For release: 10:00 a.m. (EDT), Tuesday, September 9, 2014 USDL-14-1671 

Technical Information: (202) 691-6900 • CEXInfo@bls.gov • www.bls.gov/cex 

Media Contact: (202) 691-5902 • PressOffice@bls.gov 

CONSUMER EXPENDITURES – 2013 

Average expenditures per consumer unit1 in 2013 were $51,100, little changed from 2012 levels, the 

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. In 2013 spending decreased 0.7 percent during the same 

period that the Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) increased 1.5 percent. In 2012 spending had increased 3.5 

percent, outpacing the increase in prices. In 2013 average income per consumer unit edged down from 

2012. 

 

Most of the major components of household spending decreased in 2013, as shown in table A. The 

largest declines occurred in the all other expenditures (-8.2 percent) and apparel and services (-7.6 

percent) components. The all other expenditures category includes alcoholic beverages, education, 

miscellaneous, personal care products, reading, and tobacco products, all of which showed decreases. 

The only major components of household spending to increase were healthcare (2.1 percent), housing 

(1.5 percent), and transportation (0.1 percent). Overall food expenditures did not change in 2013, 

however food at home increased 1.4 percent while food away from home decreased 2.0 percent. Other 

highlights include a 4.7-percent decrease in entertainment spending and a 4.1-percent decrease in cash 

contributions. 

Changes to Consumer Expenditures (CE) Tax Data 

The CE introduced new estimates of state and federal tax liabilities using the TaxSim calculator 

produced by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER). Beginning with the second quarter 

of 2013, the state and federal tax amounts used in the tables are estimates based on the expenditures 

and income and family characteristics. The CE gratefully acknowledges the support of NBER. These 

estimates improve the quality of the tax liabilities data along with estimates of after-tax income data. 

The tax data collected directly from consumer units during the Interview survey will be available in 

the 2014 public use microdata, after which they will no longer be collected. A report analyzing the 

impact of the change is forthcoming. 
- 2 - 

Table A. Average annual expenditures and characteristics of all consumer units and percent 

changes, 2011-2013 

 Percent change 

Item 2011 2012 2013 2011-2012 2012-2013

Average annual expenditures: 

Total................................................. $49,705 $51,442 $51,100 3.5 -0.7

 Food............................................... 6,458 6,599 6,602 2.2 0.0

 At home......................................... 3,838 3,921 3,977 2.2 1.4

 Away from home............................. 2,620 2,678 2,625 2.2 -2.0

 Housing........................................... 16,803 16,887 17,148 0.5 1.5

 Apparel and services......................... 1,740 1,736 1,604 -0.2 -7.6

 Transportation.................................. 8,293 8,998 9,004 8.5 0.1

 Healthcare....................................... 3,313 3,556 3,631 7.3 2.1

 Entertainment................................... 2,572 2,605 2,482 1.3 -4.7

 Cash contributions............................ 1,721 1,913 1,834 11.2 -4.1

 Personal insurance and pensions........ 5,424 5,591 5,528 3.1 -1.1

 All other expenditures........................ 3,382 3,557 3,267 5.2 -8.2

Consumer unit characteristics: 

Number of consumer units (000’s)......... 122,287 124,416 125,670 

Average age of reference person.......... 49.7 50.0 50.1 

Average number in consumer unit:........ 

 People............................................ 2.5 2.5 2.5 

 Earners........................................... 1.3 1.3 1.3 

 Vehicles.......................................... 1.9 1.9 1.9 

Percent homeowner............................ 64.9 64.3 63.7 

Income before taxes........................... $63,685 $65,596 $63,784 3.0 -2.8

 

Spending patterns, 2012-2013 

Table B and chart 1 highlight spending patterns of selected components. Spending changes included: 

 Health insurance spending routinely accounts for 61 percent of overall health care expenditures. 

The 21.8-percent increase in health insurance expenditures since 2010 was the driving force 

behind the increased expenditures on overall healthcare, an 8.2 percent increase from 2012 to 

2013. The percent reporting health insurance expenditures changed from 64 percent in 2010 to 

65 percent in 2013. 

 Gasoline expenditures decreased by 5.1 percent from 2012 to 2013. In the CPI-U, the average 

price per gallon for all types of gasoline for 2013 dropped 3.0 percent from 2012.

 Overall expenditures on transportation were essentially unchanged due to lower gasoline 

spending being offset by a 1.9-percent increase in vehicle expenditures from 2012 to 2013.

 Apparel spending continued to decline. The drop from 2012 to 2013 was widespread across most 

of the subcategories, including an 8.3-percent drop for men and boys clothing and a 7.6-percent 

drop for women and girls clothing. 

 The decrease in cash contributions from 2012 to 2013 can largely be attributed to a 9.1-percent 

decrease in contributions to charities and a 4.8-percent drop in contributions to church and 

religious organizations. 
- 3 - 

Table B. Average annual consumer expenditures for selected components, 2011-2013 

 

Item 2011 2012 2013 

Health insurance................................................................ $1,922 $2,061 $2,229

Gasoline......................................................................... 2,451 2,549 2,418 

Vehicle purchases (net outlay)2............................................ 2,669 3,210 3,271 

Apparel and services......................................................... 1,740 1,736 1,604 

Cash contributions to church, religious organizations............... 649 734 699 

Chart 1. Average annual consumer expenditures for selected components, 2011-2013 

Spending by income quintile 

Table C and chart 2 show the percent change for expenditures by income quintile. Overall spending 

decreased in all quintiles except for the lowest quintile, which increased by $239. Spending on 

healthcare increased in all categories with the exception of the highest income quintile in 2013. In 

contrast, all quintiles decreased spending on cash contributions. Expenditures on food increased for the 

lowest two quintiles, while spending decreased for the upper quintiles.

$0

$500

$1,000

$1,500

$2,000

$2,500

$3,000

$3,500

Health insurance Gasoline Vehicle purchases

(net outlay)

Apparel and services Cash contributions to

church, religious

organizations

2011 2012 2013
- 4 - 

Table C. Dollar change and percent change in average annual expenditures on major components 

by income quintile, 2012-2013 

Chart 2. Percent change in average annual expenditures by income quintile, 2012-2013

Item

Dollar Percent Dollar Percent Dollar Percent Dollar Percent Dollar Percent

Average annual expenditure 

change:

Total....................................... $239 1.1 -$73 -0.2 -$509 -1.2 -$1,138 -1.9 -$131 -0.1

 Food...................................... 153 4.4 257 5.7 -70 -1.2 -176 -2.2 -150 -1.3

 At home................................. 98 4.1 230 7.7 -27 -0.7 -111 -2.4 90 1.5

 Away from home..................... 56 5.2 28 1.8 -42 -1.9 -66 -2.0 -241 -4.5

 Housing.................................. 127 1.4 -264 -2.2 53 0.4 221 1.2 1,196 4.0

 Apparel and services................. -35 -4.6 -92 -8.1 19 1.4 -254 -12.0 -296 -8.8

 Transportation.......................... -120 -3.5 394 7.2 -110 -1.3 -641 -5.6 516 3.2

 Healthcare............................... 113 6.7 63 2.3 12 0.4 217 5.2 -30 -0.5

 Entertainment........................... 13 1.3 -187 -11.7 -59 -2.9 -64 -2.2 -311 -5.7

 Cash contributions.................... -121 -17.3 -55 -5.0 -6 -0.5 -94 -4.3 -109 -2.6

 Personal insurance and pensions. -26 -5.3 41 2.5 -127 -3.5 -84 -1.3 -91 -0.6

 All other expenditures................. 137 7.8 -231 -10.8 -223 -8.6 -264 -7.2 -853 -11.2

Lowest Second Third Fourth Highest
- 5 - 

Tables and data 

Consumer Expenditure Survey data include the expenditures and income of consumers, as well as the 

demographic characteristics of those consumers. Tables with more expenditure detail are available at 

www.bls.gov/cex. Published tables provide 2013 CE data by standard classifications that include income 

quintile, income class, age of reference person, size of consumer unit, number of earners, composition of 

consumer unit, region of residence, housing tenure, type of area (urban-rural), race, Hispanic origin, 

occupation, and highest education level of any member. These annual tables include means, shares, and 

standard errors. Other tables available on the website include expenditures by age, region, size, or 

gender cross-tabulated by income before taxes and other demographic variables. Historical tables back 

to 1984 and tabulations for selected metropolitan areas are also available. 

A forthcoming Annual Report will include a brief discussion of expenditure changes in 2013 and tables 

with data classified by the standard characteristics that are included on the website. Future articles in the 

BLS Beyond the Numbers web report series will highlight recent trends in prices and spending in the 

U.S. economy, and will feature 2013 CE data. Recent CE-specific Beyond the Numbers articles provide 

analyses of topical economic issues and long term spending trends, as well as comparisons of CE data to 

other data series (see www.bls.gov/cex/csxwebarticles.htm). 

Other survey information available on the Internet includes answers to frequently asked questions, a 

glossary, order forms for survey products, and analytical articles that use CE data. Also available are the 

Diary Survey questionnaire form and a modified version of the computer assisted personal Interview 

(CAPI) instrument used to collect the Interview Survey data. 

 

The 2013 CE public-use microdata, including Interview Survey data, Diary Survey data, and paradata 

(information about the survey process), are available on the CE website for free electronic download. 

The Interview files contain expenditure data in two different formats: MTBI files that present monthly 

values in an item-coding framework based on the CPI pricing scheme, and EXPN files that organize 

expenditures by the section of the Interview questionnaire in which they are collected. Expenditure 

values on EXPN files cover different time periods depending on the specific questions asked, and the 

files also contain relevant non-expenditure information not found on the MTBI files. The public-use 

microdata for 2013 also includes the new estimates of state and federal tax liabilities. The CE 

introduced these estimates to improve the quality of the surveyed tax liabilities, which suffered from low 

response rates. The surveyed tax data will be available for 2013, after which it will no longer be 

collected. Past releases of CE public-use microdata that were previously only available on USB Flash 

Drives for purchase will become available on the CE website for free download. The 2002 to 2012 

releases are already available online. Prior releases will be posted incrementally online in reverse 

chronological order through the 1996 release. For releases prior to 1996 and those not yet available 

online, users can continue to purchase USB Flash Drives using the public-use microdata order form (see 

www.bls.gov/cex/pumdhome.htm). Future releases of public-use microdata will be available online for 

free download. 

 

For further information, contact the Division of Consumer Expenditure Survey, Office of Prices and 

Living Conditions, Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2 Massachusetts Ave., N.E., Washington, DC 20212-

0001 or call (202) 691-6900; E-mail: cexinfo@bls.gov. Information in this release is available to 

sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; Federal Relay Service: 1 (800) 

877-8339. 

1

 Consumer units include families, single persons living alone or sharing a household with others but who are financially 

independent, or two or more persons living together who share expenses. 

 2 Net outlays subtract the value of any vehicle trade-ins, in order to capture the out-of-pocket expenditures on vehicles.