutely necessary this winter.
"However, if global gas prices remain high, then when we update the price cap, unfortunately the level would increase.
"Any customer worried about paying their energy bill should contact their supplier to access the range of support available."
Petrol
Petrol prices could reach all-time highs before Christmas, the RAC has warned.
The drivers’ organisation said the average price of a full tank was already about £12 higher in September than a year earlier.
But the RAC says it's not down to the petrol shortages which are still rumbling on in some parts of the country, but by soaring oil prices caused by global demand outstripping supply.
Speaking on Wednesday, the RAC's fuel spokesperson, Simon Williams, said the price rise 'looks likely to spell further misery for drivers at the pumps as we head towards Christmas'.
He added: "If this were to happen we could see the average price of unleaded hit a new record of around 143p per litre.
"Diesel would shoot up to 145p, which is only 3p off the record high of 147.93 in April 2021."
Tax hikes
Council tax bills may need to increase by 5% a year to cover the cost of reforming social care - among other services.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said that under current government spending plans, the household bill will need to increase by at least 3.6% a year.
But researchers said this is a minimum requirement and more may be needed to meet government promises, potentially meaning bills could rise by 5% every year until 2024/25.
Meanwhile a National Insurance rise of 1.25% is looming for millions of workers in April to fund a £12bn annual investment in health and social care.
And Chancellor Rishi Sunak has refused to rule out even more tax rises.
He told Tory activists at this week's Conservative Party conference that he would only consider cutting taxes once the public finances are on a 'sustainable footing' following the coronavirus crisis.
Wages
As the Manchester Evening News reported last week, more than 111,000 jobs are currently being advertised in our region.
But despite many industries facing acute labour shortages experts are split on whether that will translate into widespread wage increases.
Some economists think staffing pressures will spread across the economy and inevitably lead to pay rises.
But others say public sector pay deals below or around the rate of inflation will hold down the economy-wide average, while labour shortages will be eased when up to 2m people come off furlough and people who left the labour market during the pandemic start job-hunting again.
Pawel Adrjan, economist at job search site Indeed, told the Financial Times that while some advertised pay rates for certain roles in construction, transport, manufacturing and hospitality rose sharply between February and July, he was 'sceptical about wage inflation becoming very widespread'.
