Consumer Expenditure

Survey, 2004-2005

U.S. Department of Labor

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

October 2008

Report 1008
Consumer Expenditure Survey,

2004–2005

U.S. Department of Labor 

Elaine L. Chao, Secretary

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Keith Hall, Commissioner

October 2008

Report 1008
iii

This report presents detailed information from the 

Consumer Expenditure Survey for 2004 and 2005, 

using combined—or integrated—data from the Diary 

and Interview components of the survey. Integrated data 

provide a complete accounting of consumer expenditures and 

income that neither component alone was designed to do.

The Consumer Expenditure Survey program provides a 

continuous and comprehensive flow of data on the buying 

habits of American consumers for use in a variety of economic 

research and in support of periodic revisions of the Consumer 

Price Index (CPI). The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) 

makes data available in news releases, reports, bulletins, and 

articles in the Monthly Labor Review; on CD-ROMs; and on 

the Internet. Appendix D of this report presents a list of BLS 

publications and other resources, along with information on 

how to obtain them.

This report was prepared in the Office of Prices and Living 

Conditions, Division of Consumer Expenditure Surveys, 

under the general direction of Steve Henderson, Chief of the 

Branch of Information and Analysis. Natalie Blum, Meaghan 

Duetsch, William Passero, John Rogers, Mark Vendemia, 

Preface

and Nick Zwileneff made major contributions in preparing 

tables and text. Processing of data was completed under the 

direction of Jay Ryan, Chief of the Branch of Production 

and Control, and Lavern James, Chief of the Division of 

Consumer Expenditure Information Systems. Gurinder Saini 

assisted in data processing. David Swanson, Chief of the 

Statistical Methods Division, provided statistical assistance 

on data reliability. Sylvia Johnson-Herring and Sharon 

Krieger contributed to the description of survey methods in 

appendix B. The U.S. Census Bureau, under contract with 

BLS, carried out data collection for both the Interview and 

Diary components of the survey. Monica Gabor, of the 

Office of Publications and Special Studies, edited this report; 

and Phyllis Lott, of the same office, provided typesetting and 

layout services.

Sensory-impaired individuals may obtain information in 

this publication upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; 

TDD message referral phone: 1 (800) 877-8339. Material in 

this publication is in the public domain and, with appropriate 

credit, may be reproduced without permission. For further 

information, call (202) 691-6900.
v

Contents 

 Page 

Introduction....................................................................................................................................................................... 1 

Summary of data tables..................................................................................................................................................... 3 

Consumer Expenditure Survey compared with Personal Consumption Expenditures...................................................... 6 

Consumer Expenditure Survey comparisons with National Health Expenditures and the Current Population Survey.... 12 

Changes to the 2004 and 2005 Consumer Expenditure Survey published tables and selected highlights ........................ 15 

Interpreting the data .......................................................................................................................................................... 17 

Text tables: 

 1. Average annual expenditures of all consumer units and percent changes, CE 2003–2005.............................. 4 

 2. Component shares of total annual expenditures, CE 2002–2005 ..................................................................... 5 

 3. Comparison of 2002–2005 Aggregate Consumer Expenditures vs. Personal Consumption Expenditures 

 Based on 2002 PCE Benchmark ($ millions)................................................................................................. 8 

 4. Summary Comparison of Aggregate Consumer Expenditures vs. Personal Consumption Expenditures 

 for 2002–2005 ($ millions) ............................................................................................................................ 11 

 5. Comparison of Aggregate Expenditures for Health Care: Consumer Expenditure Survey 

 and National Health Expenditures program, 2002–2005 ............................................................................... 13 

 6. Comparison of Money Income Before Taxes: Consumer Expenditure Survey and 

 Current Population Survey (CPS), 2003–2005 .............................................................................................. 14 

Appendixes: 

 A. Glossary .................................................................................................................................................................. 18 

 B. Integration and Survey Methods ............................................................................................................................. 24 

 Table B-1. Analysis of response in the CE Interview Survey, 2004 and 2005....................................................... 27 

 Table B-2. Analysis of response in the Diary Survey, 2004 and 2005................................................................... 27 

 C. Survey source of data for integrated tables ............................................................................................................. 30 

 D. Consumer Expenditure Survey resources................................................................................................................ 38 

 Monthly Labor Review articles............................................................................................................................... 38 

 Bulletins and Reports .............................................................................................................................................. 39 

 Other Resources ...................................................................................................................................................... 39 

 Microdata files on CD-ROM.............................................................................................................................. 39 

 Online tables via the Internet.............................................................................................................................. 39 

Reference tables: 

 Selected characteristics and annual expenditures, 2005, by: 

 1. Quintiles of income before taxes (PDF 20K) 

 2. Income before taxes (PDF 24K) 

 3. Higher income before taxes (PDF 22K) 

 4. Age of reference person (PDF 23K) 

 5. Size of consumer unit (PDF 21K) 

 6. Composition of consumer unit (PDF 24K) 

 7. Number of earners (PDF 21K) 

 8. Housing tenure and type of area (PDF 22K) 

 9. Race of reference person (PDF 19K) 

 10. Hispanic or Latino origin of reference person (PDF 18K) 

 11. Region (PDF 19K) 

 12. Occupation (PDF 24K) 

 13. Education (PDF 24K) 
vi

Contents—Continued 

 Selected characteristics and annual expenditures, 2004, by: 

 14. Quintiles of income before taxes (PDF 20K) 

 15. Income before taxes (PDF 24K) 

 16. Higher income before taxes (PDF 22K) 

 17. Age of reference (PDF 23K) 

 18. Size of consumer unit (PDF 21K) 

 19. Composition of consumer unit (PDF 24K) 

 20. Number of earners (PDF 21K) 

 21. Housing tenure and type of area (PDF 22K) 

 22. Race of reference person (PDF 21K) 

 23. Hispanic or Latino origin of reference person (PDF 18K) 

 24. Region (PDF 19K) 

 25. Occupation (PDF 25K) 

 26. Education (PDF 25K) 

 Selected Metropolitan Statistical Areas, 2004-2005 

 27. Northeast (PDF 11K) 

 28. Midwest (PDF 11K) 

 29. South (PDF 10K) 

 30. West (PDF 12K) 

 Selected characteristics and annual expenditures, 2004-2005, cross-tabulated by: 

 Age of reference person and income before taxes: 

 31. Age under 25 (PDF 24K) 

 32. Age 25–34 (PDF 25K) 

 33. Age 35–44 (PDF 26K) 

 34. Age 45–54 (PDF 25K) 

 35. Age 55–64 (PDF 25K) 

 36. Age 65 and older (PDF 25K) 

 Region of residence and income before taxes: 

 37. Northeast (PDF 24K) 

 38. Midwest (PDF 26K) 

 39. South (PDF 24K) 

 40. West (PDF 25K) 

 Size of consumer unit and income before taxes: 

 41. One person (PDF 24K) 

 42. Two or more persons (PDF 24K) 

 43. Two persons (PDF 24K) 

 44. Three persons (PDF 26K) 

 45. Four persons (PDF 25K) 

 46. Five or more persons (PDF 25K) 

 Selected characteristics and annual expenditures of single consumer units, 2004-2005, cross-tabulated by: 

 Sex and age of reference person: 

 47. Single men (PDF 22K) 

 48. Single women (PDF 22K) 

 Sex and income before taxes: 

 49. Single men (PDF 25K) 

 50. Single women (PDF 23K) 
vii

Contents—Continued 

 Shares of average annual expenditures, 2005, by: 

 51. Quintiles of income before taxes (PDF 17K) 

 52. Income before taxes (PDF 21K) 

 53. Higher income before taxes (PDF 18K) 

 54. Age of reference person (PDF 18K) 

 55. Size of consumer unit (PDF 17K) 

 56. Composition of consumer unit (PDF 19K) 

 57. Number of earners (PDF 18K) 

 58. Housing tenure and type of area (PDF 18K) 

 59. Race of reference person (PDF 15K) 

 60. Hispanic or Latino origin of reference person (PDF 17K) 

 61. Region (PDF 15K) 

 62. Occupation (PDF 20K) 

 63. Education (PDF 19K) 

 Aggregate expenditure shares, 2005, by: 

 64. Quintiles of income before taxes (PDF 19K) 

 65. Income before taxes (PDF 22K) 

 66. Higher income before taxes (PDF 20K) 

 67. Age of reference person (PDF 20K) 

 68. Size of consumer unit (PDF 19K) 

 69. Composition of consumer unit (PDF 22K) 

 70. Number of earners (PDF 20K) 

 71. Housing tenure and type of area (PDF 22K) 

 72. Race of reference person (PDF 19K) 

 73. Hispanic or Latino origin of reference person (PDF 17K) 

 74. Region (PDF 16K) 

 75. Occupation (PDF 22K) 

 76. Education (PDF 22K) 


Introduction

How much do Americans spend in a year and how 

do they allocate those expenditures? In 2005, on 

average, consumer units spent $46,409, an increase 

of 6.9 percent from 2004. This followed a 6.3-percent 

increase in spending in 2004 and a 0.3-percent increase in 

2003. (See text table 1). These spending increases occurred

during a period of moderate inflation and strong economic 

growth. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 2.7 percent in 

2004 and 3.4 percent in 2005.2 The civilian unemployment 

rate declined slightly from 5.5 percent in 2004 to 5.1 percent

in 2005.3 Gross domestic product (GDP), measured in 

current dollars, rose 6.9 percent in 2004 and 6.3 percent in 

2005. Disposable personal income, in current dollars, rose 

6.4 percent in 2004 and 4.1 percent in 2005.

The major components of spending—food, housing, 

apparel and services, transportation, health care, entertainment, 

and personal insurance and pensions—account for about 90 

percent of consumer units’ average annual expenditures. Per 

the Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE), in 2005, changes in 

expenditures varied among the major components, although 

all major components showed an increase in expenditures. 

These ranged from a 9.0-percent increase for housing, the 

largest increase, to a 2.6-percent increase for food, the 

smallest increase. The other major components of spending 

all showed increases in expenditures.

Expenditures on food increased 8.3 percent in 2004, and 

2.6 percent in 2005. However, because of increased spending 

in other areas, the share of average annual expenditures spent 

on food fell from 13.3 percent in 2004 to 12.8 percent i

2005. (See text table 2.) Spending on food at home increased 

by 7.0 percent in 2004, but then decreased by 1.5 percent in

2005. In 2004, expenditures on cereals and bakery products 

increased 4.3 percent, those on meats, poultry, fish, and 

eggs increased 6.7 percent, and diary products experienced 

the largest increase, 13.1 percent, of all the food at hom

subcomponents. The decrease in 2005 was largely due to a 

3.5-percent decrease in expenditures on cereals and bakery 

products and a 13.2-percent decrease in expenditures on

meats, poultry, fish, and eggs. The share of expenditures 

spent on food at home also declined from 7.7 percent in 2004 

to 7.1 percent in 2005. Expenditures on food away from

home increased by 10.1 percent in 2004, and by 8.2 percen

in 2005. The share of expenditures spent on food away from 

rose slightly from 5.6 percent in 2004 to 5.7 percent in 2005. 

Housing expenditures in 2005 represented almost 33 

percent of all expenditures, a slight increase over the 32 

percent they represented in 2004. Expenditures on housing 

increased by 9.0 percent in 2005, after an increase of 3.6 

percent in 2004. Expenditures in the housing subcomponents 

of shelter; utilities, fuels, and public services; household 

operations; housekeeping supplies; and household furnishings 

and equipment all increased in 2004 and 2005. Shelter 

expenditures increased by 10.1 percent in 2005, followin

a 1.4-percent increase in 2004. Shelter includes items such

as mortgage interest, property taxes, maintenance and repair, 

insurance expenses, rent, and vacation homes. Spending 

on shelter accounted for almost 60 cents of every housing 

dollar. Expenditures on utilities, fuels, and public services 

increased 8.7 percent in 2005, about twice the increase of 4.

percent a year earlier. The 2005 increase was driven by an 

11.7-percent increase in expenditures on natural gas and a

8.5-percent increase in expenditures on electricity. Spending 

on utilities, fuels, and public services accounted for about 2

cents of every housing dollar. Household furnishings and 

equipment expenditures rose 7.4 percent in 2005, after rising 

10.0 percent in 2004. This subcomponent includes such

items as linens and draperies, furniture, floor coverings, small 

and major appliances, and other miscellaneous equipment. 

Expenditures on household operations increased 6.4 percent 

in 2005, close to the 6.5-percent increase in 2004. 

Spending on apparel and services increased 3.9 percent 

in 2005, after increasing 10.7 percent in 2004. The

subcomponent with the largest increase in 2005 was other 

apparel products and services, which rose 9.9 percent over 

2004. This subcomponent includes items such as jewelry, 

watches, shoe repair, alterations, and dry cleaning. The 

subcomponent with the second largest expenditure increase 

was men’s and boys’ apparel, which rose 8.3 percent in 2005. 

Spending on apparel for children under 2 and on women’s and 

girls’ apparel both rose, by 4.8 and 2.0 percent respectively. 

Spending on footwear declined by 2.6 percent in 2005.

Transportation expenditures rose 7.0 percent in 2005, 

following just a 0.3-percent increase in 2004. In both 2004 

and 2005, expenditures on gasoline and motor oil rose 

significantly, 19.9 percent and 26.0 percent respectively. 

This followed an increase of 7.9 percent in 2003, whereas in 

1A consumer unit comprises either: (1) all members of a particula

household who are related by blood, marriage, adoption, or other legal 

arrangements; (2) a person living alone or sharing a household with others 

or living as a roomer in a private home or lodging house or in permanent 

living quarters in a hotel or motel, but who is financially independent; or 

(3) two or more persons living together who use their income to make joint 

expenditure decisions. Financial independence is determined by the three 

major expense categories: Housing, food, and other living expenses. To be 

considered financially independent, at least two of the three major expense 

categories have to be provided entirely, or in part, by the respondent. 2U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, www.bls.gov/cpi/home, 2007

3U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, www.bls.gov/cps/home, 2007

4Bureau of Economic Analysis, www.bea.gov/national/index.htm#gdp, 

and www.bea.gov/national/nipaweb/TableView.asp#Mid, 2007
2002, gasoline and motor oil spending declined 3.4 percent. 

In 2004, gasoline and motor oil spending was 20.5 percent of 

total transportation spending, whereas in 2005 it rose to 24 

percent of total transportation spending. Public transportation 

spending, which includes such items as airplane and train 

fares, as well as intra-city transit fares, rose by 14.5 percent

from 2003 to 2004, but only 1.6 percent in 2005. Spending

on vehicle purchases declined by 9.0 percent in 2004, but 

then rose 4.3 percent in 2005. However, the share of total 

annual expenditures spent on vehicle purchases has declined 

from a share of 9.1 percent in 2003, to 7.8 percent in 2004,

and 7.6 percent in 2005. 

Health care expenditures, out-of-pocket only, rose 3.5 

percent in 2005 and 6.5 percent in 2004, after rising 2.8-

percent in 2003. The drugs subcomponent of health care 

rose 8.5 percent in 2005, following a 2.8 percent increase in 

2004. This subcomponent includes non-prescription drugs, 

non-prescription vitamins, and prescription drugs. The other 

subcomponents of health care showed smaller increases in 

2005. Health insurance expenditures rose 2.2 percent in 2005, 

following a 6.4-percent increase in 2004. These expenditures 

include only what the consumer unit paid for health insurance, 

not any amount paid for by a third party, such as an employer. 

Health insurance expenditures represent just over half of 

total health care spending, a proportion that has been about 

the same since 2003. Spending on medical services, which 

includes such items as dental and eye-care services, lab tests 

and x-rays, and physician’s services, rose 4.4 percent in 2005, 

after a rise of 9.6 percent in 2004. Expenditures on medical 

supplies declined 7.9 percent in 2005, after rising 6.5 percent 

in 2004. (Medical supplies represented about 4 percent of 

total health care spending in both 2004 and 2005.) 

Entertainment expenditures rose by the same amount, 7.7 

percent, in both 2004 and 2005. This followed a 0.9-percent 

decline in spending on entertainment in 2003. Expenditures 

on audio and visual equipment and services, which includes 

televisions, rose 12.7 percent in 2005, 7.9 percent in 2004,

and 5.5 percent in 2003. This subcomponent represents 

about 35 to 37 percent of total entertainment spending. Fees 

and admissions, the second largest subcomponent, showed 

expenditure increases of 11.4 percent in 2005 and 6.9 percen

in 2004. The subcomponent of other supplies, equipment, and 

services includes such items as recreational vehicles, boats, 

campers, and sports and exercise equipment. Because some 

of these items tend to be large and are purchased infrequently, 

this category tends to show expenditure fluctuations across 

years. Thus, spending declined 5.7 percent in 2005, after 

rising 14.2 percent in 2004; it declined 4.0 percent in 2003.

This subcomponent represents a little over a fifth of total 

entertainment expenditures. 

Spending on personal insurance and pensions rose 7.9 

percent in 2005, after rising 18.9 percent in 2004. Both

increases were largely due to expenditure increases in pensions 

and Social Security, which rose 8.8 percent in 2005 and 21.2

percent in 2004. However, in 2004, the CE implemented 

multiple imputation of income, in which missing income 

data were replaced with estimated values. Consequently, 

previously missing Social Security deductions, from wages 

and salaries, can now be calculated, based on the estimated 

values that income imputation provides. A full explanation of 

income imputation can be found in the Changes to the 2004 

and 2005 Consumer Expenditure Survey Published Tables 

and Selected Highlights section. This more robust data in the 

personal insurance and pensions category caused the large 

expenditure increase in 2004. In both 2005 and 2004, the rise 

in expenditures in pensions and Social Security was slightly 

offset by declines of 2.3 and 1.8 percent, respectively, in

spending on life and other personal insurance. This continued 

a trend from 2002, when spending on life and other personal 

insurance declined 1.0 percent, and 2003, when spending

declined 2.2 percent. 

Expenditure shares, which show the percent distribution 

among components, do not fluctuate much over time and are 

more useful for identifying long-term spending trends than is 

examining percent changes in expenditures from one year to 

the next. Of the major components of spending, the shares 

for housing, apparel and services, health care, and personal 

insurance and pensions changed only slightly in 2005 from 

those in 2004. For example, the share for housing was 32.7 

percent in 2005 and 32.1 percent in 2004, while the share for

health care was 5.7 percent in 2005 and 5.9 percent in 2004. 

Shares for transportation and entertainment were the same in 

both years, 18.0 and 5.1 percent, respectively  Only the shar

for food, 12.8 percent, in 2005, seemed to diverge more than

the long-term trend; shares for the years 2002–2004 were 

13.2, 13.1, and 13.3 percent, respective
Text table  shows consumer unit

 (CU) characteristics; 

income; and expenditures for 2003, 2004, and 2005, 

and percent changes over the periods 2003–2004 and 

2004–2005. Text table 2 shows expenditure shares for 2002 

through 2005. Data shown are integrated data from the Diary 

and Interview Surveys, unless otherwise noted. (See appendix B.) Integrated data from the current, ongoing survey have 

been published since 1984

Integrated data are presented in 75 reference tables that 

show average annual expenditures for 2004 and 2005 for 

the total population, tabulated by selected socioeconomic 

characteristics. Included in this report are 13 tables classifying

data by 13 standard characteristics for 2004 and 2005. Also

included are 4 tables for selected metropolitan areas in each 

of the 4 regions of the country; 16 tables that cross-tabulate

the data by income before taxes and: age of the reference 

person, region of residence, or size of the consumer unit; 4 

tables that show data for single persons cross-tabulated by 

sex and age or by sex and income; 13 tables showing shares

of total expenditures for 13 standard characteristics; and 1

tables showing aggregate expenditure shares for 13 standard

characteristics. Cross-tabulations and metropolitan area tables 

include data that are annual averages over the 2 years, 2004 

and 2005, to provide reliable estimates. Also, for the crossSummary of data tables

tabulations, some classes are combined to make estimates 

reliable. For example, the standard age classification includes 

data for age classes 65 to 74 years and 75 years and older; but 

for the cross-tabulations, these classes are combined into one 

class—ages 65 years and older. Appendix A provides a glossary 

of terms used in this report. Appendix B contains a detailed 

description of survey procedures, including methods used to 

integrate the data from the Diary and Interview components 

of the survey. Appendix C shows the survey source—Diary 

or Interview—for expenditure items. Appendix D provides 

information on Consumer Expenditure Survey resources.

Introduction of multiple imputation of income in 2004

In 2004, as part of a continuous effort to produce high quality 

data, the CE implemented multiple imputation of income 

data. Prior to 2004, the CE only published income data 

from complete income reporters. A noticeable change in the 

published tables is the elimination of the incomplete reporting 

of income column in the quintiles of income before taxes 

tables, and the elimination of the total complete reporting 

column in the income before taxes tables. All published 

tables now show the all consumer units column. See the 

“Changes to the 2004 and 2005 Consumer Expenditure 

Survey Published Tables and Selected Highlights” section for 

a full explanation of the introduction of multiple imputation 

of income. 

5The terms consumer unit and household are used interchangeably 

throughout the text for convenience.
Text table 1. Average annual expenditures of all consumer units and percent changes, Consumer Expenditure Survey, 2003-–2005

Percent change

Item 2003 2004 2005

2003–2004 2004–2005

Number of consumer units (in thousands)..................... 115,356 116,282 117,356

Income before taxes1 .................................................... $51,128 $54,453 $58,712

Income after taxes1 ....................................................... 48,596 52,287 56,304

Age of reference person................................................ 48.4 48.5 48.6

Number in consumer unit: .............................................

 Persons ....................................................................... 2.5 2.5 2.5

 Children under 18........................................................ .6 .6 .6

 Persons 65 and over ................................................... .3 .3 .3

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

 Vehicles ....................................................................... 1.9 1.9 2.0

Percent homeowner ...................................................... 67 68 67

Annual expenditures...................................................... $40,817 $43,395 $46,409 6.3 6.9

 Food ............................................................................ 5,340 5,781 5,931 8.3 2.6

 At home ..................................................................... 3,129 3,347 3,297 7.0 -1.5

 Cereals and bakery products................................... 442 461 445 4.3 -3.5

 Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs.................................. 825 880 764 6.7 -13.2

 Dairy products ......................................................... 328 371 378 13.1 1.9

 Fruits and vegetables .............................................. 535 561 552 4.9 1.6

 Other food at home.................................................. 999 1,075 1,158 7.6 7.7

 Away from home........................................................ 2,211 2,434 2,634 10.1 8.2

 Alcoholic beverages..................................................... 391 459 426 17.4 -7.2

 Housing ....................................................................... 13,432 13,918 15,167 3.6 9.0

 Shelter....................................................................... 7,887 7,998 8,805 1.4 10.1

 Utilities, fuels, and public services............................. 2,811 2,927 3,183 4.1 8.7

 Household operations................................................ 707 753 801 6.5 6.4

 Housekeeping supplies ............................................. 529 594 611 12.3 2.9

 House furnishings and equipment............................. 1,497 1,646 1,767 10.0 7.4

 Apparel and services ................................................... 1,640 1,816 1,886 10.7 3.9

 Transportation.............................................................. 7,781 7,801 8,344 .3 7.0

 Vehicle purchases (net outlay) .................................. 3,732 3,397 3,544 -9.0 4.3

 Gasoline and motor oil............................................... 1,333 1,598 2,013 19.9 26.0

 Other vehicle expenses............................................. 2,331 2,365 2,339 1.5 -1.1

 Public transportation.................................................. 385 441 448 14.5 1.6

 Health care .................................................................. 2,416 2,574 2,664 6.5 3.5

 Entertainment .............................................................. 2,060 2,218 2,388 7.7 7.7

 Personal care products and services .......................... 527 581 541 10.2 -6.9

 Reading ....................................................................... 127 130 126 2.4 -3.1

 Education..................................................................... 783 905 940 15.6 3.9

 Tobacco products and smoking supplies..................... 290 288 319 -.7 10.8

 Miscellaneous.............................................................. 606 690 808 13.9 17.1

 Cash contributions....................................................... 1,370 1,408 1,663 2.8 18.1

 Personal insurance and pensions ............................... 4,055 4,823 5,204 18.9 7.9

 Life and other personal insurance ............................. 397 390 381 -1.8 -2.3

 Pensions and Social Security.................................... 3,658 4,433 4,823 21.2 8.8

1 In 2003, income values were derived from complete income 

reporters only. In 2004, income imputation was introduced, and 

incomes were estimated for all consumer units. (See “Changes to 

the 2004 and 2005 Consumer Expenditure Survey published 

tables and selected highlights.” p.15.)
Text table 2. Component shares of total annual expenditures, Consumer Expenditure Survey, 2002–2005

Item 2002 2003 2004 2005

 

Total expenditures ................................................................ 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

 Food ................................................................................... 13.2 13.1 13.3 12.8

 At home ............................................................................ 7.6 7.7 7.7 7.1

 Away from home............................................................... 5.6 5.4 5.6 5.7

 Alcoholic beverages............................................................ .9 1.0 1.1 .9

 Housing .............................................................................. 32.7 32.9 32.1 32.7

 Apparel and services .......................................................... 4.3 4.0 4.2 4.1

 Transportation..................................................................... 19.1 19.1 18.0 18.0

 Vehicle purchases ............................................................ 9.0 9.1 7.8 7.6

 Gasoline and motor oil...................................................... 3.0 3.3 3.7 4.3

 Other vehicle expenses.................................................... 6.1 5.7 5.5 5.0

 Public transportation......................................................... 1.0 .9 1.0 1.0

 Health care ......................................................................... 5.8 5.9 5.9 5.7

 Entertainment ..................................................................... 5.1 5.0 5.1 5.1

 Personal care products and services ................................. 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.2

 Reading .............................................................................. .3 .3 .3 .3

 Education............................................................................ 1.8 1.9 2.1 2.0

 Tobacco products and smoking supplies............................ .8 .7 .7 .7

 Miscellaneous..................................................................... 1.9 1.5 1.6 1.7

 Cash contributions.............................................................. 3.1 3.4 3.2 3.6

 Personal insurance and pensions ...................................... 9.6 9.9 11.1 11.2

 Life and other personal insurance .................................... 1.0 1.0 .9 .8

 Pensions and Social Security........................................... 8.6 9.0 10.2 10.4
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Consumer 

Expenditure Survey (CE) routinely compares its expenditure estimates with outside sources to assess the 

integrity and reliability of CE data. The Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) component of the National Income 

and Product Accounts produced by the Bureau of Economic 

Analysis (BEA) is the principal independent source of comparable aggregate spending data. While the two sources obtain 

their estimates in dissimilar ways and serve distinct purposes, 

they both ultimately measure expenditures made by consumers, and thus serve as a valuable check on each other’s data at 

any given point in time. It is to be expected that differences 

in survey methodology, definitions, and scope would lead to 

different expenditure estimates. Indeed, CE values are generally less than the corresponding PCE estimates, often by a 

wide margin. If, however, the ratio of CE-to-PCE estimates 

is relatively stable, it reflects favorably on survey consistency 

over a period of time. Frequent data comparisons have been 

made between the CE and PCE since the early 1980s, when

the CE became an ongoing survey. Initially CE-to-PCE ratios were believed to be stable, but recent studies by BLS 

economists showed that ratios decreased from 1992 to 2002.

An article in a 2006 CE report6 determined the CE/PCE ratio 

of all comparable goods (among durables, nondurables, and 

services) was 0.88 in 1992 and 0.86 in 1997. By 2002, th

CE/PCE ratio had fallen to 0.83. This divergence could be 

attributable to any number of factors in either or both sources, 

and more research is needed to determine the causes. The 

purpose of this article is to look at the latest CE-to-PCE ratios 

using the most recent data available and determine if the trend 

is continuing. It appears that the downward trend is abating; 

the CE ratio for all comparable goods leveled off at 0.83 for 

all years from 2002 to 2005.

Survey Comparability

The CE and PCE have the same goal―to measure personal 

consumption expenditures―but accomplish this objective in 

very different ways. The CE is a household survey, while 

the PCE is derived from sources that focus on industries. 

The CE gathers data from consumer units that represent the 

civilian, non-institutional population of the United States, 

while the PCE covers all persons resident in the United 

States, as well as non-profit institutions. As such, there are 

Consumer Expenditure Survey compared

with Personal Consumption Expenditures

6Consumer Expenditure Survey, 2002–2003, Report 990. U.S. 

Department of Labor, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, March 2006.

widespread differences in definitions and scope, so it is to be 

expected that total estimates may differ. Some expenditure 

categories are defined differently by the CE and PCE. The CE 

collects out-of-pocket expenditures, such as for education or 

contributions to retirement plans, whereas the PCE estimates 

these expenditures using data from institutional sources, such 

as the operating expenses of private educational institutions 

or the administrative expenses of pension plan managers. 

Differences in scope between the CE and PCE include, for 

example, that the PCE captures expenditures made by third 

parties for the consumer unit, such as employer-paid health 

benefits, while the CE only collects those expenditures made 

directly by the consumer unit. Additionally, the CE collects 

spending on used vehicles, whereas the PCE excludes 

purchases of used vehicles. New methodology developed by 

BLS researchers has isolated comparable categories between 

the surveys. Minor dissimilarities may still exist amongst 

comparable items, but these differences do not to have a 

significant impact on the estimates. 

Detailed Results

Text table 3 displays aggregate CE and PCE estimates and 

CE-to-PCE ratios for all major PCE categories for 2002 

through 2005, the most recent years for which published data 

are available. The PCE values are annual updates based on 

2002 benchmark estimates. Text table 4 shows the specific 

categories for which the CE and PCE have been determined 

conceptually comparable. As mentioned previously, the CE/

PCE ratio for total comparable durables, nondurables and 

services has been steady at 0.83 for the last 4 years (2002–

2005). 

Durables

Durables include the very broad categories of motor 

vehicles and parts; furniture and household equipment; and 

other durable goods. Each of the three major categories is 

comprised of many smaller groups, as shown in text table 3. 

The comparable items as listed in text table 4 are: new autos; 

furniture, including mattresses and bedsprings; kitchen and 

other household appliances; video and audio goods, including 

musical instruments and computer goods; and wheel goods 

(including bicycles and motorcycles), sports (also includes 

guns) and photographic equipment, boats, and pleasure 

aircraft. From 2002 to 2005, the CE/PCE ratio for total 

comparable durables is 0.75, 0.75, 0.68, and 0.71 respectively
Durables is a category for which the ratios are generally 

higher, as auto purchases are typically higher in the CE. New 

autos, a category for which the CE traditionally reports higher 

values than the PCE, with ratios well above 1, has shown

volatility in its ratio recently. The ratio for new autos was 

1.10 in 2002, 1.23 in 2003, then fell to 0.94 in 2004, but ro

to 1.06 in 2005. An explanation for this variability may be that

only about 3.5–4 percent of CE survey respondents list new 

car purchases each year. This low response rate, coupled with 

the CE’s random sample may account for recent fluctuations 

in this category. The combination of low percent reporting 

and a large expenditure, in a particular category, means that 

small changes in the percent reporting that expenditure can 

cause fluctuations. As for other durables, wheel goods saw 

decreasing ratios, dropping from 0.72 in 2002 to 0.52 in 

2005. Ratios for the three remaining comparable groups rose 

slightly over the same period. 

Nondurables

Nondurables is comprised of four major categories: food; 

clothing and shoes; gasoline, fuel oil, and other energy 

goods; and other nondurables. The comparable items within 

these broad categories are: food purchased for off-premise 

consumption; alcoholic beverages purchased for off-premise 

consumption; purchased meals and beverages; alcoholic 

beverages in purchased meals; shoes; women’s and children’s 

clothing and accessories except shoes (also includes clothing 

for infants); men’s and boys’ clothing and accessories except 

shoes; gasoline, fuel oil, and other energy goods; tobacco 

products; and toilet articles and preparations. The CE/PCE 

ratio for total nondurable goods oscillated slightly from 2002 

to 2005: it was 0.63 in 2002, 0.61 in 2003, 0.64 in 2004, and

0.62 in 2005. Ratios for alcoholic beverages in purchased 

meals, as well as for tobacco, both increased slightly over 

the four year period. The ratio for alcoholic beverages in 

purchased meals rose steadily every year, beginning at 

0.40 and ending at 0.51. The ratio for alcoholic beverages

purchased for off-premise consumption fell by 7 percentage 

points over the same period. The tobacco products CEto-PCE ratio actually dropped in 2003, but in 2005 it was 

0.41, just a trace higher than it was in 2002. The remaining

comparable categories exhibited slight fluctuations with no 

major changes. 

Services

Services make up a large part of total expenditures and 

include eight major categories: housing and household 

operations; transportation; medical care; recreation; personal 

care; personal business; education and research; and religious 

and welfare activities. Due to conceptual differences between 

CE and PCE, most of these categories are not comparable. 

Housing, household operations, and transportation contain 

comparable items, all of which are listed in table 2. The 

CE/PCE ratio for total comparable services rose slightly; 

it was 1.03 in 2002, 1.04 in 2003 and 2004, and increase

to 1.05 in 2005. Two sub-categories had CE-to-PCE ratios

above 1―owner-occupied dwellings and other household 

operations (i.e., moving and storage, household insurance, 

rug and furniture cleaning, electrical repair, reupholstery 

and furniture, postage, household operation services not 

elsewhere classified). The owner occupied nonfarm dwelling 

ratio did not change significantly; other household operations 

increased slightly every year. The telephone and telegraph 

ratio increased more than any other services item, rising 

from .83 in 2002 to .90 in 2005, with increases every year. 

Additionally, the rent and utilities ratio rose by 4 percentage 

points over the period. The ratio for other lodging decreased 

from 0.68 in 2002 to 0.60 in 2005. The transportation 

ratio fell as well, dropping 6 percentage points over the 4-

year period. The cleaning, storage, and repair of clothing 

and shoes ratio decreased 4 percentage points. None of the 

remaining comparable categories changed appreciably over 

the period.

Summary

The CE and PCE both measure consumer expenditures; but 

even when accounting for comparability, discrepancies in 

survey methodology, scope, and concepts lead to unequal 

CE-to-PCE ratios. There has been a decreasing trend in ratios 

since the 1990s, but recent data show that this trend may

have run its course. The CE/PCE ratio for total comparable 

items has been steady at 0.83 from 2002-2005. Ratios for 

comparable durable goods have decreased slightly, while 

services ratios have increased and nondurable goods have 

remained mostly unchanged. Questions on discrepancies 

between the CE and PCE remain even with the steady ratios 

of recent years. BLS staff continue to examine the issue of CE 

and PCE comparability. For further discussion of differences 

in coverage and methodology between the CE and PCE, see 

the Monthly Labor Review article “The CE and the PCE: a 

Comparison” in the September 2006 issue.7

7Garner, Thesia I., George Janini, William Passero, Laura Paszkiewicz, 

Mark Vendemia – “The CE and the PCE: a Comparison,” Monthly Labor 

Review, Vol. 129 No. 9, pp 20-46, September 2006
Text Table 3. Comparison of 2002-2005 Aggregate Consumer Expenditures vs. Personal Consumption Expenditures based on

2002 PCE benchmark ($ millions) 

2002 2003 2004 2005

PCE categories Aggregates CE/ Aggregates CE/ Aggregates CE/ Aggregates CE/

PCE PCE PCE PCE

PCE CE ratio PCE CE ratio PCE CE ratio PCE CE ratio

Total durables, nondurables, and services ..... 7,350,721 4,457,246 0.61 7,703,634 4,637,379 0.60 8,211,504 4,933,388 0.60 8,742,350 5,271,179 0.60

Durable goods ................................................ 923,940 693,653 .75 942,663 731,483 .78 986,260 725,419 .74 1,033,072 779,874 .75

Motor vehicles and parts .......................... 429,264 436,625 1.02 431,709 471,579 1.09 437,940 441,508 1.01 448,218 468,669 1.05

New autos1............................................ 101,703 111,924 1.10 97,175 119,911 1.23 97,653 91,625 .94 103,661 109,714 1.06

Net purchases of used autos................ 60,355 112,513 1.86 54,848 84,314 1.54 54,924 82,256 1.50 58,539 84,960 1.45

Other motor vehicles ............................ 216,911 195,506 .90 227,648 251,005 1.10 231,010 250,221 1.08 227,292 255,471 1.12

Trucks, new and net used..................... 204,602 183,394 .90 214,168 231,479 1.08 216,294 232,218 1.07 211,075 231,771 1.10

Recreational vehicles ........................... 12,309 12,112 .98 13,480 19,526 1.45 14,716 18,003 1.22 16,217 23,700 1.46

Tires, tubes, accessories and other

parts.................................................... 50,295 16,682 .33 52,038 16,349 .31 54,353 17,406 .32 58,726 18,524 .32

Furniture and household equipment......... 323,095 180,432 .56 331,507 185,954 .56 356,499 200,756 .56 377,195 227,115 .60

Furniture, including mattresses and

bedsprings1 ......................................... 68,913 46,171 .67 70,187 47,692 .68 75,461 49,807 .66 79,040 56,021 .71

Kitchen and other household

appliances1.......................................... 31,987 33,666 1.05 32,786 35,140 1.07 34,866 38,946 1.12 37,216 40,853 1.10

China, glassware, tableware, and

utensils................................................ 32,346 8,660 .27 33,124 7,511 .23 34,946 9,579 .27 36,493 9,421 .26

Video and audio goods, including

musical instruments and computer

goods1 ................................................. 120,010 51,134 .43 123,096 51,639 .42 133,400 53,306 .40 141,186 63,568 .45

Video and audio goods incl. musical

instruments1 ........................................ 75,413 33,617 .45 76,477 33,788 .44 81,790 35,422 .43 85,782 43,060 .50

Computers, peripherals, and software1 44,597 17,517 .39 46,619 17,851 .38 51,610 17,864 .35 55,404 20,508 .37

Other durable house furnishings

(i.e. floor coverings, lamps, blinds,

writing equipment, hand tools, and

supplies) ............................................. 69,839 40,801 .58 72,314 43,972 .61 77,826 49,118 .63 83,260 57,252 .69

Other durable goods................................. 171,581 76,596 .45 179,447 73,950 .41 191,821 83,155 .43 207,659 84,090 .40

Ophthalmic products and orthopedic

appliances........................................... 21,895 8,122 .37 22,360 8,147 .36 23,359 8,132 .35 24,974 8,231 .33

Wheel goods, including bicycles and

motorcycles, sports and photographic

equipment, boats and pleasure

aircraft1................................................ 61,399 43,976 .72 65,578 37,461 .57 71,402 45,985 .64 81,538 42,248 .52

Jewelry and watches ............................ 51,228 11,577 .23 52,835 15,837 .30 56,470 15,725 .28 58,913 19,285 .33

Books and maps................................... 37,059 12,921 .35 38,674 12,505 .32 40,590 13,313 .33 42,234 14,326 .34

Nondurable goods .......................................... 2,079,633 1,212,863 .58 2,190,197 1,231,571 .56 2,345,180 1,378,620 .59 2,539,295 1,455,393 .57

Food ......................................................... 1,001,902 659,973 .66 1,045,969 679,381 .65 1,114,782 746,620 .67 1,201,390 763,496 .64

Food purchased for off-premise

consumption1 ........................................ 612,237 389,640 .64 636,018 407,852 .64 677,906 444,202 .66 733,995 432,243 .59

Alcoholic beverages purchased for

off-premise1 ........................................ 75,283 25,497 .34 78,491 27,642 .35 86,172 32,306 .37 96,459 25,901 .27

Purchased meals and beverages1 ........ 379,461 267,770 .71 399,018 268,497 .67 425,484 299,575 .70 455,088 328,110 .72

Alcoholic beverages in purchased

meals1 ................................................. 40,728 16,487 .40 42,790 17,386 .41 44,874 20,986 .47 47,680 24,080 .51

Food supplied to civilians ..................... 9,052 2,563 .28 9557 3032 .32 10,033 2843 .28 10,520 3193 .30

Food supplied to military....................... 676 0 .00 907 0 .00 865 0 .00 1,298 0 .00

Food produced and consumed

on farms.............................................. 476 0 .00 469 0 .00 495 0 .00 489 0 .00

Clothing and shoes................................... 303,501 170,775 .56 310,922 160,942 .52 325,137 183,306 .56 341,809 189,542 .55

Shoes1 .................................................. 49,526 34,960 .71 50,333 33,823 .67 51,943 38,138 .73 54,245 37,536 .69

Women’s and children’s clothing and

accessories except shoes1 ................. 149,993 87,889 .59 153,689 82,418 .54 161,438 94,829 .59 170,221 98,009 .58

Men’s and boys’ clothing and

accessorie except shoes1 ................... 92,874 45,769 .49 95,256 42,800 .45 99,742 47,147 .47 104,850 51,561 .49

Standard clothing issued to military

personnel ............................................ 358 0 .00 546 0 .00 343 0 .00 350 0 .00

Sewing good for males and

females ............................................... 6,467 1,486 .23 6,649 1,188 .18 7,073 2,422 .34 7,359 1,629 .22

Luggage for males and females ........... 4,283 671 .16 4,449 713 .16 4,598 771 .17 4,784 807 .17
Text Table 3. Comparison of 2002-2005 Aggregate Consumer Expenditures vs. Personal Consumption Expenditures based on

2002 PCE benchmark ($ millions)—Continued 

2002 2003 2004 2005

PCE categories Aggregates CE/ Aggregates CE/ Aggregates CE/ Aggregates CE/

PCE PCE PCE PCE

PCE CE ratio PCE CE ratio PCE CE ratio PCE CE ratio

Gasoline, fuel oil, and other energy

goods1..................................................... 178,768 148,800 .83 209,607 166,716 .80 248,792 200,124 .80 302,138 253,297 .84

Other nondurable goods........................... 595,462 233,315 .39 623,699 224,532 .36 656,469 248,569 .38 693,598 242,095 .35

Tobacco products1 ................................ 89,156 35,668 .40 88,033 33,255 .38 87,523 33,270 .38 90,036 37,163 .41

Toilet articles and preparations1............ 54,401 31,144 .57 55,971 31,292 .56 58,230 37,011 .64 61,667 32,332 .52

Semi durable house furnishings ........... 37,805 16,258 .43 39,011 14,168 .36 41,157 20,368 .49 43,475 17,203 .40

Cleaning and polishing preparations

and miscellaneous household

supplies............................................... 66,262 46,275 .70 68,983 45,707 .66 72,928 51,105 .70 77,700 53,445 .69

Drug preparations and sundries ........... 213,118 57,980 .27 233,643 57,666 .25 251,338 60,373 .24 265,724 65,151 .25

Nondurable toys and sport supplies ..... 59,231 16,107 .27 60,642 14,214 .23 63,505 14,053 .22 67,233 13,168 .20

Stationery and writing supplies............. 18,333 14,609 .80 18,431 15,056 .82 18,820 18,832 1.00 19,619 17,470 .89

Net foreign remittances ........................ 4,035 0 .00 4,784 0 .00 5,044 0 .00 5,024 0 .00

Magazines, newspapers, and

sheet music......................................... 35,111 9,108 .26 36,292 8,480 .23 39,596 8,696 .22 43,751 7,736 .18

Flowers, seeds, and potted plants........ 18,010 6,166 .34 17,909 4,694 .26 18,329 4,862 .27 19,738 5,388 .27

Services.......................................................... 4,347,148 2,550,730 .59 4,570,774 2,674,325 .59 4,880,064 2,829,349 .58 5,169,983 3,035,912 .59

Housing and Household operations1 ........ 1,530,788 1,647,839 1.08 1,591,191 1,743,165 1.10 1,686,073 1,830,483 1.09 1,787,064 1,965,864 1.10

Owner occupied nonfarm dwellings1 .... 809,035 1,014,126 1.25 846,353 1,079,220 1.28 910,117 1,135,957 1.25 963,343 1,215,065 1.26

Rent and utilities, excluding

telephone1 .......................................................................... 455,358 424,634 .93 470,397 451,468 .96 486,176 466,250 .96 520,946 507,667 .97

Tenant occupied nonfarm dwellings1 .... 247,773 240,872 .97 245,288 250,031 1.02 248,881 255,095 1.02 256,999 273,639 1.06

Electricity1 ............................................. 111,748 109,987 .98 115,596 118,577 1.03 121,066 123,772 1.02 134,242 135,543 1.01

Gas1 ...................................................... 40,734 36,967 .91 51,689 45,221 .87 55,487 49,305 .89 65,525 55,562 .85

Water and other sanitary services1 ....... 55,103 36,808 .67 57,824 37,639 .65 60,742 38,078 .63 64,180 42,923 .67

Rental value of farm dwellings1 ............ 11,678 0 .00 12,206 0 .00 12,013 0 .00 13,812 0 .00

Other lodging1 ....................................... 54,627 37,333 .68 57,961 33,992 .59 64,151 39,027 .61 69,913 41,720 .60

Telephone and telegraph1 ..................... 128,752 107,258 .83 129,721 110,246 .85 132,932 115,144 .87 135,955 122,946 .90

Domestic service1 ................................. 16,732 8,958 .54 18,474 10,743 .58 19,592 10,332 .53 19,894 10,813 .54

Other household operations (moving

and storage, insurance, furniture

cleaning, electrical repair, postage,

household operation services not

elsewhere classified)1 ......................... 54,606 55,530 1.02 56,079 57,496 1.03 60,192 63,771 1.06 63,201 67,653 1.07

Transportation1 ......................................... 288,430 252,818 .88 297,308 244,558 .82 307,781 262,908 .85 320,429 263,838 .82

Repair, greasing, washing, parking

storage, and leasing1 .......................... 185,951 107,196 .58 186,818 93,441 .50 189,498 96,869 .51 195,560 101,565 .52

Bridge, tunnel, ferry tolls1...................... 5,270 1,624 .31 5,510 1,928 .35 5,734 2,232 .39 6,006 2,218 .37

Insurance1............................................. 45,842 100,168 2.19 49,233 104,428 2.12 53,695 112,139 2.09 58,141 107,187 1.84

Mass transit systems1 ........................... 9,000 7,266 .81 9,519 7,036 .74 10,166 6,990 .69 10,826 7,977 .74

Taxicab1 ................................................ 3,336 2,833 .85 3,500 2,485 .71 3,648 3,372 .92 3,886 2,862 .74

Railway1 ............................................... 573 1,804 3.15 563 1,854 3.29 568 2,074 3.65 578 2,278 3.94

Bus1 ...................................................... 2,353 1,287 .55 2,322 1,033 .44 2,254 1,087 .48 2,175 1,420 .65

Airline1................................................... 28,319 27,306 .96 31,216 29,135 .93 33,070 32,087 .97 33,834 33,422 .99

Other including water passenger,

passenger transportation arrangement, limousine service, other local

transportation1..................................... 7,786 3,334 .43 8,627 3,218 .37 9,149 6,058 .66 9,424 4,908 .52

Medical care............................................. 1,206,198 197,331 .16 1,300,531 212,917 .16 1,395,745 230,901 .17 1,493,411 239,348 .16

Physicians ............................................ 277,204 16,539 .06 300,550 16,569 .06 322,204 17,044 .05 342,431 18,057 .05

Dentists................................................. 72,162 25,447 .35 74,601 26,214 .35 80,163 27,978 .35 85,492 29,848 .35

Other professional services .................. 188,238 13,164 .07 201,788 13,961 .07 217,151 15,613 .07 232,045 17,456 .08

Hospitals............................................... 475,061 9,875 .02 509,268 8,006 .02 541,182 10,607 .02 579,782 11,083 .02

Nursing homes ..................................... 96,960 1,397 .01 101,496 3,784 .04 104,620 4,806 .05 111,496 3,213 .03

Health insurance................................... 

Medical care and hospitalization

health insurance ................................. 80,138 130,909 1.63 95,015 144,383 1.52 111,209 154,854 1.39 121,633 159,691 1.31

Income loss insurance.......................... 1,999 0 .00 2,167 0 00 2,353 0 .00 2,572 0 .00

Workers’ compensation ........................ 14,436 0 .00 15,646 0 .00 16,863 0 .00 17,962 0 .00

Recreation................................................ 299,055 151,663 .51 317,705 161,789 .51 341,552 170,882 .50 360,632 194,587 .54

Admissions to all events1 ...................... 34,777 21,888 .63 36,032 21,312 .59 37,392 22,390 .60 38,324 25,566 .67

Motion picture theater, theatre, opera,

and entertainment............................... 21,276 16,129 .76 21,773 15,688 .72 22,248 16,336 .73 22,468 18,300 .81
1

Text Table 3. Comparison of 2002-2005 Aggregate Consumer Expenditures vs. Personal Consumption Expenditures based on

2002 PCE benchmark ($ millions)—Continued 

2002 2003 2004 2005

PCE categories Aggregates CE/ Aggregates CE/ Aggregates CE/ Aggregates CE/

PCE PCE PCE PCE

PCE CE ratio PCE CE ratio PCE CE ratio PCE CE ratio

Spectator sports ................................... 13,501 5,759 .43 14,259 5,624 .39 15,144 6,054 .40 15,856 7,266 .46

Radio and television repair1 .................. 4,089 360 .09 4,109 401 .10 4,601 459 .10 4,754 446 .09

Clubs and fraternal organizations......... 21,117 12,098 .57 22,209 10,966 .49 22,271 11,417 .51 23,453 14,645 .62

Commercial participant amusements ... 83,725 21,032 .25 91,205 19,575 .21 100,713 21,548 .21 107,307 23,160 .22

Pari-mutual net receipts........................ 5,312 5,491 1.03 5,235 5,000 .95 5,644 8,250 1.46 6,180 9,448 1.53

Other including pets and pet services,

veterinarians, cable TV, film

developing, lotteries, video rental,

commercial amusements not

elsewhere classified............................ 150,035 90,794 .61 158,914 104,535 .66 170,932 106,818 .62 180,613 121,323 .67

Personal care ........................................... 94,590 43,015 .45 99,459 43,415 .44 108,898 44,400 .41 114,607 45,819 .40

Cleaning, storage, and repair of

clothing and shoes1............................. 15,797 13,501 .85 15,169 12,570 .83 15,743 12,317 .78 15,763 12,786 .81

Barbershops, beauty parlors, and

health clubs......................................... 42,330 27,893 .66 44,432 29,549 .67 48,409 30,709 .63 50,515 31,401 .62

Other including watch, clock, and

jewelry repair, miscellaneous

personal services................................ 36,463 1,621 .04 39,858 1,296 .03 44,746 1,373 .03 48,329 1,632 .03

Personal business.................................... 546,990 40,022 .07 559,662 32,063 .06 612,448 37,097 .06 647,862 38,282 .06

Brokerage charges and investment

counseling........................................... 76,516 0 .00 77,373 0 .00 88,630 0 .00 90,461 0 .00

Bank service charges, trust services,

and safe deposit box rental................. 75,929 3,652 .05 81,807 2,980 .04 89,294 2,829 .03 99,856 3,091 .03

Services furnished by financial

intermediaries except life insurance

carriers................................................ 186,482 0 .00 180,921 0 .00 197,435 0 .00 203,709 0 .00

Expense of handling life insurance

and pension plans............................... 84,869 0 .00 85,869 0 .00 98,724 0 .00 106,932 0 .00

Legal services....................................... 71,249 14,910 .21 78,127 12,469 .16 81,988 14,826 .18 85,579 14,637 .17

Funeral and burial expenses ................ 14,780 10,534 .71 15,885 8,165 .51 15,570 9,217 .59 15,990 9,321 .58

Other personal business including

union expenses, professional

association expenses, employment

agency expenses, money orders,

classified ads, tax return services,

personal business services not

elsewhere classified............................ 37,165 10,926 .29 39,680 8,449 .21 42,808 10,224 .24 45,335 11,232 .25

Education and research ........................... 190,179 93,658 .49 203,096 97,770 .48 213,567 110,890 .52 226,497 121,967 .54

Higher education .................................. 103,147 52,716 .51 112,566 59,115 .53 119,573 68,629 .57 126,844 70,956 .56

Nursery, elementary, and secondary

schools................................................ 38,421 38,080 .99 40,473 36,191 .89 42,472 39,107 .92 44,763 47,127 1.05

Elementary and secondary schools...... 28,323 14,455 .51 29,844 14,409 .48 31,404 16,605 .53 33,218 20,720 .62

Nursery schools.................................... 10,098 23,625 2.34 10,629 21,782 2.05 11,068 22,502 2.03 11,545 26,407 2.29

Other education and research .............. 48,611 2,862 .06 50,057 2,464 .05 51,523 3,154 .06 54890 3,885 .07

Commercial and vocational schools ..... 33,319 0 .00 34,552 0 .00 35,580 0 .00 38,124 0 .00

Foundations and nonprofit research .... 15,292 0 .00 15,505 0 .00 15.943 0 .00 16.766 0 .00

Religious and welfare activities ................ 200,090 124,384 .62 207,142 138,648 .67 218,958 141,789 .65 224,473 166,207 .74

All contributions including religion

(CE) .................................................... ... 110,900 ... ... 126,569 ... ... 129,440 ... ... 154,864 ...

Political organizations........................... 3,626 ... ... 962 ... ... 4,674 ... ... 812 ... ...

Museums and libraries ......................... 8,501 ... ... 8,980 ... ... 9,070 ... ... 9,432 ... ...

Foundations to religion and welfare...... 11,838 ... ... 12,218 ... ... 12,693 ... ... 13,141 ... ...

Social welfare ....................................... 

Child care ............................................. 30,280 7,107 .23 32,151 6,926 .22 33,789 7,350 .22 35,297 8,244 .23

Social welfare including membership

organizations, job training, residential

care, individual and family services,

social services not elsewhere

classified, and civic-social-fraternal

associations ........................................ 94,897 6,377 .07 100,967 5,153 .05 103,774 4,999 .05 108,404 3,099 .03

Religion................................................. 50,948 0 .00 51,864 0 .00 54,957 0 .00 57,387 0 .00

Net foreign travel...................................... -9,172 0 .00 -5,320 0 .00 -4,958 0 .00 -4,993 0 .00

1

 Indicates comparable CE and PCE items.
Text Table 4. Summary Comparison of Aggregate Consumer Expenditures vs. Personal Consumption Expenditures for 2002-2005 ($ millions)

Restricted to Most Comparable Based on Concepts and Comprehensiveness

2002 2003 2004 2005

PCE categories Aggregates CE/ Aggregates CE/ Aggregates CE/ Aggregates CE/

PCE PCE PCE PCE

PCE CE ratio PCE CE ratio PCE CE ratio PCE CE ratio

Total Durables, Nondurables, and

Services (Comparable)................................. 3,980,320 3,306,901 0.83 4,141,837 3,427,180 0.83 4,405,576 3,655,812 0.83 4,725,354 3,901,136 0.83

All items (including those not

comparable)........................................ 7,350,721 4,457,246 .61 7,703,634 4,637,379 .60 8,211,504 4,933,388 .60 8,742,350 5,271,179 .60

Ratio of most comparable to all items ... 54 .74 .54 .74 .54 .74 .54 .74

Durable Goods ......................................... 

Total comparable .................................. 384,012 286,871 .75 388,822 291,843 .75 412,782 279,669 .68 442,641 312,404 .71

All durables (including those not

comparable)........................................ 923,940 693,653 .75 942,663 731,483 .78 986,260 725,419 .74 1,033,072 779,874 .75

Ratio of most comparable to

all durables ......................................... .42 .41 .41 .40 .42 .39 .43 .40

New autos............................................. 101,703 111,924 1.10 97,175 119,911 1.23 97,653 91,625 .94 103,661 109,714 1.06

Furniture, including mattresses

and bedsprings ................................... 68,913 46,171 .67 70,187 47,692 .68 75,461 49,807 .66 79,040 56,021 .71

Kitchen and other household

appliances........................................... `31,987 33,666 1.05 32,786 35,140 1.07 34,866 38,946 1.12 37,216 40,853 1.10

Video and audio good, including

musical instruments, and

computer goods .................................. 120,010 51,134 .43 123,096 51,639 .42 133,400 53,306 .40 141,186 63,568 .45

Wheel goods (including bicycles and

motorcycles), sports (also includes

guns) and photographic equipment,

boats and pleasure aircraft ................. 61,399 43,976 .72 65,578 37,461 .57 71,402 45,985 .64 81,538 42,248 .52

Nondurable Goods ................................... 

Total comparable .................................. 1,722,427 1,083,624 .63 1,809,206 1,111,681 .61 1,942,104 1,247,588 .64 2,116,379 1,320,232 .62

All nondurables (including those not

comparable)........................................ 2,079,633 1,212,863 .58 2,190,197 1,231,571 .56 2,345,180 1,378,620 .59 2,539,295 1,455,393 .57

Ratio of most comparable to all

nondurables ........................................ .83 .89 .83 .90 .83 .90 .83 .91

Food purchased for off-premise

consumption ....................................... 612,237 389,640 .64 636,018 407,852 .64 677,906 444,202 .66 733,995 432,243 .59

Alcoholic beverages purchased for

off-premise consumption..................... 75,283 25,497 .34 78,491 27,642 .35 86,172 32,306 .37 96,459 25,901 .27

Purchased meals and beverages ......... 379,461 267,770 .71 399,018 268,497 .67 425,484 299,575 .70 455,088 328,110 .72

Alcoholic beverages in purchased

meals .................................................. 40,728 16,487 .40 42,790 17,386 .41 44,874 20,986 .47 47,680 24,080 .51

Shoes ................................................... 49,526 34,960 .71 50,333 33,823 .67 51,943 38,138 .73 54,245 37,536 .69

Women’s and children’s clothing and

accessories except shoes (also

includes clothing for infants) ............... 149,993 87,889 .59 153,689 82,418 .54 161,438 94,829 .59 170,221 98,009 .58

Men’s and boys’ clothing and

accessories except shoes................... 92,874 45,769 .49 95,256 42,800 .45 99,742 47,147 .47 104,850 51,561 .49

Gasoline, fuel oil, and other

energy goods ...................................... 178,768 148,800 .83 209,607 166,716 .80 248,792 200,124 .80 302,138 253,297 .84

Tobacco products ................................. 89,156 35,668 .40 88,033 33,255 .38 87,523 33,270 .38 90,036 37,163 .41

Toilet articles and preparations............. 54,401 31,144 .57 55,971 31,292 .56 58,230 37,011 .64 61,667 32,332 .52

Services.................................................... 

Total comparable .................................. 1,873,881 1,936,406 1.03 1,943,809 2,023,656 1.04 2,050,690 2,128,555 1.04 2,166,334 2,268,500 1.05

All services (including those not

comparable)........................................ 4,347,148 2,550,730 .59 4,570,774 2,674,325 .59 4,880,064 2,829,349 .58 5,169,983 3,035,912 .59

Ratio of most comparable to all

services............................................... .43 .76 .43 .76 .42 .75 .42 .75

Owner occupied nonfarm dwellings...... 809,035 1,014,126 1.25 846,353 1,079,220 1.28 910,117 1,135,957 1.25 963,343 1,215,065 1.26

Rent and utilities, excluding telephone . 455,358 424,634 .93 470,397 451,467 .96 486,176 466,250 .96 520,946 507,667 .97

Rental value of farm dwellings.............. 11,678 0 .00 12,206 0 .00 12,013 0 .00 13,812 0 .00

Other lodging ........................................ 54,627 37,333 .68 57,961 33,992 .59 64,151 39,027 .61 69,913 41,720 .60

Telephone and telegraph ...................... 128,752 107,258 .83 129,721 110,246 .85 132,932 115,144 .87 135,955 122,946 .90

Domestic service .................................. 16,732 8,958 .54 18,474 10,743 .58 19,592 10,332 .53 19,894 10,813 .54

Other household operations (i.e.,

moving and storage, household

insurance, rug and furniture cleaning,

electrical repair, reupholstery and

furniture, postage, household operation services not elsewhere classified) . 54,606 55,530 1.02 56,079 57,496 1.03 60,192 63,771 1.06 63,201 67,653 1.07

Transportation....................................... 288,430 252,818 .88 297,308 246,209 .83 307,781 262,908 .85 320,429 263,838 .82

Admissions to all events ....................... 34,777 21,888 .63 36,032 21,312 .59 37,392 22,390 .60 38,324 25,566 .67

Radio and television repair................... 4,089 360 .09 4,109 401 .10 4,601 459 .10 4,754 446 .09

Cleaning, storage, and repair of

clothing and shoes.............................. 15,797 13,501 .85 15,169 12,570 .83 15,743 12,317 .78 15,763 12,786 .81
1

National Health Expenditures. The Centers for 

Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) of the U.S. 

Department of Health and Human Services publish 

annual data on total aggregate health care expenditures of the 

United States, referred to as National Health Expenditures 

(NHE). Total health care expenditures include expenditures 

for health care by all sources in the United States economy, 

including public and private sources. There are three major 

conceptual reasons for differences between Consumer 

Expenditure Survey (CE) and NHE estimates; populations 

covered by the surveys, service category definitions, and the 

scope of included covered services. NHE data cover U.S. 

citizens living abroad, military personnel, inhabitants of U.S. 

territories, and parts of the institutional population―a larger 

population than covered by the CE. In particular, the NHE is 

designed to cover the nursing home population, whereas the 

CE is not. In addition, NHE categories are defined according 

to the type of establishment that collected the revenue, 

whereas, CE categories are defined by the type of services 

provided. For example, NHE physicians services category 

includes outpatient care expenditures, while the CE classifies 

these types of expenditures as other professional services. 

The CE and NHE also differ with respect to the covered 

services included as health care expenditures, whereby NHE 

captures expenditures not collected in the CE. These services 

are considered in scope in the NHE but not in the CE, such as 

non-patient revenue (parking lot revenue, for example). U.S. 

Bureau of Labor Statistics staff compared estimates of outof-pocket personal health care expenditures from NHE with 

those from the CE. Out-of-pocket expenditures for health care 

include expenditures for medical care that are not covered 

by personal health insurance or other sources of payment. 

Such expenditures can include co-payments and deductible 

amounts required by health insurance plans. To derive its 

out-of-pocket estimates, CMS uses data from administrative 

and industry sources, as well as CE data. 

Text table 5 shows CE estimates of aggregate expenditures 

for health care (excluding health insurance, nonprescription 

vitamins, nursing home care, and repair and rental of medical 

equipment), and ratios to NHE estimates of out-of-pocket 

health care expenditures (excluding nursing home care). As 

reported in the CE, aggregate medical care expenditures, 

excluding those expenditure items listed above, were $144.3

billion in 2005, or 66 percent of the NHE estimate of $217

Consumer Expenditure Survey 

comparisons with National Health 

Expenditures and the Current 

Population Survey

billion (excluding nursing home care expenditures). Of the 

CE total, $68.2 billion was spent on medical commodities 

and $76.1 billion on medical services. These amounts were

71 percent and 63 percent of the NHE estimates, respectively.

Data show variations in the CE-to-NHE ratios over the

2002–2005 period for both medical commodities and 

medical services. Fluctuations can reflect volatility in 

spending on personal health care due to changes in health 

insurance coverages. In addition to the conceptual differences

in population, definition and scope, the comparison of

health care expenditures may reflect underreporting in

the CE. 

Current Population Survey. The U.S. Census Bureau collects 

income data in the Supplement to the Current Population 

Survey (CPS). The CPS is a household interview survey of 

approximately 60,000 households. Using data collected for 

calendar years 2003 through 2005, comparisons are made 

with Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE) estimates of total 

consumer unit income before taxes and by source of income. 

CPS estimates of aggregate income by source of income 

are derived from Census Bureau estimates of mean income 

of persons and the number of persons with the specified 

income. 

There are several differences between the CE and the 

CPS in the concepts and methods of measuring income. The 

CPS collects data in March for the previous calendar year. 

By comparison, the CE estimates of income are obtained in 

the second and fifth interviews of the consumer unit. These 

estimates refer to the prior 12 months; and, due to the rotating

panel design of the survey, the interviews may occur at any 

time during the year. The Census Bureau imputes CPS income 

data that are missing (due to nonresponse to income questions) 

based on demographic characteristics. In contrast, prior to 

2004, CE income data that were missing due to nonresponse 

were not imputed as part of the CE estimation procedure; 

instead, CE income estimates were based on complete income 

reporters only. However, beginning in 2004, the CE began 

multiple imputation of income data that allow income values 

to be estimated when they are not reported. (See the section 

“Changes to the 2004 and 2005 Consumer Expenditure 

Survey Published Tables and Selected Highlights” for a 

discussion of income imputation.) Correspondingly, the ratio 

of CE to CPS money income before taxes increased from 88 
1

percent in 2003 to 91 percent in 2004, and to 93 percent in

2005. Neither procedure accounts for underreporting.

In addition to the differences between the CE and the 

CPS described above, beginning in 1993, computer-assisted

personal interviews (CAPI) were used to collect the CPS 

income data. By comparison, the CE began using computerassisted personal interviews to collect its data in 2003. Prior 

to that time, CE data were collected by traditional paper and 

pencil interview.

Text table 6 shows that the CE estimates of total income 

before taxes are 88 percent, 91 percent, and 93 percent of

CPS for the 2003, 2004, and 2005 periods, respectively. This 

reflects comparable levels of estimates from the two surveys 

for three of the largest sources of income: Wages and salaries 

(largest source); Social Security and Railroad Retirement 

Income; and self-employment income (for 2004 and 2005). 

The ratio of CE to CPS self-employment income increased 

significantly from 69 percent in 2003 to 100 percent in 2004. 

Also, some of the other sources of income were generally 

comparable between the two surveys: Pensions and annuities; 

and alimony, child support, and other regular financial support. 

Some differences in the estimates are expected because of the 

methodology differences between the two surveys described 

above and because the CPS is designed specifically to collect 

income data, whereas the CE is designed primarily to collect 

expenditure data. In addition, the CPS population is slightly 

greater than that of the CE. Some of the variation in the 

ratios reflects the difficulty of obtaining income information 

via household survey that is experienced by both the CE and 

CPS.

Text table 5. Comparison of aggregate expenditures for health care: Consumer Expenditure Survey and National Health 

Expenditures program, 2002-2005

Aggregate consumer expenditures Ratio of Consumer

Consumer Expenditure Survey Expenditure Survey to

Expenditure category (in billions) National Health Expenditures1

2002 2003 2004 2005 2002 2003 2004 2005

Health care, total2 ....................... $125.2 $124.5 $133.1 $144.3 0.69 0.64 0.65 0.66

Medical commodities, total...... 60.6 60.3 62.6 68.2 .74 .69 .68 .71

 Drugs and supplies.............. 52.2 51.8 53.6 59.4 .75 .69 .68 .72

 Medical equipment .............. 8.4 8.5 8.9 8.7 .69 .66 .68 .64

Medical services, total............. 64.6 64.2 70.6 76.1 .65 .60 .62 .63

 Professional services .......... 54.7 56.2 60.0 65.0 .65 .63 .63 .65

 Physicians services ......... 16.5 16.6 17.0 18.1 .41 .39 .38 .38

 Dental services ................ 25.4 26.2 28.0 29.8 .79 .76 .77 .78

 Other professional

 services.......................... 12.7 13.4 15.0 17.1 1.08 1.06 1.09 1.18

 Hospital care ....................... 9.9 8.0 10.6 11.1 .63 .47 .57 .55

1 The National Health Expenditures data are out-of-pocket 

expenditures. 2 Excludes health insurance premiums, nonprescription vitamins, 

nursing home care, rental of medical equipment, and repair of medical 

equipment.

NOTE: Sums may not equal totals, due to rounding. Consumer 

Expenditure Survey categories have been grouped as needed to 

match those used in the National Health Expenditures program.

SOURCE: The National Health Expenditures data used to obtain 

the ratios are from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Data are available 

online at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/NationalHealthExpendData/

downloads/tables.pdf. 
1

Text table 6. Comparison of money income before taxes: Consumer Expenditure Survey and Current Population Survey

(CPS), 2003-2005

Aggregate consumer expenditures Ratio of Consumer

Income category Consumer Expenditure Survey Expenditure Survey to

(in billions) CPS1

2003 2004 2005 2003 2004 2005

Money income before taxes2 ................................................ $5,870 $6,300 $6,857 0.88 0.91 0.93

Wage and salary income .................................................. 4,753 5,023 5,433 .92 .94 .96

Self-employment income .................................................. 247 350 443 .69 1.00 1.10

Social Security and railroad retirement 

income .............................................................................. 382 401 431 .93 .93 .96

Unemployment, workers compensation, and 

veterans benefits .............................................................. 31 28 24 .34 .32 .26

Public assistance and Supplemental Security 

Income.............................................................................. 27 25 30 .76 .69 .79

Pensions and annuities .................................................... 264 279 290 .87 .88 .86

Interest, dividends, rents, royalties, estates 

and trusts.......................................................................... 127 147 162 .41 .45 .45

Alimony, child support, and other regular 

financial support ............................................................... 40 48 45 .90 1.03 1.03

1 Consumer Expenditure Survey data are for complete reporters 

of income for 2003. 2 Excludes the value of food stamps, meals as pay, rent as pay, 

and other income from the Consumer Expenditure Survey and 

educational assistance and other income from the CPS.

NOTE: Sums may not equal totals due to rounding. CPS 

categories have been grouped as needed to match those in the 

Consumer Expenditure Survey.

SOURCE: CPS data for 2003-2005 are from the U.S. Census 

Bureau Annual Demographic Survey, March Supplement, available 

on the Internet at http://www.bls.census.gov/cps/ads/adsmain.

htm.
1

Income imputation in the Consumer Expenditure 

Survey

Nonresponse is a common problem in household 

surveys, particularly for questions regarding income. 

Nonresponse means that the respondent either does 

not know, or refuses to provide, the information requested. 

Prior to publication of the 2004 tables, the Consumer 

Expenditure Survey (CE) handled nonresponse to income 

questions by publishing income data for complete income 

reporters only. To be classified as a complete income reporter, 

the respondent had to provide a value for at least one major 

source of income for the consumer unit. However, not all 

complete reporters provided a full accounting of income for 

all sources for which receipt was reported. This problem was 

reduced, but not eliminated, with the collection of bracketed 

income data starting in 2001. However, even bracketed data

only provide a range in which income falls, rather than a 

precise value for that income.

In a continuing effort to produce high quality data, 

the Consumer Expenditure Survey implemented multiple 

imputation of income data starting with the publication

of the 2004 tables. Multiple imputation allows income values 

to be estimated when they are not reported. In multiple 

imputation, several estimates are made for the same consumer 

unit, and the average of these estimates is published. When 

the respondent provides no information other than receipt 

of the income source, these estimates are made based on 

characteristics of the member or consumer unit for which 

receipt is reported. However, when the respondent reports 

a bracket, the estimates are computed using methods that 

ensure each of these estimates falls within the range the 

bracket describes.

The introduction of multiply imputed income data affects 

the CE published tables in several ways, because income data 

are now published for all consumer units, instead of complete 

reporters only, within each demographic group. The most 

obvious result of this change is seen on the tables showing 

expenditures categorized by income before taxes, including 

by quintile. Starting in 2004, columns describing income, 

expenditures, and characteristics for Total complete reporting 

and Incomplete reporting of income no longer appear in these 

tables, and the column entitled, All consumer units appears on 

all income tables. This occurs because income quintiles and 

Changes to the 2004 and 2005

Consumer Expenditure Survey

published tables and

selected highlights

income ranges are no longer defined using only data collected 

from complete income reporters, but instead are defined 

using the average of the multiply imputed values for each 

consumer unit. Also, in the tables showing expenditures by 

demographic characteristic, such as age of reference person, 

the footnote indicating that Income before taxes refers to 

Components of income... derived from ‘complete reporters 

only’ no longer appears.

Because of the implementation of income imputation, data 

for 2004 and subsequent years are not strictly comparable 

to those of prior years, especially for the income tables. In 

the 2003 CE tables, for example, nearly 16 percent of all

consumer units are defined to be incomplete reporters. Income 

imputation allows expenditure data for these consumer 

units to be included in income categories from which they 

were previously excluded. To the extent that the incomplete 

reporters have different demographic characteristics, such as 

age of reference person, or different expenditure patterns than 

the complete income reporters who were previously assigned 

to these categories, averages for demographic characteristics 

and annual expenditures will change. In addition, some 

complete income reporters who do not provide values for all 

sources of income for which they reported receipt may be 

classified in different income categories (ranges or quintiles) 

after imputation estimates these missing values. Again, to the 

extent that their demographic characteristics or expenditure 

patterns differ from the complete reporters previously 

assigned to these categories, the data in the tables change. 

Furthermore, certain expenditures, such as pensions and 

Social Security, are computed using income data. As a result 

of imputation, average annual values for these expenditures 

may be substantially different in the 2004 and 2005 CE tables 

than in tables for previous years.

In addition, multiply imputed microdata require special 

methods for analysis. Users of the public-use microdata

will find guidance in the 2004 and 2005 Public Use

Microdata Documentation for both the Interview and Diary 

Surveys. Included in these documents is a description

of the method used to obtain proper variance estimates 

for multiply imputed data. These procedures are also used 

to produce estimates of standard errors and coefficients of 

variation for multiply imputed income data in the published 

standard error tables available online at www.bls.gov/cex/

tables.htm.
1

New, user-friendly Diary

In 2005, a new, more user-friendly Diary Survey form 

was introduced. The new form was a major change and 

departure from previous Diary Survey forms. Its purpose 

is to make reporting expenditures in the Diary Survey more 

straightforward, thus creating a less burdensome experience 

for the respondent, as well as to improve participation and 

obtain improved reporting of items. The Diary Survey form is 

organized by day, and by expenditure type. The expenditure 

types in the diary are food and drinks away from home; 

food and drinks for home consumption; clothing, shoes, 

jewelry, and accessories; and all other products, services, and 

expenses. There are five distinguishing features of the new 

diary. 

• The form layout was redesigned and is smaller and in 

portrait format. There is one page for each of the expenditure 

types for each day of the diary. This feature simplifies the 

organization of the diary. 

• All sub-categories within the expenditure types were 

eliminated. 

• Checkboxes are used to obtain the necessary detail for 

certain types of expenditures, such as vendor type for meals 

away from home, and gender and age information for clothing 

expenditures. 

• Instructions on keeping the diary were clarified. All 

important instructions are highlighted, more examples are 

provided, and a “Frequently Asked Questions” section is 

included on the form. 

• Graphics on the new diary were modernized. 

Photographs and greater use of color are included in the 

design.

An electronic version of the new Diary Survey form can 

be found on the CE Web site at www.bls.gov/cex/csx801p.

pdf. 
1

Several factors should be considered when interpreting 

expenditure data, especially when relating averages to 

individual circumstances. Data are averages for the total 

population—urban and rural. Because not all consumer 

units purchased all items during the survey period, the 

mean expenditure for an item is usually considerably 

lower than the expenditure by those consumer units that 

purchased it. In addition, the less frequently an item is 

purchased, the greater the difference between the average 

for all consumer units and the average of those purchasing 

the item. For instance, reference table  shows average

expenditures for new cars and trucks of only $1,9

because relatively few consumer units actually purchased 

a new vehicle. Of course, the average cost for those who 

did make this purchase would be substantially higher. 

For example, if 8 percent of the households reported 

purchasing a new car or truck in 2005, the average 

expenditure on new cars and trucks for those households 

would be $24,138. Even if all consumer units purchased

a particular item, an individual consumer unit may have 

spent more (or less) than the average for that item. Even 

within a group with similar characteristics, there may be 

significant variation, because income, family size, age 

of family members, geographic location, and individual 

tastes and preferences influence expenditures.

Due to small sample sizes, special caution must be 

exercised when using data from the Metropolitan Statistical 

Area (MSA) tables (reference tables 27–30). Despite using 

2 years’ worth of data to increase sample sizes, average 

expenditures for the most-detailed items may not be reliable, 

because there may be few reports of expenditures for those 

items. Additionally, even a small number of unusually large 

purchases, or increases (or decreases), in the number of 

expenditures for infrequently reported items, can cause large 

changes in means from one year to the next.

Expenditures reported here are direct out-of-pocket 

expenditures. Indirect expenditures—that can be significant—

may be reflected elsewhere. For example, rental contracts 

often include utilities. Renters with such contracts would 

record no direct expense for utilities and, therefore, appear to 

have lower utility expenses than do those who reported utility 

costs. Also, employers or insurance companies frequently 

pay some consumer costs. Therefore, consumer units with 

members whose employers pay for all or part of their health 

insurance or life insurance would have lower direct expenses 

for these items than would those whose members pay the 

entire amount themselves.

In addition, caution should be used in interpreting changes 

in expenditures over a short time span. Average amounts spent 

on different expenditure components may fluctuate from year 

to year, due to changes in economic conditions. For example, 

a decrease in the supply of food products as a result of poor 

weather conditions, or a decrease in the oil supply arising 

from cutbacks in oil production, might result in sharp price 

increases and short-term changes in expenditure levels. A 

less-volatile measure of expenditure patterns is the share of 

total expenditures spent on major categories of consumption 

over a period of several years.

Interpreting the Data
1

Age. The age of the reference person.

Composition of consumer unit. The classification of interview 

families according to: (1) relationship of other family

members to the reference person; (2) age of the children of 

the reference person; and (3) combination of relationship to 

the reference person and age of the children. Stepchildren 

and adopted children are included with the reference person’s 

own children.

Consumer unit. A consumer unit comprises: All members of 

a particular household who are related by blood, marriage, 

adoption, or other legal arrangements; a person living 

alone or sharing a household with others or living as a 

roomer in a private home or lodging house or in permanent 

living quarters in a hotel or motel, but who is financially 

independent; or, two or more persons living together who 

use their incomes to make joint expenditure decisions. The 

three major expense categories: Housing, food, and other 

living expenses determine financial independence. To be 

considered financially independent, at least two of the three 

major expense categories have to be provided entirely, or in 

part, by the respondent.

Core Based Statistical Areas (CBSAs). The general concept 

of a CBSA is one of a county or small group of counties 

containing at least one urban core of 10,000 or more people,

which includes the adjacent counties that have a high degree 

of economic and social integration with the area’s core. 

There are two types of CBSAs: Metropolitan CBSAs have at 

least one urban area of 50,000 or more people; Micropolitan 

CBSAs are centered around an urban area with 10,000

50,000 people.

Earner. A consumer unit member, 14 years of age or older,

who reported having worked at least  week during the 1

months prior to the interview date.

Education of reference person. The number of years of formal 

education of the reference person, on the basis of the highest 

Appendix A. Glossary

Characteristics

This glossary has four sections: Characteristics, expenditures, income and personal taxes, and other financial information.

grade completed. If enrolled at time of the interview, the 

interviewer records the grade currently attended. Persons not 

reporting the extent of their education are classified under no 

school or not reported.

Housing tenure. The family’s principal place of residence 

during the survey. Owner includes families living in their 

own homes, cooperatives or condominium apartments, or 

townhouses. Renter includes families paying rent, as well as 

families living rent-free in lieu of wages.

Income before taxes. Total money earnings and selected 

money receipts during the 12 months prior to the interview

date. (See section 3 of the glossary for a complete definition 

of the components.)

Income after taxes. Income before taxes less personal taxes, 

which include Federal, State, and local income taxes and 

other taxes. (See section 3 of the glossary for a complete 

definition of the components.)

Lower limit. Amount of income before taxes of the lowestranked consumer unit in each income quintile.

Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs). The general concept 

of an MSA is one of a large population nucleus, together with 

adjacent communities that have a high degree of economic 

and social integration with that nucleus. The Office of 

Management and Budget defines the term as a standard 

for Federal agencies in the preparation and publication of 

statistics relating to metropolitan areas.

Number of vehicles owned or leased. Number of automobiles, 

trucks, vans, campers, motorcycles, trailers, and planes 

owned or leased by members of the consumer unit, including 

vehicles used partially for business, but excluding those used 

entirely for business.

Occupation. Refers to the occupation in which the reference 

person received the most earnings during the survey period. 
1

The occupational categories follow those of the Census of 

Population. Categories shown in the reference tables include 

the following:

Self-employed–encompasses all occupational categories; the reference person is self-employed in own

business, professional practice, or farm.

Wage and salary earners:

Managers and professionals–executives, administrators, 

and managers; and professional specialties, including 

architects, engineers, natural and social scientists, 

lawyers, teachers, writers, health diagnosis and 

treatment workers, entertainers, and athletes.

Technical, sales, and clerical workers–technicians and 

related support workers; sales representatives, sales 

workers, cashiers, and sales-related occupations; and 

administrative support, including clerical.

Service workers–private household workers, protective 

services, food preparers, health services, cleaning and 

building services, and personal service occupations.

Precision production, craft, and repair workers–

mechanics and repairers, construction trades, extractive 

occupations, and precision production occupations.

Operators, fabricators, and laborers–machine operators 

and assemblers, transportation workers, handlers and 

laborers, and farming, forestry, and fishery workers.

Retired–retired persons who did not work either full- or 

part-time during the survey period.

All others, including not reporting–a residual including 

unemployed persons; those working without pay; those 

not working due to illness, going to school, or caring 

for others; and those not reporting their occupational 

status.

Population. Total civilian noninstitutional population of 

the United States, as well as that portion of the institutional 

population living in the following group quarters: Boarding 

houses; housing facilities for students and workers; staff 

units in hospitals and homes for the aged, infirm, or needy; 

permanent living quarters in hotels and motels; and mobile 

home parks. Excluded are military personnel living on 

military bases and nursing home residents.

Quintiles of income before taxes. For each time period 

represented in the tables, consumer units are ranked in 

ascending order, according to the level of total before-tax 

income reported by the consumer unit. The ranking is then 

divided into five equal groups. 

Race. Race of the reference person of the consumer unit.

All families are included in two racial groups: Black or 

African American and White, Asian, and All Other. The 

All Other group comprises such races as Native Americans, 

Alaskan Natives, Pacific Islanders, and beginning in 2003, 

Multirace.

Reference person. The first member mentioned by the 

respondent when asked to, “Start with the name of the person 

or one of the persons who owns or rents the home.” It is 

with respect to this person that the relationship of the other 

consumer unit members is determined.

Regions. Data are presented for four major regions: Northeast, 

Midwest, South, and West. Consumer units are classified 

by region, according to the address at which the family was 

residing during the time of their participation in the survey. 

The regions comprise the following States:

Northeast – Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New 

Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, 

Rhode Island, and Vermont

Midwest – Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, 

Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, 

South Dakota, and Wisconsin

South – Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of 

Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, 

Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, 

South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West 

Virginia

West – Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, 

Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, 

Washington, and Wyoming

Rural population. All persons living outside a Metropolitan 

Statistical Area (MSA) and within an area with a population 

of less than 2,500 persons. See the definition for urban 

population below.

Size of the consumer unit. Number of persons whose usual 

place of residence at the time of the interview is in the sample 

unit.

Urban population. All persons living in Metropolitan 

Statistical Areas (MSAs) and in urbanized areas and urban 

places of 2,500 or more persons outside of MSAs. Urban, as 

defined in this survey, includes the rural populations within 

an MSA.
20

Expenditures consist of the transaction costs, including excise 

and sales taxes, of goods and services acquired during the 

interview or recordkeeping period. Expenditure estimates 

include expenditures for gifts, but exclude purchases 

or portions of purchases directly assignable to business 

purposes. Also excluded are periodic credit or installment 

payments on goods or services already acquired. The full cost 

of each purchase is recorded, even though full payment may 

not have been made at the date of purchase. The order of the 

expenditures listed here follows the order of presentation in 

the reference tables.

Food

Food at home refers to the total expenditures for food at 

grocery stores (or other food stores) and food prepared by the 

consumer unit on trips. It excludes the purchase of nonfood 

items.

Cereals and cereal products includes ready-to-eat and 

cooked cereals, pasta, flour, prepared flour mixes, and other 

cereal products, such as cornmeal, cornstarch, and rice.

Bakery products includes bread, crackers and cookies, 

biscuits and rolls, cakes, cupcakes, bread and cracker 

products, pies, tarts, sweet rolls, coffee cakes, doughnuts, 

and frozen and refrigerated bakery products, such as cookies, 

bread and cake dough, and batter.

Beef includes ground beef, roasts, steaks, and other cuts of 

beef (excluding canned beef), and veal. 

Pork includes bacon, pork chops, ham (including canned), 

roasts, sausage, and other cuts of pork.

Other meats includes frankfurters; lunch meats, such as 

bologna, liverwurst, and salami; lamb and organ meats; and 

mutton, goat, and game.

Poultry includes fresh and frozen chickens and other fresh 

and frozen poultry (Cornish hens, turkey, duck, etc.).

Fish and seafood includes canned fish and seafood and 

fresh or frozen finfish and shellfish.

Eggs includes fresh eggs, as well as powdered eggs and 

egg substitutes.

Fresh milk and cream includes fresh whole milk and other 

fresh milk, such as buttermilk and fresh cream (including 

table cream, whipping cream, fresh sour cream, and fresh 

sour cream dressing).

Other dairy products includes butter, cheese, ice cream 

products, yogurt, powdered milk, condensed and evaporated 

milk, liquid and powdered diet beverages, malted milk, milk 

shakes, chocolate milk, and other specified dairy products.

Fresh fruits includes all fresh fruits.

Fresh vegetables includes all fresh vegetables.

Processed fruits includes all frozen fruits and fruit juices, 

canned and dried fruits, and canned or bottled fruit juices.

Processed vegetables includes canned, dried, and frozen 

vegetables, and vegetable juices.

Sugar and other sweets includes sugar; candy and chewing 

gum; artificial sweeteners; and jams, jellies, preserves, fruit 

butters, syrup, fudge mixes, icings, and other sweets.

Fats and oils includes margarine, shortening, salad 

dressings, vegetable oils, nondairy cream substitutes and 

imitation milk, and peanut butter.

Miscellaneous foods includes frozen prepared meals 

and other foods; canned and packaged soups; potato chips, 

nuts and other snacks; seasonings and condiments, such as 

olives, pickles, relishes, sauces and gravies, baking needs and 

other specified condiments; and other canned and packaged 

prepared foods, such as salads, desserts, baby foods, and 

vitamin supplements.

Nonalcoholic beverages includes diet and nondiet 

carbonated drinks (cola, fruit, and other carbonated drinks); 

coffee (roasted, instant, and freeze dried); tea (loose, instant, 

and ready-to-drink); ice; nonalcoholic beer; and other 

nonalcoholic beverages, including noncarbonated fruit drinks, 

breakfast substitutes, chocolate flavored powders; others. 

Food away from home includes all meals (breakfast and 

brunch, lunch, dinner, and snacks and nonalcoholic beverages) 

including tips at fast food, take-out, delivery, concession 

stands, buffet and cafeteria, at full-service restaurants, and 

at vending machines and mobile vendors. Also included are 

board (including at school), meals as pay, special catered 

affairs, such as weddings, bar mitzvahs, and confirmations, 

school lunches, and meals away from home on trips.

Alcoholic beverages includes beer and ale, wine, whiskey, 

gin, vodka, rum, and other alcoholic beverages.

Housing

Owned dwellings includes interest on mortgages, interest 

on home equity loans and lines of credit, property taxes and 

insurance, refinancing and prepayment charges, ground rent, 

expenses for property management/security, homeowners’ 

insurance, expenses for repairs and maintenance contracted 

out, and expenses of materials for owner-performed repairs 

and maintenance for dwellings used or maintained by the 

consumer unit. Mortgage principal repayments are payments 

of loans and are shown in Other financial information.

Rented dwellings includes rent paid for dwellings, 

rent received as pay, parking fees, maintenance, and other 

expenses.

Other lodging includes all expenses for vacation homes, 

school, college, hotels, motels, and other lodging while out 

of town.

Utilities, fuels, and public services includes natural gas; 

electricity; fuel oil and other fuels, such as wood, kerosene, 

coal, and bottled gas; water and other public services, such as 

garbage and trash collection, sewerage maintenance, septic 

tank cleaning; and telephone charges.

Personal services includes baby-sitting; day care, nursery 

Expenditures
2

school, and preschool tuition; care of the elderly, invalids, and 

handicapped; adult day care; and domestic and other duties.

Other household expenses includes housekeeping services, 

gardening and lawn care services, coin-operated laundry and 

dry-cleaning (non-clothing), termite and pest control products 

and services, home security systems service fees, moving, 

storage, and freight expenses, repair of household appliances 

and other household equipment, repair of computer systems 

for home use, computer information services, reupholstering 

and furniture repair, rental and repair of lawn and gardening 

tools, and rental of other household equipment.

Housekeeping supplies includes laundry and cleaning 

supplies, cleaning and toilet tissues, stationery supplies, 

postage, delivery services, miscellaneous household products, 

and lawn and garden supplies.

Household textiles includes bathroom, bedroom, kitchen 

and dining room, other linens, curtains and drapes, slipcovers 

and decorative pillows, and sewing materials.

Furniture includes living room; dining room; kitchen; 

bedroom; nursery; and porch, lawn, and other outdoor 

furniture.

Floor coverings includes new and replacement wall-towall carpets, and non-permanent floor coverings.

Major appliances includes refrigerators and freezers, 

dishwashers and garbage disposals, stoves and ovens, vacuum 

cleaners, microwaves, air-conditioners, sewing machines, 

washing machines and dryers, and floor cleaning equipment.

Small appliances/miscellaneous housewares includes 

small electrical kitchen appliances, portable heating and 

cooling equipment, china and other dinnerware, flatware, 

glassware, silver and other serving pieces, nonelectric 

cookware, tableware, nonelectric kitchenware, and plastic 

dinnerware. (excludes personal care appliances)

Miscellaneous household equipment includes luggage, 

lamps and light fixtures, window coverings, clocks, floral 

arrangements and house plants, lawnmowers and gardening 

equipment, other hand and power tools, telephone answering 

devices, telephones and accessories, computers and computer 

hardware for home use, computer software and accessories 

for home use, calculators, typewriters, business equipment 

for home use, personal digital assistants, internet services 

away from home, rental of furniture, closet and storage items, 

other household decorative items, infants’ equipment, outdoor 

equipment, smoke alarms, other household appliances, and 

other small miscellaneous furnishings.

Apparel and services

Men’s and boys’ apparel includes coats and jackets, sweaters 

and vests, sport coats and tailored jackets, trousers and 

slacks, shorts and short sets, sportswear, shirts, underwear, 

nightwear, hosiery, uniforms, and accessories.

Women’s and girls’ apparel includes coats and jackets, furs, 

sport coats and tailored jackets, sweaters and vests, blouses 

and shirts, dresses, jeans, culottes, slacks, shorts, sportswear, 

underwear, nightwear, uniforms, hosiery, and accessories.

Apparel for children under age 2 includes coats, jackets, 

and snowsuits; underwear; diapers; dresses; crawlers and 

other sleeping garments; hosiery; footwear; and accessories.

Footwear includes articles such as shoes, slippers, boots, 

and other similar items. It excludes footwear for children 

under age 2 and special footwear used for sports such as 

bowling or golf shoes.

Other apparel products and services includes material for 

making clothes, shoe repair, alterations and repairs, sewing 

patterns and notions, clothing rental, clothing storage, dry 

cleaning and sent-out laundry, watches, jewelry, and repairs 

to watches and jewelry.

Transportation

Vehicle purchases (net outlay) includes the net outlay 

(purchase price minus trade-in value) on new and used 

domestic and imported cars and trucks and other vehicles, 

including attachable campers, trailers, motorcycles, and 

private planes.

Vehicle finance charges includes the dollar amount of 

interest paid for a loan contracted for the purchase of vehicles 

described above.

Gasoline and motor oil includes gasoline, diesel fuel, and 

motor oil.

Maintenance and repairs includes tires, batteries, tubes, 

lubrication, filters, coolant, additives, brake and transmission 

fluids, oil change, brake work including adjustment, front-end 

alignment, wheel balancing, steering repair, shock absorber 

replacement, clutch and transmission repair, electrical system 

repair, exhaust system repair, body work and painting, motor 

repair, repair to cooling system, drive train repair, drive shaft 

and rear-end repair, tire repair, audio and video equipment, 

other maintenance and services, and auto repair policies.

Vehicle insurance includes the premium paid for insuring 

cars, trucks, and other vehicles.

Public transportation includes fares for mass transit, buses, 

trains, airlines, taxis, school buses for which a fee is charged, 

and boats.

Vehicle rental, leases, licenses, and other charges includes 

leased and rented cars, trucks, motorcycles, and aircraft; 

inspection fees; State and local registration; driver’s license 

fees; inspection fees; parking fees; towing charges; tolls 

and electronic toll passes; global positioning services; and 

automobile service clubs.

Health care

Health insurance includes traditional fee-for-service health 

plans, preferred-provider health plans, health maintenance 

organizations (HMOs), Medicare payments, commercial 

Medicare supplements, long term care insurance, and other 

health insurance.

Medical services includes hospital room and services, 

physicians’ services, service by a professional other than a 

physician, eye and dental care, lab tests and x-rays, medical 

care in a retirement community, care in convalescent or 

nursing home, and other medical care service.

Drugs includes nonprescription drugs and vitamins and 

prescription drugs.

Medical supplies includes topicals and dressings, 
22

antiseptics, bandages, cotton, first aid kits, contraceptives, 

syringes, ice bags, thermometers, sun lamps, vaporizers, 

heating pads, medical appliances (such as braces, canes, 

crutches, walkers, eyeglasses, and hearing aids), and rental 

and repair of medical equipment.

Entertainment

Fees and admissions includes fees for participant sports; 

admissions to sporting events, movies, concerts, and plays; 

health, swimming, tennis and country club memberships; 

fees for other social, recreational, and fraternal organizations; 

recreational lessons or instruction; rental of movies, and 

recreation expenses on trips.

Audio and visual equipment and services includes 

televisions; radios; phonographs; community antenna 

and cable TV; tape recorders and players; online gaming 

services; VCRs and video disc players; miscellaneous sound 

equipment; sound equipment accessories; video cassettes, 

tapes, and discs; video game hardware and software; 

streaming, downloading video; rental and repair of TV, VCR, 

radio, and sound equipment; personal digital audio players; 

sound components and component systems; satellite dishes; 

CDs, records, audio tapes; streaming, downloading audio; 

musical instruments and accessories, and rental and repair of 

such; and rental of video cassettes, tapes, films, and discs.

Pets, toys, hobbies, and playground equipment includes 

pets, (pet food, pet services, veterinary expenses, etc.); toys, 

games, arts and crafts, tricycles; hobbies, and playground 

equipment.

Other entertainment supplies, equipment, and services 

includes indoor exercise equipment; athletic shoes; bicycles; 

trailers; purchase and rental of motorized campers and 

other recreational vehicles; camping equipment; hunting 

and fishing equipment; sports equipment (winter, water, 

and other); boats, boat motors, and boat trailers; rental

of boats; landing and docking fees; rental and repair of

sports equipment; global positioning system devices; 

photographic equipment, supplies, and services (film and 

film processing); photographer fees; repair and rental of 

photo equipment; fireworks; and pinball and electronic video 

games.

Other expenditures

Personal care products and services includes products for 

the hair, oral hygiene products, shaving needs, cosmetics 

and bath products, electric personal care appliances, other 

personal care products, and personal care services.

Reading includes subscriptions for newspapers and 

magazines; books through book clubs; and the purchase of 

single-copy newspapers, magazines, newsletters, books, and 

encyclopedias and other reference books.

Education includes tuition; fees; and textbooks, supplies, 

and equipment for public and private nursery schools, 

elementary and high schools, colleges and universities, and 

other schools.

Tobacco products and smoking supplies includes 

cigarettes, cigars, snuff, loose smoking tobacco, chewing 

tobacco, and smoking accessories (such as cigarette or cigar 

holders, pipes, flints, lighters, and pipe cleaners).

Miscellaneous includes safety deposit box rentals, 

checking account fees and other bank service charges, 

lotteries and pari-mutuel losses, credit card memberships, 

shopping club membership fees, legal fees, accounting 

fees, funerals, cemetery lots, dating services, occupational 

expenses, expenses for other properties, and finance charges 

other than those for mortgages and vehicles.

Cash contributions includes cash contributed to persons or 

organizations outside the consumer unit, including alimony 

and child support payments, and care of students away from 

home; gifts of stocks, bonds, and mutual funds to persons 

outside the consumer unit; and contributions to religious, 

educational, charitable, or political organizations.

Life, endowment, annuities, and other personal insurance 

includes premiums for whole life and term insurance; 

endowments; income and other life insurance; mortgage 

guarantee insurance; mortgage life insurance; premiums for 

personal liability, accident and disability, and other nonhealth 

insurance other than for homes and vehicles.

Retirement, pensions, and Social Security includes all 

Social Security contributions paid by employees; employee 

contributions to railroad retirement, government retirement, 

and private pension programs; and retirement programs for 

the self-employed.

Income and personal taxes

Income

Income is the combined income of all consumer unit members 

(14 years of age or older) during the 12 months preceding th

interview. Components of income are described below. The 

order of the definitions of income and personal taxes follows 

the order of presentation in the reference tables.

For a definition of quintiles of income, see the section on 

characteristics at the beginning of this glossary.

Money income before taxes is the total money earnings 

and selected money receipts during the 12 months prior to

the interview date. Money income includes the following 

components:

Wages and salaries includes total money earnings of all 

consumer unit members (14 years of age and older) from all

jobs, including civilian wages and salaries; Armed Forces 

pay and allowances; piece-rate payments; commissions; 

tips; National Guard or Reserve pay (received for training 

periods); and cash bonuses before deductions for taxes, 

pensions, union dues, etc.

Self-employment income includes net business and farm 

income, which consists of net income (gross receipts minus 

operating expenses) from a profession or unincorporated 

business or from the operation of a farm by an owner, tenant, 

or sharecropper. If the business or farm is a partnership, only 
23

an appropriate share of net income is recorded. Losses are 

also recorded.

Social Security, private and government retirement includes 

the following: (1) payments by the Federal Government

made under retirement, survivors’, and disability insurance 

programs to retired persons, dependents of deceased insured 

workers, or disabled workers and (2) private pensions

or retirement benefits received by retired persons (or

their survivors), either directly or through an insurance 

company.

Interest, dividends, rental income, and other property 

income includes interest income on savings or bonds; 

payments made by a corporation to its stockholders; periodic 

receipts from estates or trust funds; net income or loss from 

the rental of property, real estate, or farms; and net income or 

loss from roomers or boarders.

Unemployment and workers’ compensation and veterans’ 

benefits includes income from unemployment compensation 

and workers’ compensation and veterans’ payments, including 

educational benefits but excluding military retirement.

Public assistance, supplemental security income, and 

food stamps includes public assistance or welfare, including 

money received from job training grants; supplemental 

security income paid by Federal, State, and local welfare 

agencies to low-income persons who are age 65 or over, 

blind, or disabled; and the value of food stamps obtained.

Regular contributions for support includes alimony and 

child support, as well as any regular contributions from 

persons outside the consumer unit.

Other income includes money income from care of foster 

children, cash scholarships, fellowships, or stipends not based 

on working and meals or rent as pay.

Personal taxes

Federal income taxes includes Federal income taxes withheld 

in the survey year to pay for income earned in that survey 

year, plus additional taxes paid in the survey year to cover 

any underpayment or underwithholding of taxes in the year 

prior to the survey.

State and local income taxes includes State and local 

income taxes withheld in the survey year to pay on income 

earned in the survey year, plus additional taxes paid in the 

survey year to cover any underpayment or underwithholding 

of taxes in the year prior to the survey.

Other taxes includes personal property and other personal 

taxes paid.

These items are not part of expenditures or income. They are 

provided for additional information.

Net change in assets includes changes in savings and 

checking accounts; purchases of securities (stocks, bonds, 

or mutual funds) in the year which they were held to the 

end of the year; sales of securities which were purchased 

in a prior year; changes in the balances of money owed to 

the consumer unit; sales and purchases and repairs and 

improvements to own dwelling occupied by the consumer 

unit, vacation home, recreational property, unimproved land 

and other property owned by the consumer unit; changes 

in investments in unincorporated family businesses and 

farms; amounts received or reimbursements from the sale of 

vehicles; principal amounts of trust held on own dwelling, 

vacation home, and other properties owned by the consumer 

unit; and surrender of insurance policies. (This value has a 

positive or negative sign to indicate increases or decreases in 

assets.)

Net change in liabilities includes changes in mortgage 

principal on own dwelling occupied by the consumer unit, 

vacation home, recreational property, unimproved land 

and other property owned by the consumer unit; payments 

of mortgage interest due before either survey year of the 

survey period; money owed on purchases of cars, trucks, and 

Other financial information

other vehicles; and money owed to other creditors, such as 

department stores, banks, credit unions, finance companies, 

insurance companies, doctors, dentists, and other medical 

practitioners. This value has a positive or negative sign to 

indicate increases or decreases in liabilities.

Other money receipts includes lump-sum payments 

from estates or trusts, insurance, money from sale of house 

furnishings, refunds from overpayment on Social Security, 

refunds from insurance policies, and refunds from property 

taxes.

Mortgage principal paid on owned property includes the 

reduction of mortgage principal on a mortgage or home 

equity loan for a home or any other property. (This is not 

included in homeowner costs but is repayment of a loan.)

Estimated market value of owned home is the approximate 

value of the property in the current market.

Estimated monthly rental value of owned home is the 

approximate monthly rental value of the property in the 

current market. 

Gifts of goods and services includes gift expenditures for 

persons outside the consumer unit. These items have already 

been defined in the Expenditures section. Their values are 

given, so they can be subtracted from the expenditure totals, 

if the value of consumption within the household is desired.
24

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS or the Bureau) 

has been gathering information on the spending 

patterns and living costs of American consumers for 

more than a century—since the first such survey in 1888–91. 

Survey methods have been greatly improved and refined over 

the years. A major methodological improvement, first used 

in the 1972–73 survey, was the introduction of two separate

surveys—a quarterly interview survey and a weekly diary or 

recordkeeping survey—rather than a single interview survey, 

relying primarily on annual recall by survey participants. 

The Bureau added a further enhancement in 1980, when it

began data collection for the survey on a continuing basis, 

rather than at intervals of about 10 years

The Bureau designed the surveys so each has its own 

questionnaire and sample. For the quarterly Interview Survey, 

an interviewer visits every consumer unit in the sample 

every 3 months over a 12-month period. It was designed to

obtain data on the types of expenditures respondents can be 

expected to recall for a period of 3 months or longer. For 

the Diary Survey, consumer units are asked to complete a 

record of expenses for two consecutive 1-week periods. It

was designed to obtain detailed data on frequently purchased 

small items such as food and beverages (both at home and in 

eating places).

Integrating data from the Interview and Diary Surveys 

provides a complete accounting of expenditures and income 

that neither survey component alone is designed to do. 

Expenditure levels and expenditure shares (the percent of the 

total spent on each category) shown in this report result from 

integrating the Diary and Interview Survey data. 

Description of survey

BLS contracts with the U.S. Census Bureau to carry out data 

collection for both surveys. In the Interview Survey, a U.S. 

Census Bureau field representative meets with respondents 

and collects expenditure and income data via a computerassisted personal interview questionnaire. In the Diary 

Survey, respondents are asked to report all expenditures made 

during their 2-week participation in the survey. Expenditures 

and related data are recorded in a self-reporting record of 

daily living expenses. All data collected in both surveys 

are subject to confidentiality requirements that prevent the 

disclosure of respondents’ identities or such geographic 

identifiers that may lead to their identification.

In addition to the Interview Survey questionnaire and the 

Diary Survey record of daily expenses, information pertaining 

to age, sex, race, marital status, and family composition 

is collected from each survey respondent in a Household 

Characteristics Questionnaire. The questionnaire also asks 

for information on work experience, occupation, industry, 

retirement status, and income. Income includes member 

earnings from wages and salaries, net income from a business 

or profession, net income from a farm, and income from all 

other sources. Data on household characteristics are collected 

to determine the eligibility of the family for inclusion in the 

population covered by the Consumer Price Index, to classify 

families by family type for purposes of analysis, and to adjust 

for nonresponse by families who do not cooperate in the 

survey. These data also provide the link between the Diary 

and Interview Surveys to permit the integration of the data by 

demographic characteristics.

Quarterly Interview Survey. The quarterly interview portion 

of the survey is designed to collect data on major items of 

expense, household characteristics, and income. The survey 

covers expenditures that one would expect respondents to recall 

for 3 months or longer, such as those for property, automobiles, 

and major appliances, and those that occur on a regular basis, 

such as rent, insurance premiums, and utilities. The survey 

includes detailed data on an estimated 60 to 70 percent of total 

household expenditures. In addition, global estimates, that is, 

expense patterns for a 3-month period, are obtained for food 

and other selected items, accounting for an additional 20 to 

25 percent of total expenditures. Each sample household is 

interviewed once per quarter, for five consecutive quarters. 

Data collected in each quarter are estimated independently, 

so annual estimates do not depend upon the participation of a 

consumer unit for the full five quarters.

New panels are introduced into the interview sample on a 

monthly basis, as other panels complete their participation. 

For the Interview Survey as a whole, 20 percent of the sample 

is dropped and a new group added each quarter. This rotating 

procedure allows panel estimates to reflect population 

changes; it also provides operational efficiency by distributing 

interviewer workload across time.

For the initial interview, information is collected on 

demographic and family characteristics and on the inventory 

of major durable goods of each consumer unit. Expenditure 

information is also collected in this interview, with a 1

month recall. Expenditure information is used, along with 

the inventory information for bounding purposes to minimize 

telescoping errors. These errors, common in retrospective 

interviews, result from a tendency to report past events in the 

reference period of the survey.

Appendix B. Integration

and Survey Methods
25

The second through fifth interviews use uniform 

questionnaires to collect expenditure information in each 

quarter. In the second and fifth interviews, information also 

is obtained on income, such as wage and salary earnings, 

unemployment compensation, child support, and alimony, as 

well as information on the employment of each household 

member. For new consumer unit members and members 

who started work since the second interview, interviewers 

ask for wage, salary, and other information on employment 

in the third and fourth interviews. If there is no new 

employment information, information is carried over from 

the second interview to the third and fourth. In the fifth 

interview, a supplement is used to collect changes in assets 

and liabilities. 

Households that move away from the sample address 

between interviews are dropped from the survey. New 

households that move into the sample address are screened for 

eligibility and, if found qualified, are included in the survey.

Diary Survey. The Diary portion of the survey collects 

expenditure data for small items purchased on a daily or 

weekly basis, such as food, beverages, food consumed away 

from home, housekeeping supplies, nonprescription drugs and 

medical supplies, and personal care products and services. 

However, participants are asked to record all purchases made 

each day for two consecutive 1-week periods. Respondents

receive each weekly diary during a separate visit by a Census 

Bureau interviewer. The data collected in each week are used 

independently in the annual estimates, so participation of a 

consumer unit for both weeks is not required. However, most 

respondents participate for both weeks.

Beginning in 2004, the CE implemented multiple 

imputation of income to provide estimated values for missing 

income data. This process is applied to both Interview and 

Diary survey data. As such, data from 2004 are not strictly 

comparable to data from previous years. For a full explanation 

of income imputation, see the Changes to the 2004 and 2005 

Consumer Expenditure Survey Published Tables and Selected 

Highlights section. 

Integration methods

The Interview Survey is designed to capture major expenditure 

items, household characteristics, and income data. While the 

Diary survey was designed to capture expenditure information 

on items that respondents do not recall accurately over long 

periods of time, the scope of the survey includes all expenses 

(except overnight travel) that a consumer unit incurs during 

the survey week. This includes major items of expense and 

also items for which outlays occur on a regular basis, both 

of which are more accurately collected in the Interview 

Survey. Therefore, the Diary and Interview Surveys overlap 

considerably in their coverage of household expenditures. In 

a procedure known as integration, BLS chooses the Diary 

or Interview component of the CE as the most statistically 

reliable source for each expenditure item for both CE 

publications and data comparisons.

For integration, expenditure items are classified into three 

groups:

• Those that are collected solely in the Diary Survey, such 

as detailed food expenditures, personal care items, postage, 

housekeeping supplies, and nonprescription drugs.

• Those that, by definition and degree of detail, are 

necessarily taken from the Interview Survey. For example, 

the Diary Survey asks for out-of-pocket expenditures but 

does not request information on reimbursements, hence, 

the Interview Survey is used as the source for expenditures 

that are partially or completely reimbursed. The Interview 

Survey is also the source for expenditures on trips (overnight 

and longer) because the Diary Survey does not collect data on 

those expenditures.

• Those for which data are available from both the Diary 

and Interview Surveys and where definitional considerations 

are not a factor. The source must be determined for this 

group.

The source selection procedure uses 3 years of data. It 

starts with significance tests on Diary and Interview means 

for a 5-digit UCC (UCC-5). A Universal Classification 

Code (UCC) is a 6-digit member of a coding scheme that 

classifies expenditures. It is the lowest level at which CE 

expenditures are tabulated. A UCC-5 expenditure category 

results from aggregating data over the sixth digit level of 

detail. If the Diary and Interview UCC-5 means are not 

significantly different from each other, the source with the 

lower coefficient of variation (C.V.) is selected for every 

UCC within the UCC-5 category.

If the Diary and Interview UCC-5 means are significantly 

different from each other, the source is selected at a higher 

level of aggregation called the COMPLINE. A COMPLINE 

consists of one or more UCCs, and is the lowest level at 

which CE and Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) 

data are directly comparable. The PCE is a component of 

the National Income and Product Accounts of the Bureau of 

Economic Analysis of the U.S. Department of Commerce. 

It measures the entire personal sector of the economy and 

provides estimates that can be compared with many, although 

not all, types of expenditures covered by the Consumer 

Expenditure Survey.

 If the Diary and Interview means 

are not significantly different at the COMPLINE level, the 

survey with the lower C.V. is selected as the source for every 

UCC in the COMPLINE that was not assigned a source in a 

previous step.

If the COMPLINE means are significantly different, the 

PCE is brought in to aid in the selection process. The mean 

squared error (MSE) of a COMPLINE-level expenditure 

mean is estimated for both the Diary and Interview surveys 

by the equation below:

where CEi,s is the mean expenditure for the i-th COMPLINE 

in survey s (Diary or Interview), PCEi is the mean expenditure 

for the i-th COMPLINE using PCE data, and Vi,s is the 

variance of CEi,s. The survey with the lower MSE is the 

1 Raymond Gieseman, “The Consumer Expenditure Survey: Qualit

Control by Comparative Analysis,” Monthly Labor Review, March 1987, pp.

8-14

2

, , , ( ) sisi si −+= PCECEVMSE i
26

source for every UCC that was not previously assigned 

a source. Appendix C gives a complete list of the source 

selections.

The above-mentioned tests of significance at the UCC5 and COMPLINE levels are actually performed on log 

transformations of the means. Log transformation helps make 

the distributions of the sample data symmetric.

Sample Design

The Consumer Expenditure Survey is a nationwide 

household survey designed to represent the total U.S. civilian 

noninstitutional population. It includes people living in 

houses, condominiums, apartments, and group quarters such 

as college dormitories. It excludes people such as military 

personnel living on base, nursing home residents, and people 

in prisons.

The selection of households for the survey begins with the 

definition and selection of geographic areas called primary 

sampling units (PSUs). PSUs are counties (or parts thereof), 

or groups of counties. The set of PSUs used for the 2004 

sample consists of 105 geographic areas. The sample PSUs

were classified into four categories:

• 31 “A” PSUs, which are Metropolitan Statistical Areas

(MSAs) with a population greater than 1.5 million

• 46 “B” PSUs, which are medium-sized MSAs.

• 10 “C” PSUs, which are nonmetropolitan areas that ar

used in the Consumer Price Index.

• 18 “D” PSUs, which are nonmetropolitan areas wher

only the urban portion of the population is used in the 

Consumer Price Index.

The sampling frame (the list of addresses from which the 

sample is drawn) for the 2004 survey was generated from the 

1990 Census 100-percent detail file. New construction permits 

and techniques used to eliminate recognized deficiencies in 

census coverage augmented the sampling frame. 

Beginning with the use of the 2005 sample, the definition of 

PSUs was modified such that a PSU is now defined as a county 

(or part thereof), or a group of counties, or independent cities 

grouped together into geographic entities called core-based 

statistical areas (CBSAs). The CBSAs are also placed into 

categories. A CBSA is categorized based on the population 

of the largest urban area [urbanized area or urban cluster] 

within the CBSA. Categories of CBSAs are: Metropolitan 

Statistical Areas, based on urbanized areas with a population 

of 50,000 or more, and Micropolitan Statistical Areas, based 

on urban clusters with a population of at least 10,000 but less

than 50,000. The sample of PSUs used in the 2005 survey 

consists of 102 geographic areas, of which 86 urban areas are

also used by the Consumer Price Index program.

The PSUs are classified into four categories:

• 28 “A” PSUs, which are metropolitan CBSAs with a

 population over 2.7 million people.

• 42 “X” PSUs, which are metropolitan CBSAs with a 

 population under 2.7 million people.

• 16 “Y” PSUs, which are micropolitan CBSAs

• 16 “Z” PSUs, which are non-CBSA areas, and are oft

referred to as rural PSUs.

Within these 102 PSUs, the sampling frame (the list of

addresses from which the sample is drawn) is generated 

from the 2000 Census 100-percent detail file. Again, it 

is augmented by a sample of addresses drawn from new 

construction permits and by extra housing units identified 

through coverage improvement techniques.

The U.S. Census Bureau selects a sample of approximately 

12,000 addresses per year to participate in the Diary Survey.

Usable diaries are obtained from approximately 7,100

households at those addresses. Diaries are not obtained from 

the other addresses due to refusals, vacancies, ineligibility, 

or the nonexistence of a housing unit at the selected address. 

The actual placement of diaries is spread equally over all 52 

weeks of the year.

Approximately 14,000 addresses are contacted in each

calendar quarter of the year for the Interview survey. Onefifth of the addresses contacted each quarter are new to 

the survey and provide bounding interviews that provide 

baseline data, which are not used to compute the survey’s 

published expenditure estimates. Excluding these bounding 

interviews and interviews not completed due to refusals, 

vacancies, ineligibility, or the nonexistence of a housing unit 

at the selected address, usable interviews are obtained from 

approximately 7,100 households each quarter. After a housing

unit has been in the sample for five consecutive quarters, it is 

dropped from the survey and a new housing unit is selected 

to replace it.

Response rates

Response data for the CE Interview Surveys for 2004 and 

2005 are shown in table B-1. For the CE Interview Survey,

the totals refer to housing units in the second through fifth 

quarters of the survey (the non-bounding interviews), 

with each unique housing unit providing up to four usable 

interviews. Response data for the CE Diary Surveys for 

2004 and 2005 are shown in table B-2. For the CE Diary 

Survey, the totals refer to housing units in weeks  and 2 of

the survey, with each unique housing unit providing up to 

two usable interviews. Most Diary respondents participate 

for both weeks.

There are three general categories of nonresponse:

• Type A nonresponses are refusals, temporary absences,

 and noncontacts

• Type B nonresponses are vacant housing units, housing

 units with temporary residents, and housing units under

 construction

• Type C nonresponses are destroyed or abandoned

 housing units, and housing units converted to

 nonresidential use

Type A nonresponses are considered to be in-scope and 

eligible units, because these units were able to participate 

in the survey but either chose not to do so or could not be 

contacted. Type B nonresponses are considered to be in-scope 

but ineligible units, because these addresses are vacant. Type 

C nonresponses are considered to be out-of-scope units.
27

Response rates are defined to be the percent of eligible 

housing units (i.e., the designated sample less Type B and Type 

C nonresponses) from which usable interviews are collected. 

In the 2005 CE Interview Survey there were 39,988 eligible 

housing units from which 29,804 usable interviews were 

collected, resulting in a response rate of 74.5 percent. In the 

2005 CE Diary Survey there were 21,309 eligible housing

units from which 15,126 usable interviews were collected

resulting in a response rate of 71.0 percent

Table B-1. Analysis of response in the CE Interview Survey,

2004 and 2005

Sample unit 2004 2005

 

Housing units designated for

the survey.............................................. 50,509 49,242

 Less: Type B or C nonresponses ..... 9,626 9,254

Equals: Eligible units ............................ 40,883 39,988

 Less: Type A nonresponses.............. 9,798 10,184

Equals: Interview units.......................... 31,085 29,804

Percent of eligible units interviewed ...... 76.0 74.5

Table B-2. Analysis of response in the CE Diary Survey,

2004 and 2005

Sample unit 2004 2005

Housing units designated for

the survey ............................................ 27,385 26,054

Less: Type B or C nonresponses...... 5,746 4,745

Equals: Eligible units ............................ 21,639 21,309

Less: Type A nonresponses.............. 6,722 6,183

Equals: Interview units.......................... 14,917 15,126

Percent of eligible units interviewed ...... 68.9 71.0

Weighting

Each consumer unit (CU) in the Consumer Expenditure 

Survey represents a given number of similar CUs in the 

U.S. civilian noninstitutional population. The translation of 

sample CUs into the universe of CUs is known as weighting. 

Several factors are involved in computing the weight of 

each consumer unit for which a usable interview is obtained. 

Each consumer unit is initially assigned a base weight, which 

is equal to the inverse of the consumer unit’s probability 

of being selected for the sample. Base weights in the 

Consumer Expenditure Survey are typically around 10,000,

which means that a consumer unit in the sample represents 

10,000 consumer units in the U.S. civilian noninstitutional

population—itself plus 9,999 other consumer units that were 

not selected for the sample. The base weight is then adjusted 

by the following factors to correct for certain nonsampling 

errors:

Weighting control factor. This adjusts for subsampling in the 

field. Subsampling occurs when a field representative visits a 

particular address and discovers multiple housing units where 

only one housing unit was expected.

Noninterview adjustment factor. This adjusts for interviews 

that cannot be conducted in occupied housing units due to a 

consumer unit’s refusal to participate in the survey or the fact 

that no one is home. This adjustment is based on the Census 

region of the country, household tenure (owner/renter), 

consumer unit size, and race of the reference person.

Calibration factor. This adjusts the weights to 24 known 

population counts to account for frame undercoverage. These 

known population counts are for age, race, household tenure 

(owner/renter), region of the country, and urban/rural. The 

population counts are updated quarterly. Each consumer unit 

is given its own unique calibration factor. There are infinitely 

many sets of calibration factors that make the weights add 

up to the 24 known population counts, and the Consumer 

Expenditure Survey selects the set that minimizes the amount 

of change made to the initial weights (initial weight = base 

weight x weighting control factor x noninterview adjustment 

factor).

The same national civilian noninstitutional population 

controls are used for both the Interview and Diary Survey 

weighting. Hence, both surveys yield the same demographic 

estimates for the controlled variables.

Data collection and processing

Due to differences in format and design, the Interview Survey 

and the Diary Survey are collected and processed separately. 

The U.S. Census Bureau, under contract with BLS, carries out 

data collection for both. In addition to its collection duties, 

the Census Bureau does field editing and coding, checks 

consistency, ensures quality control, and transmits the data to 

BLS. In preparing the data for analysis and publication, BLS 

performs additional review and editing procedures.

Quarterly Interview Survey. Beginning April 2003, Census 

Field Representatives (FRs) began collecting the Interview 

data using a Computer Assisted Personal Interview (CAPI) 

instrument. This was a major improvement from the paper 

and pencil data collection that had been in place since 

1980. The CAPI instrument enforces question skip patterns,

allows for data confirmation of high expenditure values, and 

reduces processing time. The FR performs some coding 

of expenses—by selecting from a predetermined list—for 

vehicle make and model, trip destination, and job types for 

alterations, maintenance, and repair. 

Data are electronically transferred from the FR’s laptop 

at completion of the interview to the Census Master Control 

System. The Census Bureau’s Demographics Surveys 

Division then reformats the data into SAS datasets and does 

some special processing for output to BLS (such as converting 

missing values to special characters and merging data records 

into the required BLS output structure.) Some data, like 

vehicle and mortgage records, are copied into an input file 

that is loaded on the laptops for subsequent interviews the 

next quarter. This way, a few fields are updated each quarter, 

rather than recollecting the entire data record. 

At BLS, a series of automated edits are applied to monthly 

data. These edits check for inconsistencies, identify missing 
28

expenditure amounts for later imputation, impute missing 

demographic variables, calculate weights, and adjust data 

to include sales tax and to exclude business expenses or 

reimbursed expenditures.

Monthly data files are then combined into quarterly 

databases, and a more extensive data review is carried out. 

This step includes a review of the following: Counts and 

means by region, family relationship coding inconsistencies, 

and selected extreme values for expenditure and income 

categories. Other adjustments convert mortgage and vehicle 

payments into principal and interest (using associated data 

on the interest rate and term of the loan). In addition, BLS 

verifies the various data transformations it performs. Cases 

of questionable data values or relationships are investigated, 

and errors are corrected prior to release of the data for public 

use.

Three major types of data adjustment routines—imputation, 

allocation, and time adjustment—improve estimates derived 

from the Interview Survey. Data imputation routines account 

for missing or invalid entries and affect all fields in the 

database, except assets. Missing or invalid attributes or 

expenditures are imputed. Allocation routines are applied 

when respondents provide insufficient detail to meet tabulation 

requirements. For example, combined expenditures for the 

fuels and utilities group are allocated among the components 

of that group, such as gas and electricity. Time adjustment 

routines are used to classify expenditures by month, prior 

to aggregation of the data to calendar-year expenditures. 

Tabulations are made before and after the data adjustment 

routines to analyze the results.

The CE implemented multiple imputations of income 

data starting with the publication of the 2004 data. Prior 

to that, only income data collected from complete income 

reporters were published. However, even complete income 

reporters did not provide information on all sources of 

income for which they reported receipt. With the collection 

of bracketed income data starting in 2001 this problem was

reduced, but not eliminated. A limitation was that bracketed 

data only provide a range in which income falls, rather than a 

precise value for that income. In contrast, imputation allows 

income values to be estimated when they are not reported. In 

multiple imputations, several estimates are made for the same 

consumer unit, and the average of these estimates is used in 

the published data. 

Diary Survey. At the beginning of the 2-week collection 

period, the Census Bureau interviewer, using the Household 

Characteristics Questionnaire (a CAPI instrument), records 

demographic information on members of each sampled 

consumer unit. At this time, the interviewer also leaves the 

Diary questionnaire―or daily expenditure record―with the 

consumer unit, to record expenditures for the week.

Respondents record all expenses incurred during their 

participation in the survey in the diary questionnaire, a selfreporting, product-oriented diary. The diary is divided by 

day of purchase and by a broad classification of goods and 

services.

At the end of the first week, the interviewer collects 

the diary, reviews the entries, answers any questions, and 

leaves a second diary. The interviewer picks up the second 

diary at the end of the second week and reviews the entries. 

During this time, the interviewer again uses the Household 

Characteristics Questionnaire to collect previous-year 

information on work experience and income. Each week of 

a consumer unit’s participation in the survey is treated as a 

separate occurrence.

The Census Bureau performs preliminary processing 

activities, including a number of data edits and adjustments. 

Data in the diaries are reviewed during a field edit for 

completeness and consistency. All notes are reviewed, so 

expenditure data can be transcribed to the questionnaire for 

keying. In addition, item codes are assigned to reported 

expenditure items, household and consumer unit codes 

are assigned to each household member, and industry and 

occupation codes are entered for each working member. 

After an initial clerical screening, data are key-entered 

into electronic formats and a computer file of the database 

containing these data is produced and transmitted monthly to 

BLS, along with image files of questionnaires.

Data are then processed by computer to calculate 

population weights based on BLS specifications, impute 

demographic characteristics for missing or inconsistent 

demographic data, impute values for weeks worked when 

nonresponse is encountered, and apply appropriate sales 

taxes to the expenditure items.

Using three monthly diary data files, BLS creates a 

quarterly database and screens it for invalid coding and 

inconsistent relationships, as well as for extreme values 

recorded or keyed erroneously. BLS then corrects any coding 

and extreme-value errors found.

Two types of data adjustment routines—allocation and 

imputation—improve the Diary Survey estimates. Allocation 

routines transform reports of nonspecific items into specific 

ones. For example, when respondents report expenditures 

for meat rather than beef or pork, allocations are made, 

using proportions derived from item-specific reports in 

other completed diaries. BLS imputes missing attributes, 

such as age or sex or package type, needed for mapping 

Diary expenditures. Income data from the Diary Survey are 

processed in the same way as in the Interview Survey.

Reliability of the data

Sample surveys are subject to two types of errors, sampling 

and nonsampling. Sampling error is the uncertainty in the 

Consumer Expenditure Survey’s estimates caused by the 

fact that data are collected from a sample of consumer units 

across the United States, instead of collecting data from every 

consumer unit. The United States has approximately 11

million consumer units. In 2005, usable data were collected 

in 29,804 quarterly interviews in the Interview Survey, and 

15,126 weekly diaries in the Diary Survey  Non-sampling erro

is the rest of the error. Non-sampling error includes things like 

incorrect information given by respondents, data processing 

errors, and so on. Non-sampling error occurs regardless of 
29

whether data are collected from a sample of consumer units or 

from the complete universe of consumer units.

The most common measure of the variability in a survey’s 

estimates caused by sampling error is the standard error of 

the estimates―the square root of the variance. The standard 

error of the Consumer Expenditure Survey’s estimates can 

be used to construct confidence intervals to test various 

statistical hypotheses. Tables showing the standard errors of 

the Consumer Expenditure Survey’s estimates are available 

on the Internet at the Consumer Expenditure Survey Web 

page: www.bls.gov/cex.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is constantly working to 

reduce error in the Consumer Expenditure Survey. Sampling 

error is reduced by using a sample of consumer units that 

is as large as possible given resource constraints. Nonsampling error is reduced through a series of computerized 

and professional data reviews, as well as through continuous 

survey process improvements and theoretical research.
30

I=Interview survey, D=Diary survey

I Number of consumer units (in thousands)

Consumer unit characteristics:

I Income before taxes

I Income after taxes

I Age of reference person

Average number in consumer unit:

I Persons

I Children under 1

I Persons 65 and over

I Earners

I Vehicles

 Owned

 Leased

Percent distribution:

 Sex of reference person

I Male 

I Female

 Housing tenure

 Homeowner

I With mortgage

I Without mortgage

I Renter

 Race of reference person

I Black or African American

I White, Asian, and all other races

I White

I Asian

I All other races

 Hispanic or Latino origin of reference person

I Hispanic or Latino

I Not Hispanic or Latino

 Education of reference person

I Elementary (1 - 8

I High school (9 - 12

I College

I Never attended and other

 At least one vehicle owned or leased

I Owned

I Leased

 Average annual expenditures

 Food

 At home

 Cereal and bakery products, total

 Cereals and cereal products

D Flour

D Prepared flour mixes

D Ready-to-eat and cooked cereals

D Rice

D Pasta, cornmeal, and other cereal products

 Bakery products

 Bread

D White bread

D Bread, other than white

 Crackers and cookies

D Crackers

D Cookies

D Frozen and refrigerated bakery products

 Other bakery products

D Biscuits and rolls

D Cakes and cupcakes

D Bread and cracker products

D Sweet rolls, coffee cakes, doughnuts

Meat, poultry, fish, and eggs

 Beef

D Ground beef

 Roast

D Chuck 

D Round 

D Other 

 Steak

D Round 

D Sirloin 

D Other 

D Other beef

 Pork

D Bacon

D Pork chops

 Ham

D Not canned

D Canned

D Sausage

D Other pork

 Other meats

D Frankfurters

 Lunch meats (cold cuts)

D Bologna, liverwurst, salami

D Other lunch meats

 Lamb, organ meats, and others

D Lamb and organ meats

D Mutton, goat, and game

 Poultry

 Fresh and frozen chickens

D Whole chicken

D Chicken parts

D Other poultry

 Fish and seafood

D Canned

D Fresh fish and shellfish

D Frozen fish and shellfish

D Eggs

 Dairy products

 Fresh milk and cream

D Fresh milk, all types

D Cream

 Other dairy products

D Butter

D Cheese

D Ice cream and related products

D Miscellaneous dairy products

 Fruits and vegetables

 Fresh fruits

D Apples

D Bananas

Appendix C. Survey Source of Data

for Integrated Tables
3

D Oranges

D Citrus fruits, excluding oranges

D Other fresh fruits

 Fresh vegetables

D Potatoes

D Lettuce

D Tomatoes

D Other fresh vegetables

 Processed fruits

 Frozen fruits and fruit juices

D Orange juice

D Fruits

D Fruit juices

D Canned fruits

D Dried fruit

D Fresh fruit juice

D Canned and bottled fruit juice

 Processed vegetables

D Frozen vegetables

 Canned and dried vegetables and juices

D Canned beans

D Canned corn

D Canned miscellaneous vegetables

D Dried peas

D Dried beans

D Dried miscellaneous vegetables

D Other processed vegetables

D Frozen vegetable juice

D Fresh and canned vegetable juice

 Other food at home

 Sugar and other sweets

D Candy and chewing gum

D Sugar

D Artificial sweeteners

D Jams, preserves; other sweets

 Fats and oils

D Margarine

D Fats and oils

D Salad dressings

D Nondairy cream and imitation milk

D Peanut butter

 Miscellaneous foods

 Frozen prepared foods

D Frozen meals

D Other frozen prepared foods

D Canned and packaged soups

 Potato chips, nuts, and other snacks

D Potato chips and other snacks

D Nuts

 Condiments and seasonings

D Salt, spices; other seasonings

D Olives, pickles; relishes

D Sauces and gravies

D Baking needs and misc. products

 Other canned/packaged prepared food

D Prepared salads

D Prepared desserts

D Baby food

D Miscellaneous prepared foods

D Vitamin supplements

 Nonalcoholic beverages (excl. juices)

D Cola

D Other carbonated drinks

 Coffee

D Roasted 

D Instant and freeze-dried 

D Noncarbonated fruit flavored drinks, including

 non-frozen lemonade

D Tea

D Nonalcoholic beer

D Other nonalcoholic beverages and ice

I Food prepared on out-of-town trips

 Food away from home

 Meals at restaurants, carry-outs, and other

 Lunch

D At fast food, take-out, delivery, concession 

 stands, buffet and cafeteria (other than employer

 and school cafeteria)

D At full service restaurants

D At vending machines and mobile vendors

D At employer and school cafeterias

 Dinner

D At fast food, take-out, delivery, concession 

 stands, buffet and cafeteria (other than employer

 and school cafeteria)

D At full service restaurants

D At vending machines and mobile vendors

D At employer and school cafeterias

 Snacks and nonalcoholic beverages

D At fast food, take-out, delivery, concession 

 stands, buffet and cafeteria (other than employer

 and school cafeteria)

D At full service restaurants

D At vending machines and mobile vendors

D At employer and school cafeterias

 Breakfast and brunch

D At fast food, take-out, delivery, concession 

 stands, buffet and cafeteria (other than employer

and school cafeteria)

D At full service restaurants

D At vending machines and mobile vendors

D At employer and school cafeterias

 

I Board (including at school)

I Catered affairs

I Food on out-of-town trips

I School lunches

I Meals as pay

 Alcoholic beverages

 At home

D Beer and ale

D Whiskey

D Wine

D Other alcoholic beverages

 Away from home

 Beer and ale

D At fast food, take-out, delivery, concession stands, 

 buffet and cafeteria

D At full service restaurants

D At vending machines and mobile vendors

D At employer 

D At board

D At catered affairs

 Wine

D At fast food, take-out, delivery, concession stands, 

 buffet and cafeteria

D At full service restaurants

D At vending machines and mobile vendors

D At employer

D At board

D At catered affairs

 Other alcoholic beverages

D At fast food, take-out, delivery, concession stands, 

 buffet and cafeteria

D At full service restaurants

D At vending machines and mobile vendors

D At employer

D At board

D At catered affairs

I Alcoholic beverages purchased on trips

 Housing

 Shelter

 Owned dwellings

 Mortgage interest and charges

I Mortgage interest

I Interest paid, home equity loan

I Interest paid, home equity line of credit

I Prepayment penalty charges

I Property taxes
32

 Maintenance, repairs, insurance, other expenses

I Homeowners’ insurance

I Ground rent

 Maintenance and repair services

I Painting and papering

I Plumbing and water heating

I Heat, air conditioning; electrical work

I Roofing and gutters

I Other repair or maintenance services

I Repair and replacement of hard surface 

I Repair of built-in appliances

 Maintenance and repair commodities

I Paints, wallpaper, and supplies

I Tools and equipment for painting and 

 wallpapering

I Plumbing supplies and equipment

I Electrical supplies, heating, and cooling 

 equipment

I Materials for hard surface floor repair and 

 replacement

I Materials and equipment for roof and gutters

I Materials for plastering, paneling, siding, 

 windows, doors, screens, awnings

I Materials for patio, walk, fence, driveway, 

 masonry, brick, and stucco work

I Materials for landscaping maintenance

 Miscellaneous supplies and equipment

I Material for insulation, other maintenance

 and repair 

I Materials to finish basement, remodel 

 rooms, or build patios, walks, etc.

 Property management and security

I Property management

I Management and upkeep services for security

I Parking

 Rented dwellings

I Rent

I Rent as pay

 Maintenance, insurance, and other expenses

I Tenant’s insurance

 Maintenance and repair services

I Repair or maintenance services

I Repair and replacement of hard surface 

I Repair of built-in appliances

 Maintenance and repair commodities

I Paint, wallpaper, and supplies

I Tools and equipment for painting and 

 wallpapering

I Materials for plastering, paneling, roofing, 

 gutters, etc.

I Materials for patio, walk, fence, driveway, 

 masonry; brick and stucco work

I Plumbing supplies and equipment

I Electrical supplies; heating and cooling 

 equipment

 Miscellaneous supplies or equipment

I Materials for insulation, other 

 maintenance and repair

I Materials for additions, finished 

 basements, remodeling rooms

I Construction materials for jobs not

 started

I Material for hard surface flooring

I Materials for landscape maintenance

 Other lodging

 Owned vacation homes

 Mortgage interest and charges

I Mortgage interest

I Interest paid, home equity loan

I Interest paid, home equity line of credit

I Prepayment penalty charge

I Property taxes

 Maintenance, insurance, and other expenses

I Homeowners’ insurance

I Ground rent

 Maintenance and repair services, total

I Repair and remodeling services

I Repair and replacement of hard surface 

 Maintenance and repair commodities

I Paints, wallpaper, supplies

I Tools and equipment for painting and 

 wallpapering

I Materials for plastering, paneling, 

roofing, gutters, downspouts

 windows, doors, screens, and awnings

I Materials for patio, walk, fence, drive, 

 masonry, brick, stucco

I Plumbing supplies and equipment

I Electrical supplies, heating and cooling 

 equipment

 Miscellaneous supplies and equipment

I Materials for insulation and other 

 maintenance and repair 

I Materials for finishing basements and 

 remodeling rooms

I Materials for hard surface flooring

I Materials for landscaping maintenance

 Property management and security

I Property management

I Management and upkeep services for 

 security

I Parking

I Housing while attending school

I Lodging while out of town

 Utilities, fuels, and public services

 Natural gas

I Renter

I Owned home

I Owned vacation home

I Rented vacation home

 Electricity

I Renter

I Owned home

I Owned vacation home

I Rented vacation home

 Fuel oil and other fuels

 Fuel oil

I Renter

I Owned home

I Owned vacation home

I Rented vacation home

 Coal, wood, and other fuels (2005)

I Renter

I Owned home

I Owned vacation home

I Rented vacation home

 Bottled gas

I Renter

I Owned home

I Owned vacation home

I Rented vacation home

I Telephone services

I Residential telephone/pay phones

I Cellular phone service

I Pager service 

I Phone cards 

 Water and other public services

 Water/sewerage maintenance

I Renter

I Owned home

I Owned vacation home

I Rented vacation home

 Trash/garbage collection

I Renter

I Owned home

I Owned vacation home
33

I Rented vacation home

 Septic tank cleaning

I Renter

I Owned home

I Owned vacation home

I Rented vacation home

 Household operations

 Personal services

I Baby-sitting and child care in own home

I Baby-sitting and child care in someone else’s home

I Care for elderly, invalids, handicapped, etc.

I Adult day care centers

I Day care centers, nursery, and preschools

 Other household expenses

I Housekeeping services

I Gardening, lawn care service

I Water softening service

D Household laundry and dry cleaning, sent out

 (non-clothing), not coin-operated

I Coin-operated household laundry and dry cleaning 

 (non-clothing)

I Services for termite and pest control

I Home security system service fee

I Other home services

I Termite and pest control products

I Moving, storage; freight express

I Appliance repair, including service center

I Reupholstering and furniture repair

I Repair and rental of lawn and garden equipment, 

 hand or power tools, other household equipment

I Appliance rental

I Rental of office equipment for non-business use

D Repair of miscellaneous household equipment and 

 furnishings

I Repair of computer systems for non-business use

I Computer information services

I Rental and installation of dishwashers, range hoods, 

 and garbage disposals

 Housekeeping supplies

 Laundry and cleaning supplies

D Soaps and detergents

D Other laundry cleaning products

 Other household products

D Cleansing and toilet tissue, paper towels, and 

 napkins

D Miscellaneous household products

D Lawn and garden supplies

 Postage and stationery

D Stationery, stationery supplies; gift wrap

D Postage

D Delivery services

 Household furnishings and equipment

 Household textiles

D Bathroom linens

D Bedroom linens

D Kitchen and dining room linens

I Curtains and drapes

D Slipcovers; decorative pillows

I Sewing materials for slipcovers, curtains; other 

 sewing materials for the home

I Other linens

 Furniture

I Mattresses and springs

I Other bedroom furniture

I Sofas

I Living room chairs

I Living room tables

I Kitchen, dining room furniture

I Infants’ furniture

I Outdoor furniture

I Wall units, cabinets; other occasional furniture

 Floor coverings

 Wall-to-wall carpet (renter)

I New

I Replacement

I Wall-to-wall carpet (replacement) (owned home)

I Floor coverings, non-permanent

 Major appliances

I Dishwashers (built-in), garbage disposals, range 

 hoods (renter)

I Dishwashers (built-in), garbage disposals, range 

 hoods (owned home)

I Refrigerators, freezers (renter)

I Refrigerators, freezers (owned home)

I Washing machines (renter)

I Washing machines (owned home)

I Clothes dryers (renter)

I Clothes dryers (owned home)

I Cooking stoves, ovens (renter)

I Cooking stoves, ovens (owned home)

I Microwave ovens (renter)

I Microwave ovens (owned home)

I Portable dishwashers (renter)

I Portable dishwashers (owned home)

I Window air conditioners (renter)

I Window air conditioners (owned home)

D Electric floor cleaning equipment

I Sewing machines

D Miscellaneous household appliances

 Small appliances, miscellaneous housewares

 Housewares

I Plastic dinnerware

D China and other dinnerware

I Flatware

D Glassware

D Silver serving pieces

I Other serving pieces

D Nonelectric cookware

D Tableware, nonelectric kitchenware

 Small appliances

I Small electric kitchen appliances

I Portable heating/cooling equipment

 Miscellaneous household equipment

I Window coverings

D Infants’ equipment

D Laundry and cleaning equipment

D Outdoor equipment

D Clocks

I Lamps and lighting fixtures

D Other household decorative items

D Telephones and accessories

I Lawn and garden equipment

D Power tools

I Office furniture for home use

I Hand tools

I Indoor plants, fresh flowers

D Closet and storage items

I Rental of furniture

I Luggage

I Computers/computer hardware for non-business use

I Computer software/accessories for non-business use

I Personal digital assistants (2005)

I Internet services away from home (2005)

I Telephone answering devices

I Business equipment for home use

D Other hardware

I Smoke alarms (owned home)

I Smoke alarms (renter)

I Smoke alarms (owned vacation home)

I Other household appliances (owned home)

I Other household appliances (renter)

D Miscellaneous household equipment and parts

 Apparel and services

 Men and boys

 Men, 16 and ove

I Suits

I Sport coats, tailored jackets

D Coats and jackets
34

D Underwear

D Hosiery

I Nightwear

D Accessories

I Sweaters and vests

D Active sportswear

D Shirts

D Pants

D Shorts, shorts sets

I Uniforms

I Costumes

 Boys, 2 to 1

I Coats and jackets

I Sweaters

D Shirts

D Underwear

D Nightwear

D Hosiery

D Accessories

I Suits, sport coats, vests

I Pants

I Shorts, shorts sets

I Uniforms

I Active sportswear

I Costumes

 Women and girls

 Women, 16 and ove

D Coats and jackets

D Dresses

D Sport coats, tailored jackets

D Vests and sweaters

D Shirts, tops, blouses

D Skirts

D Pants

D Shorts, shorts sets

D Active sportswear

D Sleepwear

D Undergarments

D Hosiery

I Suits

D Accessories

I Uniforms

I Costumes

 Girls, 2 to 1

I Coats and jackets

D Dresses, suits

D Shirts, blouses, sweaters

I Skirts and pants

I Shorts, shorts sets

D Active sportswear

I Underwear and sleepwear

D Hosiery

D Accessories

I Uniforms

I Costumes

 Children under 2

I Coat, jacket, snowsuit

I Dresses, outerwear

D Underwear

I Nightwear, loungewear

D Accessories

 Footwear

D Men’s

D Boys’

D Women’s

D Girls’

 Other apparel products and services

D Material for making clothes

D Sewing notions and patterns

I Watches

I Jewelry

I Shoe repair, other shoe service

I Coin-operated apparel laundry/dry cleaning

I Alteration, repair, tailoring of apparel, accessories

I Clothing rental

I Watch and jewelry repair

I Apparel laundry/dry cleaning not coin operated

I Clothing storage

 Transportation

 Vehicle purchases, (net outlay)

 Cars and trucks, new

I Cars

I Trucks

 Cars and trucks, used

I Cars

I Trucks

 Other vehicles

I New motorcycles

I New aircraft

I Used motorcycles

I Used aircraft

 Gasoline and motor oil

I Gasoline

I Diesel fuel

I Gasoline on out-of-town trips

D Gasohol

I Motor oil

I Motor oil on out-of-town trips

 Other vehicle expenses

Vehicle finance charges

I Automobiles

I Trucks

I Motorcycles and planes

I Other vehicle finance charges

 Maintenance and repairs

I Coolant, additives, brake, transmission fluids

I Tires - purchased, replaced, installed

I Parts/equipment/accessories

D Vehicle audio equipment

D Vehicle products and cleaning services

I Vehicle video equipment (2005)

D Misc. auto repair/servicing

I Body work and painting

I Clutch, transmission repair

I Drive shaft and rear-end repair

I Brake work, including adjustments

I Repair to steering or front-end

I Cooling system repair

I Motor tune-up

I Lube, oil change, and oil filters

I Front end alignment, wheel balance

I Shock absorber replacement

D Gas tank repair, replacement

I Repair tires and other repair work

I Vehicle air conditioning repair

I Exhaust system repair

I Electrical system repair

I Motor repair/replacement

I Auto repair service policy

I Vehicle insurance

 Vehicle rental, licenses, other charges

 Leased and rented vehicles

 Rented vehicles

I Auto rental

I Auto rental, out-of-town trips

I Truck rental

I Truck rental, out-of-town trips

I Motorcycle rental

I Motorcycle rental, out-of-town trips

I Aircraft rental

I Aircraft rental, out-of-town trips

 Leased vehicles

I Car lease payments

I Cash down payment (car lease)

I Termination fee (car lease)

I Truck lease payments
35

I Cash down payment (truck lease)

I Termination fee (truck lease)

I Vehicle registration state (2001

I Vehicle registration local (2001

I Driver’s license

I Vehicle inspection

 Parking fees

I Parking fees in home city, excluding residence

I Parking fees, out-of-town trips

D Tolls or electronic toll passes

I Tolls on out-of-town trips

I Towing charges

I Global positioning services (2005)

I Automobile service clubs

 Public transportation

I Airline fares

I Intercity bus fares

I Intracity mass transit fares

I Local transportation, out-of-town trips

I Taxi fares and limousine service on trips

D Taxi fares and limousine service

I Intercity train fares

I Ship fares

I School bus

 Health care

 Health insurance

 Commercial health insurance

I Traditional fee for service health plan

I Preferred provider health plan

 Blue Cross/Blue Shield

I Traditional fee for service health plan

I Preferred provider health plan

I Health maintenance organization

I Commercial Medicare supplement

I Other health insurance

I Health maintenance organizations (HMOs)

I Medicare payments

I Commercial Medicare supplements and other health 

 insurance

I Commercial Medicare supplements

I Other health insurance

I Long term care insurance (2005)

 Medical services

I Physicians’ services

I Dental services

I Eye care services

I Service by professionals other than physician

I Lab tests, x rays

I Hospital room and services (2005)

I Medical care in retirement community

I Care in convalescent or nursing home

D Repair of medical equipment

I Other medical care service

 Drugs

D Nonprescription

D Nonprescription vitamins

I Prescription

 Medical supplies

I Eyeglasses and contact lenses

I Hearing aids

D Topicals and dressings

I Medical equipment for general use

I Supportive and convalescent medical equipment

I Rental of medical equipment

I Rental of supportive, convalescent medical equipment

 Entertainment

 Fees and admissions

I Recreation expenses, out-of-town trips

I Social, recreation, health club membership

I Fees for participant sports

I Participant sports, out-of-town trips

I Movie, theater, amusement parks, and other

I Movie, other admissions, out-of-town trips

I Admission to sporting events

I Admission to sporting events, out-of-town trips

I Fees for recreational lessons

I Other entertainment services, out-of-town trips

 Audio and visual equipment and services

I Televisions (2005)

D Radios

D Phonographs

I Community antenna or cable TV

D Tape recorders and players

I Online gaming services (2005)

I VCRs and video disc players

D Miscellaneous sound equipment

D Sound equipment accessories

I Video cassettes, tapes, discs

I Video game hardware, software

I Streaming, downloading video (2005)

I Repair of TV, radio, and sound equipment

I Rental of televisions

I Personal digital audio players (2005)

I Sound components and component systems

I Satellite dishes

I CDs, records, audio tapes (2005)

I Streaming, downloading audio (2005)

I Rental of VCR, radio, and sound equipment

I Musical instruments and accessories

I Rental and repair of music instruments

I Rental of video cassettes, tapes, discs, and films

 Pets, toys, and playground equipment

 Pets

D Pet food

D Pet purchase, supplies, and medicine

I Pet services

I Vet services

I Toys, games, arts and crafts, and tricycles

I Stamp and coin collecting (2004)

I Playground equipment

 Other entertainment supplies, equipment, and services

 Unmotored recreational vehicles

I Boat without motor and boat trailers

I Trailer and other attachable campers

 Motorized recreational vehicles

I Motorized camper

I Other vehicles

I Boat with motor

 Rental of recreational vehicles

I Non-camper trailer

I Boat and trailer, out-of-town trips

I Campers on out-of-town trips

I Other vehicles on out-of-town trips

I Boats

I Motorized campers

I Other recreational vehicles

I Outboard motors

I Docking and landing fees

 Sports, recreation and exercise equipment

D Athletic gear, game tables, and exercise equipment

I Bicycles

D Camping equipment

D Hunting, fishing equipment

I Winter sports equipment

I Water sports equipment

I Other sports equipment

D Global positioning system devices

I Rent and repair of miscellaneous sports equipment

 Photographic equipment, supplies and services

I Film

D Other photographic supplies

I Photo processing

I Rent and repair of photo equipment

I Photographic equipment

I Photographer fees

D Fireworks

D Souvenirs

D Visual goods
36

D Pinball, electronic video games

 Personal care products and services

 Personal care products

D Hair care products

D Non-electric articles for the hair

I Wigs and hairpieces

D Oral hygiene products, articles

D Shaving needs

D Cosmetics, perfume, bath preparations

D Deodorants, feminine hygiene, misc. personal care

D Electric personal care appliances

 Personal care services

I Personal care service

D Repair of personal care appliances

 Reading

I Newspaper or magazine subscriptions (2005)

I Newspapers or magazine, non-subscriptions (2005)

D Newsletters

I Books through book clubs

I Books not through book clubs

I Encyclopedia and other sets of reference books

 Education

I Tuition for colleges and universities

I Tuition for elementary, high school

I Tuition for other schools

I Other school expenses including rentals

I Schoolbooks, supplies, equipment for college

I Schoolbooks, supplies, equipment for elementary,

 high school

I Schoolbooks, supplies, equipment for day care,

 nursery, other

D School supplies, etc. - unspecified

 Tobacco products and smoking supplies

I Cigarettes

I Other tobacco products

D Smoking accessories

D Marijuana

 Miscellaneous

D Miscellaneous fees

D Lotteries and pari-mutuel losses

I Legal fees

I Funeral expenses

I Safe deposit box rental

I Checking accounts, other bank service charges

I Cemetery lots, vaults, maintenance fees

I Accounting fees

D Miscellaneous personal services

I Dating services (2005)

I Finance charges excluding mortgage and vehicle

I Occupational expenses

I Expenses for other properties

I Interest paid, home equity line of credit (other property)

I Credit card memberships

I Shopping club membership fees

 Cash contributions

I Support for college students

I Alimony expenditures

I Child support expenditures

I Gifts to non-CU members of stocks, bonds, and 

 mutual funds

I Cash contributions to charities and other organizations

I Cash contributions to church, religious organizations

I Cash contributions to education organizations

I Cash contributions to political organizations

I Other cash gifts

 Personal insurance and pensions

 Life and other personal insurance

I Life, endowment, annuity, other personal insurance

I Other non-health insurance

 Retirement, pensions, and Social Security

I Deductions for government retirement

I Deductions for railroad retirement

I Deductions for private pensions

I Non-payroll deposit to retirement plans

I Deductions for Social Security

Sources of income and personal taxes

 Money income before taxes

I Wages and salaries

 Self-employment income

I Net business income

I Net farm income

 Social Security, private and government retirement

I Social Security and railroad retirement income

I Pensions and annuities

 Interest, dividends, rental income, other property income

I Interest

I Dividends, royalties, estates, and trusts

I Roomer and boarder income

I Other rental income

Unemployment and workers’ compensation, veterans’ benefits

I Unemployment compensation

I Workers’ compensation and veterans’ benefits

 Public assistance, Supplemental Security Income,

 Food Stamps

I Supplemental Security Income

I Public assistance

I Food Stamps

 Regular contributions for support

I Child support payments

I Other regular contributions including alimony

 Other income

I Meals as pay

I Rent as pay

I Other income

 Personal taxes

 Federal income taxes

I Federal income tax

I Federal income tax refunds

 State and local income taxes

I State and local income tax

I State and local income tax refunds

 Other taxes

I Personal property taxes

I Other taxes

I Other tax refunds

Addenda:

 Net change in total assets and liabilities

 Net change in total assets

 Change in accounts

I Change in savings account

I Change in checking account

I Change in U.S. Savings Bonds

 Change in securities

I Purchase price of stocks, bonds or mutual funds 

 including broker fees

I Sale price of stocks, bonds, and mutual funds, net

I Change in money owed to consumer unit

 Change in investments to own farm or business

I Investments to farm or business

I Assets taken from farm or business

I Change in surrender of insurance policies

 Change in net property holdings (owned home)

I Purchase price of property 

I Closing costs, purchase of property 

I Special assessments 

I Sale price of property or trade-in value 

I Mortgage principal held after sale of real estate 

I Total expense in sale of property 

 Change in capital improvements (owned home)

I Capital improvement labor and materials 

I Wall-to-wall carpeting 
37

 Capital improvement material 

I Materials and supplies purchased for insulation, 

dwellings under construction, additions, fin

 remodeling, landscaping, etc.

I Dishwasher, disposal, or range hood

I Labor and materials for dwellings under

 construction and additions

 Change in net property holdings (owned vacation home)

I Purchase price of property 

I Closing costs on purchase of property 

I Special assessments 

I Sale price of property or trade-in value 

I Mortgage principal held after sale of real estate 

I Total expenses in sale of property

 Change in capital improvements (owned vacation home)

I Managerial and capital improvement services 

I Supplies purchased for additions, maintenance and 

 repairs, and new construction

 Change in net property holdings (other property)

I Purchase price of property 

I Closing costs purchase of property 

I Special assessments 

I Sale price of property or trade-in value 

I Mortgage held after sale of real estate 

I Total expenses in sale of property 

 Change in capital improvements (other property)

I Property management, security, parking 

 Capital improvement services, labor, materials

 and equipment 

I Contractors’ labor and materials, supplies obtained

 by the consumer unit, appliances provided

by the contractor 

I Management services and improvements 

I Dishwasher, disposal, range hood, capital 

 improvement 

 Change in sale of vehicles

I Automobiles

I Trucks, including vans

I Motor campers

I Other vehicles

I Trailer type and other attachable campers

I Motorcycles

I Boats, with motors

I Boats, without motors, and boat trailers

I Aircraft

 Net change in total liabilities

 Change in amount owed to creditors

I Total amount owed 2nd interview

I Total amount owed 5th interview

 Change in mortgage principal (owned home)

I Special lump-sum mortgage payments 

I Reduction of mortgage principal 

I Reduction of mortgage principal, home equity loan 

I Original loan amount (mortgage obtained during

 interview quarter) 

I Original loan amount, home equity loan (loan obtained 

 during interview quarter) 

I Principal paid, home equity line of credit 

 Change in mortgage principal (owned vacation home)

I Special lump sum mortgage payment 

I Reduction of mortgage principal 

I Reduction of mortgage principal, home equity loan 

I Original loan amount (mortgage obtained during 

 interview quarter) 

I Original loan amount, home equity loan (loan obtained 

 during interview quarter) 

I Principal paid, home equity line of credit

 Change in mortgage principal (other property)

I Special lump sum mortgage payment 

I Reduction of mortgage principal 

I Reduction of mortgage principal, home equity loan 

I Original loan amount (mortgage obtained during 

 interview quarter) 

I Original loan amount, home equity loan (loan obtained 

 during interview quarter)

I Principal paid, home equity line of credit 

 Change in principal on vehicles

I Reduction of vehicle loan principal

I Vehicle principal balance (loan obtained during 

 interview quarter)

Other financial information:

 Other money receipts

I Lump sum receipts

I Money from sale of household furnishings, etc.

I Refunds from overpayment on Social Security

I Refunds from insurance policies

I Refunds from property taxes

I Lump sum child support payments

Market value of financial assets

I Savings accounts

I Checking accounts

I U.S. Savings Bonds

I Securities

 Mortgage principal paid on owned property

I Reduction of mortgage principal (owned home)

I Reduction of mortgage principal (owned vacation home)

I Reduction of mortgage principal (other property)

I Reduction of mortgage principal, home equity loan, 

 (owned home)

I Reduction of mortgage principal, home equity loan,

 (owned vacation)

I Reduction of mortgage principal, home equity loan,

 (other property)

I Principal paid, home equity line of credit (owned home)

I Principal paid, home equity line of credit (owned

 vacation home)

I Principal paid, home equity line of credit (other property)

I Estimated market value of owned home

I Estimated monthly rental value of owned home

I Rental equivalence of vacation home

Gifts of goods and services:

The survey source for a gift of an item is the same as for an expenditure 

on that item. Not all items can have gifts.
38

The following is a list of articles that include analyses of 

Consumer Expenditure Survey data and that appeared in 

the Monthly Labor Review (MLR). For copies, contact the 

Division of Consumer Expenditure Surveys, U.S. Bureau 

of Labor Statistics, Room 3985, Postal Square Building, 2 

Massachusetts Avenue, NE., Washington, DC 20212-0001

phone (202) 691-6900. Copies of the most recent articles are

posted to the Consumer Expenditure Survey Web site: www.

bls.gov/cex.

Acs, Gregory and John Sabelhaus – “Trends in out-of-pocket 

spending on health care, 1980-92,” December 19

Bahizi, Pierre – “Retirement expenditures for Whites, Blacks, 

and persons of Hispanic origin,” June 2003

Duly, Abby, Jeffrey Harris, Ara Khatchadourian, Rozi Ulics, 

and Melissa Wolter, “Price and expenditure measure of 

petroleum products: a comparison,” December 2006

Duly, Abby, George Janini, Eric J. Keil, Laura Paszkiewicz, 

Geoffrey D. Paulin, and Neil Tseng, “Consumer expenditures 

for selected items, 1999 and 2000,” May 200

Federman, Maya, et al. – “What does it mean to be poor in 

America?,” May 199

Garner, Thesia I., George Janini, William Passero, Laura 

Paszkiewicz, and Mark Vendemia, “The CE and the PCE: a 

comparison,” September 2006

Garner, Thesia I., Kathleen Short, Stephanie Shipp, Charles 

Nelson, and Geoffrey Paulin, “Experimental poverty 

measurement for the 1990s,” March 19

Johnson, David S., Timothy Smeeding, and Barbara Boyle 

Torrey, “Economic inequality through the prisms of income 

and consumption,” April 2005

Johnson, David S., John M. Rogers, and Lucilla Tan, – “A 

century of family budgets in the United States,” May 200

Johnson, David S. and Mark Lino – “Teenagers: employment 

and contributions to family spending,” September 2000

Appendix D. Consumer Expenditure

Survey Resources

Monthly Labor Review articles

Passero, William D. – “Spending patterns of families receiving 

public assistance,” April 199

Paulin, Geoffrey – “A growing market: expenditures by 

Hispanic consumers,” March 199

Paulin, Geoffrey – “The changing food-at-home budget: 

1980 and 1992 compared,” December 1

Paulin, Geoffrey – “Let’s do lunch: expenditures on meals 

away from home,” May 2000

Paulin, Geoffrey – “Expenditure patterns of older Americans, 

1984-97,” May 200

Paulin, Geoffrey D. – “Expenditures of college-age students 

and nonstudents,” July 200

Paulin, Geoffrey D. – “A changing market: expenditures by 

Hispanic consumers, revisited,” August 2003

Paulin, Geoffrey D. and Abby L. Duly – “Planning ahead: 

consumer expenditure patterns in retirement,” July 2002

Paulin, Geoffrey D. and Brian Riordon – “Making it on their 

own: the baby boom meets Generation X,” February 199

Paulin, Geoffrey D. and Elizabeth Dietz – “Health insurance 

coverage for families with children,” August 199

Paulin, Geoffrey D. and Wolf D. Weber – “The effects of 

health insurance on consumer spending,” March 199

Paulin, Geoffrey D. and Yoon G. Lee – “Expenditures of 

single parents: how does gender figure in?,” July 2002

Short, Kathleen and Thesia I. Garner – “Experimental poverty 

measures: accounting for medical expenditures,” August 

2002

Tan, Lucilla – “Spending patterns of public-assisted families,” 

May 2000

Tsai, Shiao-Lin Shirley, and Lucilla Tan, “Food at home 

expenditures of Asian households,” June 2006
39

Consumer Expenditures in 2005, Consumer unit income and expenditures, integrated data 

Report 998 (February 2007) from Interview and Diary Surveys, classified by consumer 

unit characteristics. 13 tables. 19 page

Consumer Expenditures in 2004, Consumer unit income and expenditures, integrated data 

Report 992 (April 2006) from Interview and Diary Surveys, classified by consumer 

unit characteristics. 13 tables. 20 pages

Consumer Expenditure Survey, 2002-2003, Consumer unit income and expenditures, integrated data 

Report 990 (March 2006) from Interview and Diary Surveys, classified by consumer 

unit characteristics. 73 tables. 310 pages

Consumer Expenditures in 2003, Consumer unit income and expenditures, integrated data 

Report 986 (June 2005) from Interview and Diary Surveys, classified by consumer 

unit characteristics. 10 tables. 20 pages

Consumer Expenditure Survey Anthology, 2005, Includes articles on Consumer Expenditure Survey research 

Report 981 and methodology, and analytical article on topics of interes

using survey data. 71 pages

Consumer Expenditures in 2002, Consumer unit income and expenditures, integrated data 

Report 974 (February 2004) from Interview and Diary Surveys, classified by consumer 

unit characteristics. 10 tables. 16 page

Bulletins and Reports

A list of recent publications containing Consumer Expenditure 

Survey data appears below. Copies of reports are available 

from the Division of Consumer Expenditure Surveys, U.S. 

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Room 3985, Postal Square 

Building, 2 Massachusetts Avenue, NE., Washington, DC 

20212-0001, phone (202) 691-6900. Information may al

be obtained from the “Do you have a CEX data question?” 

link at the bottom of the CE Web page: www.bls.gov/

cex. Additionally, most bulletins are available at Federal 

depository libraries around the country.

 Title, number and date of publication Coverage

Microdata files on CD-ROM

Microdata files that include information from the Diary and 

Interview Surveys at the consumer unit level for the years 1990

through 2005 and selected earlier years are available on CDROM. Summary tabular data are included on the CD-ROM, as 

well. Order forms for microdata are available at www.bls.gov/

cex via the Internet. Inquiries should be directed to the Division 

of Consumer Expenditure Surveys. Phone: (202) 691-6900; or

to the “Do you have a CEX data question?” link at the bottom 

of the CE Web page: www.bls.gov/cex. 

Online tables via the Internet

Integrated Diary and Interview Survey data for the years 

1984 through 2005 can be accessed at www.bls.gov/cex via

the Internet. Other survey information, including answers to 

frequently asked questions, standard error tables, a glossary 

of terms, copies of the survey questionnaires and the survey 

instrument, and order forms for survey products, is also 

available on the Internet.

Other Resources