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This research is based on the conviction that poverty and social exclusion are closely related. The current context of crisis resulting from the global pandemic caused by Covid-19, neoliberal policies and the lack of employment are generating large pockets of social exclusion, which has led to a debate on the need to implement more solid social protection measures and to reinforce existing ones. This study analyzes in a comparative manner the effectiveness of the Minimum Insertion Income (RMI) in Spain and the Social Insertion Income (RSI) in Portugal in the face of the phenomenon of poverty. The study opted for a qualitative methodology, choosing discourse analysis to analyze the empirical material obtained through the 26 semi-structured interviews and the 3 focus groups conducted. Priority was given to the information in which the subjects described their contexts, actions, values and representations. In general terms, it can be stated that users have a negative conception of both social policies, as a result of their dissatisfaction with three major common areas of conflict, the most frequently mentioned problems being: delays in the granting of benefits; the low amount offered; and the limitation of insertion mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]