Table 1600. Number of earners in consumer unit: Shares of annual aggregate expenditures and sources of income, Consumer 

Expenditure Survey, 2017 

 (Aggregates in millions of dollars, unless otherwise indicated) 

Single consumers Consumer units of two or more people 

Item Aggregate No earner One earner No earner One earner Two earners 

Three or 

more 

earners 

Number of consumer units (in thousands) ................................130,001 16,431 20,934 13,140 25,885 42,221 11,390 

Percent distribution of consumer units ................................ 100.0 12.6 16.1 10.1 19.9 32.5 8.8 

Consumer unit characteristics (mean values): 

 Income before taxes ................................................................$73,573 $19,976 $48,378 $34,265 $66,641 $110,047 $123,099 

 Income after taxes ................................................................ 63,606 19,212 40,423 33,370 60,535 91,793 107,633 

 Age of reference person ................................................................50.9 68.2 43.7 67.1 49.6 44.3 48.1 

 Average number in consumer unit: 

 People ................................................................................................ 2.5 1.0 1.0 2.3 2.9 3.0 4.4 

 Children under 18 ................................................................ .6 n.a. n.a. .3 .9 .9 1.0 

 Adults 65 and older ................................................................ .4 .7 .1 1.3 .4 .1 .2 

 Earners ................................................................................................ 1.3 n.a. 1.0 n.a. 1.0 2.0 3.3 

 Vehicles ................................................................................................ 1.9 1.0 1.1 1.9 1.9 2.4 3.0 

Percent distribution: 

 Reference person: 

 Men ................................................................................................47 39 50 50 42 52 46 

 Women ................................................................................................ 53 61 50 50 58 48 54 

 Housing tenure: 

 Homeowner ................................................................ 63 58 39 78 62 70 72 

 With mortgage ................................................................ 36 13 24 21 35 52 55 

 Without mortgage ................................................................ 27 46 15 57 27 18 17 

 Renter ................................................................................................ 37 42 61 22 38 30 28 

 Race of reference person: 

 Black or African-American ................................................................ 13 15 17 11 15 11 11 

 White, Asian, and all other races ................................ 87 85 83 89 85 89 89 

 Hispanic or Latino origin of reference person: 

 Hispanic or Latino................................................................ 14 6 11 8 17 15 23 

 Not Hispanic or Latino ................................................................ 86 94 89 92 83 85 77 

 Education of reference person: 

 Elementary (1-8)................................................................ 3 4 1 5 4 2 6 

 High school (9-12) ................................................................ 30 42 24 39 31 23 30 

 College ................................................................................................ 67 53 74 55 65 75 64 

 Never attended and other ................................................................ ( 1 ) ( 1 ) ( 1 ) ( 1 ) ( 1 ) ( 1 ) ( 1 ) 

 At least one vehicle owned or leased................................ 88 71 79 87 92 96 96 

Annual aggregate expenditures ................................................................ $7,805,368 6.2 11.0 8.4 20.1 42.1 12.1 

 Food ................................................................................................ 1,003,471 5.9 10.6 9.1 22.0 41.4 11.0 

 Food at home ................................................................ 566,472 6.3 9.1 10.1 23.9 40.0 10.6 

 Cereals and bakery products ................................ 73,262 6.6 8.2 10.6 25.0 38.6 11.0 

 Cereals and cereal products ................................ 22,914 5.5 8.1 9.2 25.3 39.2 12.6 

 Bakery products ................................................................ 50,348 7.1 8.2 11.2 24.8 38.4 10.3 

 Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs ................................ 122,516 5.9 8.5 10.4 24.0 40.1 11.2 

 Beef ................................................................................................ 32,897 5.6 7.9 11.4 23.9 39.7 11.5 

 Pork ................................................................................................ 23,512 6.4 6.9 10.8 24.5 39.6 11.8 

 Other meats ................................................................ 16,644 6.2 8.4 11.2 24.1 40.9 9.2 

 Poultry ................................................................ 24,148 5.6 9.8 8.5 23.6 41.1 11.5 

 Fish and seafood ................................................................ 18,167 5.5 9.8 10.2 22.9 40.1 11.5 

 Eggs ................................................................................................ 7,148 5.9 9.6 9.1 26.1 38.8 10.5 

 Dairy products ................................................................ 58,440 6.6 8.6 10.3 24.1 40.1 10.4 

 Fresh milk and cream ................................................................ 19,072 6.9 8.1 9.6 25.4 39.5 10.5 

 Other dairy products ................................................................ 39,368 6.4 8.8 10.6 23.4 40.4 10.3 

 Fruits and vegetables ................................................................ 108,616 6.4 9.2 9.7 24.4 40.3 10.0 

 Fresh fruits ................................................................ 40,770 6.7 9.0 9.8 24.3 40.3 9.8 

 Fresh vegetables ................................................................ 35,629 6.3 9.2 9.6 24.1 40.9 10.0 

 Processed fruits ................................................................ 14,545 6.2 9.9 9.2 24.6 39.4 10.6 

 Processed vegetables ................................................................ 17,672 6.0 9.2 10.1 25.2 39.5 10.0 

 Other food at home ................................................................ 203,638 6.2 9.9 9.9 23.0 40.3 10.5 

 Sugar and other sweets ................................................................ 19,415 6.6 8.4 11.5 23.9 39.9 9.7 

See footnotes at end of table. 
Table 1600. Number of earners in consumer unit: Shares of annual aggregate expenditures and sources of income, Consumer 

Expenditure Survey, 2017 — Continued 

 (Aggregates in millions of dollars, unless otherwise indicated) 

Single consumers Consumer units of two or more people 

Item Aggregate No earner One earner No earner One earner Two earners 

Three or 

more 

earners 

 Fats and oils ................................................................ 15,163 6.5 8.7 10.9 23.9 38.4 11.6 

 Miscellaneous foods ................................................................ 106,935 6.1 9.9 9.1 23.1 41.4 10.3 

 Nonalcoholic beverages ................................................................ 54,863 6.5 11.0 10.4 23.1 38.4 10.6 

 Food prepared by consumer unit on 

 out-of-town trips ................................................................ 7,263 4.9 8.9 12.2 17.1 44.1 12.8 

 Food away from home ................................................................ 436,999 5.4 12.6 7.8 19.5 43.1 11.6 

 Alcoholic beverages ................................................................72,466 5.3 14.9 8.2 16.2 45.7 9.7 

 Housing................................................................................................ 2,584,719 7.5 12.1 8.6 20.5 40.3 11.0 

 Shelter ................................................................................................ 1,546,404 7.7 13.4 7.7 20.1 40.2 10.9 

 Owned dwellings ................................................................ 903,065 5.9 8.8 8.2 20.2 44.9 11.9 

 Mortgage interest and charges ................................ 424,449 3.0 9.0 4.2 20.0 49.7 14.0 

 Property taxes ................................................................268,515 8.1 8.2 11.9 19.9 40.5 11.5 

 Maintenance, repairs, insurance, other 

 expenses ................................................................ 210,101 9.0 9.3 11.7 20.9 40.8 8.2 

 Rented dwellings ................................................................ 541,671 10.9 21.6 6.1 20.1 32.0 9.3 

 Other lodging ................................................................ 101,668 5.5 11.0 11.2 19.2 42.8 10.3 

 Utilities, fuels, and public services ................................ 498,645 8.0 9.7 10.3 21.6 37.8 12.7 

 Natural gas ................................................................ 49,470 9.0 9.8 10.2 21.2 38.1 11.7 

 Electricity ................................................................ 184,552 9.0 10.0 11.1 22.2 36.2 11.5 

 Fuel oil and other fuels ................................................................ 12,613 13.0 6.9 16.4 18.7 34.7 10.2 

 Telephone services ................................................................ 176,234 6.3 9.6 8.7 21.2 39.8 14.5 

 Residential phone service, VOIP, and 

 phone cards ................................................................30,904 16.0 8.1 16.6 20.6 28.5 10.2 

 Cellular phone service ................................................................ 145,329 4.2 9.9 7.0 21.3 42.3 15.4 

 Water and other public services ................................ 75,776 8.1 9.3 11.0 21.8 37.2 12.6 

 Household operations ................................................................ 183,521 7.5 7.5 8.3 19.7 48.7 8.2 

 Personal services ................................................................57,094 23.4 21.1 21.5 18.5 70.4 5.2 

 Other household expenses ................................................................ 126,427 9.4 10.4 11.4 20.3 38.9 9.6 

 Housekeeping supplies ................................................................ 97,973 7.9 9.9 11.4 22.0 37.6 11.2 

 Laundry and cleaning supplies ................................ 23,014 7.3 9.4 10.3 23.5 37.6 11.9 

 Other household products................................................................ 55,503 7.3 9.8 10.9 21.9 38.2 12.0 

 Postage and stationery ................................................................ 19,456 10.1 10.6 14.1 20.5 36.2 8.5 

 Household furnishings and equipment................................258,176 5.5 12.5 9.7 21.2 40.7 10.3 

 Household textiles ................................................................ 14,814 9.0 9.9 13.9 18.7 36.5 12.0 

 Furniture ................................................................ 67,010 4.6 9.0 8.0 24.9 43.3 10.2 

 Floor coverings ................................................................ 3,956 3.3 6.7 5.2 20.5 57.1 7.2 

 Major appliances ................................................................36,440 6.0 7.8 11.5 20.4 42.4 11.9 

 Small appliances, miscellaneous 

 housewares ................................................................ 16,972 6.6 13.8 8.1 23.8 38.6 9.2 

 Miscellaneous household equipment................................118,986 5.3 16.3 9.9 19.4 39.1 10.0 

 Apparel and services ................................................................ 237,997 4.6 11.2 7.5 22.6 43.8 10.2 

 Men and boys ................................................................ 57,442 4.1 11.2 7.3 21.2 45.0 11.2 

 Men, 16 and over ................................................................44,472 5.0 13.7 7.9 17.0 44.5 11.9 

 Boys, 2 to 15 ................................................................ 12,970 1.1 2.6 5.3 35.5 46.6 8.8 

 Women and girls ................................................................ 90,065 5.1 11.1 8.2 22.7 41.5 11.4 

 Women, 16 and over ................................................................ 75,243 5.8 12.7 9.0 20.5 40.2 11.7 

 Girls, 2 to 15 ................................................................ 14,822 1.2 3.0 3.6 34.1 48.4 9.7 

 Children under 2 ................................................................ 9,948 22.1 22.9 5.6 32.4 49.9 7.0 

 Footwear................................................................................................ 49,203 4.2 10.9 6.2 24.4 45.8 8.4 

 Other apparel products and services ................................ 31,340 5.9 14.7 8.5 19.0 43.4 8.4 

 Transportation ................................................................ 1,244,638 5.4 10.0 7.8 19.1 43.1 14.6 

 Vehicle purchases (net outlay) ................................................................ 527,018 3.7 8.8 7.4 18.6 45.9 15.6 

 Cars and trucks, new ................................................................ 246,965 4.9 7.7 10.4 18.6 43.1 15.3 

 Cars and trucks, used ................................................................ 273,142 2.6 9.6 4.6 18.7 48.4 16.0 

 Other vehicles ................................................................ 6,911 25.5 212.5 28.4 217.0 49.0 27.7 

 Gasoline, other fuels, and motor oil ................................ 255,856 4.4 10.2 7.6 20.8 42.0 15.0 

 Other vehicle expenses ................................................................ 369,202 8.7 11.2 8.5 18.6 39.7 13.2 

 Vehicle finance charges ................................................................ 28,642 2.5 8.3 5.7 19.7 48.9 15.0 

 Maintenance and repairs ................................................................ 124,022 13.8 10.2 7.1 19.0 37.6 12.4 

 Vehicle insurance ................................................................ 125,482 7.0 13.8 11.0 17.3 36.8 14.1 

 Vehicle rental, leases, licenses, and other 

 charges ................................................................ 91,057 5.9 10.1 7.9 19.7 43.8 12.7 

 Public and other transportation ................................ 92,563 5.4 12.1 8.5 18.3 43.0 12.7 

 Healthcare ................................................................................................ 640,626 8.9 8.4 15.0 21.3 36.2 10.1 

See footnotes at end of table. 
Table 1600. Number of earners in consumer unit: Shares of annual aggregate expenditures and sources of income, Consumer 

Expenditure Survey, 2017 — Continued 

 (Aggregates in millions of dollars, unless otherwise indicated) 

Single consumers Consumer units of two or more people 

Item Aggregate No earner One earner No earner One earner Two earners 

Three or 

more 

earners 

 Health insurance ................................................................443,860 9.2 8.0 15.3 21.2 35.9 10.3 

 Medical services ................................................................ 113,348 6.3 9.5 11.8 21.6 40.0 10.8 

 Drugs ................................................................................................ 63,096 11.6 8.6 18.2 22.5 31.5 7.6 

 Medical supplies ................................................................ 20,321 7.8 10.2 17.7 18.8 36.5 9.0 

 Entertainment ................................................................ 416,176 5.2 9.7 8.9 20.9 43.9 11.3 

 Fees and admissions ................................................................ 97,482 3.7 9.9 8.8 19.8 46.1 11.7 

 Audio and visual equipment and services ................................ 128,094 8.2 11.3 10.2 21.3 38.2 10.9 

 Pets, toys, hobbies, and playground 

 equipment ................................................................ 112,809 5.6 9.4 7.4 22.0 46.1 9.5 

 Pets ................................................................................................ 92,176 5.5 9.5 7.7 21.7 45.9 9.6 

 Toys, hobbies, and playground equipment ................................ 20,633 6.0 8.6 5.7 23.6 46.8 9.3 

 Other entertainment supplies, equipment, 

 and services ................................................................ 77,791 1.8 7.3 9.2 20.2 47.3 14.1 

 Personal care products and services ................................ 99,005 6.5 12.2 8.7 21.1 40.8 10.7 

 Reading ................................................................................................ 14,285 8.4 12.5 14.2 19.2 35.9 9.9 

 Education ................................................................................................ 193,813 3.1 11.2 5.4 16.3 47.3 16.7 

 Tobacco products and smoking supplies ................................43,201 8.9 11.8 10.2 20.9 34.5 13.6 

 Miscellaneous ................................................................ 131,260 11.3 10.7 9.7 18.1 39.0 11.2 

 Cash contributions ................................................................ 243,462 9.3 12.2 13.8 22.5 32.6 9.5 

 Personal insurance and pensions ................................ 880,250 1.7 11.4 2.1 17.0 52.4 15.4 

 Life and other personal insurance ................................ 54,290 5.9 7.0 11.8 21.2 41.2 13.0 

 Pensions and Social Security ................................................................ 825,960 1.4 11.7 1.4 16.7 53.1 15.5 

Sources of income and personal taxes: 

 Money income before taxes ................................................................ $9,564,613 3.4 10.6 4.7 18.0 48.6 14.7 

 Wages and salaries ................................................................ 7,486,721 ( 3 ) 11.7 ( 3 ) 17.2 54.5 16.6 

 Self-employment income ................................................................ 585,794 ( 3 ) 9.6 ( 3 ) 19.9 52.6 17.9 

 Social Security, private and government 

 retirement ................................................................ 1,078,984 24.5 4.2 35.4 21.6 11.3 3.0 

 Interest, dividends, rental income, other 

 property income ................................................................248,242 13.4 6.9 15.6 18.9 40.5 4.6 

 Public assistance, Supplemental Security 

 Income, Supplementary Nutrition Assistance 

 Program (SNAP) ................................................................59,818 17.5 2.7 23.2 32.4 17.1 7.1 

 Unemployment and workers' compensation, 

 veterans' benefits, and regular contributions 

 for support ................................................................ 59,437 19.8 4.6 20.0 25.1 23.4 7.2 

 Other income ................................................................ 45,618 18.9 22.8 7.7 21.0 19.3 10.3 

 Personal taxes (contains some imputed 

 values) ................................................................................................ 1,295,773 1.0 12.9 .9 12.2 59.5 13.6 

 Federal income taxes ................................................................ 1,016,467 1.1 13.2 1.0 11.5 59.9 13.3 

 State and local income taxes ................................................................ 272,722 .3 11.9 .3 14.6 58.2 14.8 

 Other taxes ................................................................ 6,583 6.1 6.8 9.5 20.0 43.3 14.3 

 Income after taxes ................................................................8,268,840 3.8 10.2 5.3 18.9 46.9 14.8 

1

 Value is too small to display. 

2

 Data are likely to have large sampling errors. 

3

 No data reported. 

n.a. Not applicable. 

Source: Consumer Expenditure Survey, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, September, 2018