This article examines the extent to which the relationship between leaving home and entry into poverty among young people is causal: that is, how far poverty entry is the result of leaving home, rather than arising from heterogeneity or selection. Using propensity score matching, we estimate the effect of home-leaving on entry into poverty and deprivation, with data from the European Community Household Panel. We find that leaving home does have a causal effect on poverty entry, particularly in Scandinavian countries; cross-national differences are partly, but not fully, explained by differences in destinations on leaving home.