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This paper examines the life course of older people living on low incomes in Sweden and Belgium through a comparative social policy perspective. The research focuses on current experiences of living on a low income, as well as on the events and pathways that lead to a low income. A qualitative secondary analysis of 49 life stories identifies five pathways leading to a low income, revealing a complex relationship between a person’s life course and experience of economic hardship. Strong interactions among various life events indicate the need for the development of social intervention to provide coordinated individual support to people with multiple disadvantages throughout the life course and in different welfare contexts. The findings also suggest a need for additional research on the social processes behind low income in old age in different welfare states.