Financial literacy contributes to the economic well-being of every country. Specifically, the financial literacy level of low-income households is crucial in the process of developing and building economic potential. Moreover, the knowledge, attitude, and behavior of families are essential to the financial sustainability and money-wise behavior of low-income households. Thus, financial literacy and financial well-being are vital for low-income households to survive in highly competitive marketplaces and sustain their socioeconomic status. This study intends to examine the impact of financial literacy on the socioeconomic status of low-income households. A self-administered survey questionnaire was employed, and the sample consists of 282 randomly selected respondents from low-income households in Malaysia. The data were analyzed using the Structural Equation Modelling procedure in IBM-SPSS-AMOS 26.0 to examine the causal effect. The results showed that financial literacy (consisting of financial knowledge, financial behavior, and financial attitudes) has a positive and significant impact on the socioeconomic status of low-income households. Moreover, financial well-being also mediated the effect of financial literacy on socioeconomic status. The research results provide new ideas and perspectives for improving money-wise mechanisms and the socioeconomic sustainability of low-income households.

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Financial literacy (FL) helps individuals make more assertive and efficient financial decisions. However, there is limited knowledge regarding the dimensions of FL as pertaining to low-income or Bottom 40% (B40) households in Malaysia. Therefore, the present study examined the reliability and validity of the B40 financial literacy measurement scale. A self-administered survey questionnaire was employed. The sample consisted of 100 respondents randomly selected from B40 households in Johor, Malaysia. The analysis was carried out through Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) via IBM-SPSS version 22.0 software. To measure the FL constructs, the study initially developed 59 items; however, six items were deleted as the factor loading was below the 0.50 cut-off point, while 53 items were retained as their factor loading was more than 0.50. Because the study validates the dimension that leads to improved FL, the findings are particularly beneficial to Malaysian B40 households who have been identified as the most vulnerable group; the findings will help action to be taken to improve the FL levels of B40 households.