For release: 10:00 a.m. (ET), Wednesday, September 9, 2020 USDL-20-1690

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

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

CONSUMER EXPENDITURES - 2019 

Average annual expenditures for all consumer units1 in 2019 were $63,036, a 3.0-percent increase from 

2018, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See chart 1.) During the same period, the 

Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) rose 1.8 percent and average income before taxes increased 5.4 percent. 

 

Chart 1. Annual percent change in expenditures and selected components, 2019 

Vehicle Insurance Spending

 

In 2019, the data source used to estimate spending on vehicle insurance switched from the Diary Survey 

to the Interview Survey. It was determined that the Interview Survey provided a better measure of 

spending for this category. This change in methodology and its impact on the estimate is explained in 

greater detail at www.bls.gov/cex/2019-vehicle-insurance.htm.

 

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

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

3.0

10.1

4.5

3.1 2.9

-1.8

-4

-2

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Average annual

expenditures

Transportation Healthcare Food Housing Personal insurance

and pensions

Percent
- 2 - 

In total expenditures, 8 of the 10 largest components of household spending increased during 2019. (See 

table A.) The 10.1-percent rise in transportation spending was the largest percentage increase among all 

major components, followed by a 5.7-percent rise in cash contributions. The largest decline in spending 

was entertainment (-4.2 percent), followed by personal insurance and pensions (-1.8 percent).

Selected spending changes, 2019 

 

• Transportation expenditures increased 10.1 percent from 2018 to 2019 to $10,742. 

This change was largely driven by vehicle insurance spending. Vehicle insurance 

spending showed a sizable increase (58.3 percent), in part due to a change in source 

selection from the Diary Survey to the Interview Survey, which was determined to 

better measure spending for this item in 2019. (For more information on how this 

change to vehicle insurance spending impacts the year-over-year comparison of this 

category, see the methodology section below). Average expenditures for vehicle 

purchases were up 10.5 percent, and average household expenditures for gasoline, 

other fuels, and motor oil decreased 0.7 percent over the period. 

• Cash contributions were up 5.7 percent in 2019 after a modest 0.8-percent increase in 2018. 

• Healthcare expenditures were up 4.5 percent in 2019, following a modest 0.8-percent 

increase in 2018. The largest component of healthcare, health insurance, was up 3.6 percent, 

following a 0.3-percent decrease in the preceding year. 

• Spending on food increased 3.1 percent over this period. The increase was driven by both 

food at home spending, up 4.0 percent, and food away from home spending, up 1.9 percent.

• Housing expenditures increased 2.9 percent in 2019. Expenditures on rented dwellings were 

up 4.3 percent, while expenditures on owned dwellings were up 1.8 percent. In addition to 

rent, expenditures on rented dwellings include rent as pay, and maintenance, insurance, and 

other expenses. The owned dwellings category includes interest on mortgages, interest on 

home equity loans, property taxes and insurance, refinancing charges, homeowners' 

insurance, and expenses for maintenance and repairs.

• Expenditures on education were up 2.6 percent in 2019 after a decrease of 5.6 percent in 

2018. 

• Personal insurance and pensions spending decreased 1.8 percent in 2019, compared to an 

increase of 7.8 percent in 2018. This was driven by a 2.7-percent decrease in contributions to 

pensions and Social Security. 

• Entertainment expenditures decreased 4.2 percent in 2019. The decrease was driven by a 

36.6-percent drop in other entertainment supplies, equipment, and services, as well as a 9.1-

percent decrease in toys, hobbies, and playground equipment. 
- 3 - 

Average annual income before taxes rose 5.4 percent in 2019, after increasing 6.9 percent in 2018. (See 

chart 2.) Income increased within each of the five income quintiles, which are based on the weighted 

distribution of income before taxes among consumer units. For the highest quintile, average income 

increased 6.7 percent in 2019. For the lowest quintile, the increase (6.6 percent) was nearly identical. 

The middle quintiles experienced smaller percentage increases (3.2 percent to 4.9 percent). In 2019, the 

lower income bounds for each quintile were $22,488 for the second quintile, $43,432 for the third 

quintile, $72,234 for the fourth quintile, and $120,729 for the highest quintile. (For more information on 

how income before taxes is defined, see the methodology section below). 

Chart 2. Annual percent change in average pretax income by income quintile, 2019

Spending by composition of consumer unit, 2019 

Data from the Consumer Expenditure Surveys (CE) indicate how consumers allocate their spending 

among the various components of total expenditures. Chart 3 and table B compare the shares allocated 

to selected expenditures by composition of consumer units. For example, married-couple-only consumer 

units allocated the largest share of total expenditures to healthcare (10.2 percent), while single parent

consumer units allocated the smallest share (5.4 percent). Single parent consumer units allocated the 

highest share of all groups to food (14.9 percent). Single person and other consumer units allocated the 

highest share of all groups to housing (35.9 percent). Married-couple-with-children consumer units 

allocated the highest share of all groups to transportation (17.9 percent). In contrast, married couples 

only allocated the least amount to food (12.3 percent) and transportation (16.4 percent), and the second 

least to housing (31.0 percent). Married couples with children allocated the smallest share to housing 

(30.7 percent). 

5.4

6.6

4.9

3.4 3.2

6.7

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

All consumer units Lowest Second Third Fourth Highest

Percent
- 4 - 

Chart 3. Shares of average annual expenditures on selected major components by composition of 

consumer unit, 2019 

Spending by income quintile, 2019 

Chart 4 and table C show the annual percent change in expenditures by income quintile. Overall 

spending increased in all five quintiles, ranging from 1.3 percent in the second quintile to 8.6 

percent in the lowest quintile. Among components of spending, food at home, housing, 

transportation, and cash contributions increased for all five quintiles. Healthcare expenditures rose 

in four of five quintiles. Expenditures for food away from home and apparel and services increased 

in three of five quintiles. Entertainment, personal insurance and pensions, and all other expenditures 

decreased in four of five quintiles. 

.0

5.0

10.0

15.0

20.0

25.0

30.0

35.0

40.0

Housing Transportation Food Personal insurance

and pensions

Healthcare Apparel and services

Percent

All Consumer Units Married couple only

Married couple with children Other married couple consumer units

One parent, at least one child under 18 Single person and other consumer units
- 5 - 

Chart 4. Annual percent change in average expenditures by income quintile, 2019 

Table A. Average income and expenditures of all consumer units, 2017-19 

Item 2017 2018 2019

Percent change

2017-18 2018-19 

Number of consumer units (000’s)........................... 130,001 131,439 132,242 1.1 0.6

Average income before taxes................................. $73,573 $78,635 $82,852 6.9 5.4

Average annual expenditures................................. 60,060 61,224 63,036 1.9 3.0

Food................................................................. 7,729 7,923 8,169 2.5 3.1

Food at home.................................................. 4,363 4,464 4,643 2.3 4.0

Food away from home....................................... 3,365 3,459 3,526 2.8 1.9

Housing............................................................. 19,884 20,091 20,679 1.0 2.9

Shelter............................................................ 11,895 11,747 12,190 -1.2 3.8

 Owned dwellings............................................ 6,947 6,678 6,797 -3.9 1.8 

 Rented dwellings............................................ 4,167 4,249 4,432 2.0 4.3

Apparel and services............................................ 1,833 1,866 1,883 1.8 0.9 

Transportation..................................................... 9,576 9,761 10,742 1.9 10.1

Vehicle purchases............................................ 4,054 3,975 4,394 -1.9 10.5

Gasoline, other fuels, and motor oil....................... 1,968 2,109 2,094 7.2 -0.7

Healthcare......................................................... 4,928 4,968 5,193 0.8 4.5

Health insurance.............................................. 3,414 3,405 3,529 -0.3 3.6

Entertainment...................................................... 3,203 3,226 3,050 0.7 -4.2

Personal care products and services........................ 762 768 786 0.8 2.3

Education........................................................... 1,491 1,407 1,443 -5.6 2.6

Cash contributions............................................... 1,873 1,888 1,995 0.8 5.7

Personal insurance and pensions........................... 6,771 7,296 7,165 7.8 -1.8

 Pensions and Social Security............................. 6,353 6,831 6,645 7.5 -2.7

All other expenditures........................................... 2,010 2,030 1,891 1.0 -6.8

Note: Only selected subcategories are shown; as a result the subcategories do not sum to their respective major item 

category.

3.0

8.6

1.3

2.5 3.0

2.3

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

All consumer units Lowest Second Third Fourth Highest

Percent
- 6 - 

Table B. Shares of average expenditures on selected major components by composition of consumer 

unit, 2019

Item All 

Consumer 

Units

Married 

couple only

Married couple 

with children

Other married 

couple consumer 

units

One parent, at 

least one child 

under 18

Single person 

and other 

consumer units

Housing 32.8 31.0 30.7 33.2 35.7 35.9

Transportation 17.0 16.4 17.9 16.9 17.5 16.7

Food 12.9 12.3 13.3 13.9 14.9 12.8

Personal insurance 

and pensions 11.4 11.5 13.6 13.6 8.4 9.3

Healthcare 8.2 10.2 7.1 9.1 5.4 8.0 

Apparel and services 3.0 2.4 3.3 3.2 4.4 3.0 

Table C. Change in average annual expenditures of major components by income quintile, 2019

Item

Lowest Quintile Second Quintile Third Quintile Fourth Quintile Highest Quintile

Over-the-year 

change

Over-the-year 

change

Over-the-year 

change

Over-the-year 

change

Over-the-year 

change

Dollar Percent Dollar Percent Dollar Percent Dollar Percent Dollar Percent

Total.............................. 2,273 8.6 504 1.3 1,316 2.5 2,042 3.0 2,790 2.3

Food.............................. 291 7.1 19 0.3 547 7.9 -273 -2.9 639 4.8

 At home........................ 81 3.0 52 1.4 341 8.4 117 2.3 302 4.4

 Away from home............ 210 15.0 -33 -1.5 207 7.2 -390 -9.1 336 5.2

Housing......................... 978 9.3 512 3.6 215 1.2 394 1.8 801 2.3

Apparel and services........ 69 9.2 -34 -2.7 11 0.7 142 6.8 -109 -3.0

Transportation................. 863 23.2 399 5.9 1,214 14.1 1,622 14.4 779 4.2

Healthcare...................... 380 15.4 -47 -1.2 57 1.2 170 2.9 550 7.0

Entertainment.................. -260 -19.0 -338 -15.5 -274 -10.8 -106 -3.0 296 4.5

Cash contributions............ 16 2.5 48 4.3 1 0.1 318 17.1 152 3.4

Personal insurance and 

pensions........................ -97 -13.5 -48 -2.3 -314 -6.3 29 0.3 -251 -1.2

All other expenditures....... 33 1.6 -7 -0.3 -141 -4.3 -254 -5.9 -67 -0.8
- 7 - 

Additional Information 

Data Products

Data from the Consumer Expenditure Surveys (CE) include income and demographic characteristics in 

addition to expenditures for consumers. Tables with more expenditure details than those presented here 

are available at www.bls.gov/cex/tables.htm. Published tables provide 2019 CE data by standard 

classifications that include income quintile, income decile, income class, age of reference person, 

generation of reference person, size of consumer unit, number of earners, composition of consumer unit, 

Census region of residence, Census division of residence, housing tenure, race, Hispanic origin, 

occupation, highest education level of any member, and type of area (urban-rural). These annual tables 

include means, shares, and standard errors. Other published tables available on the website include 

expenditures by age, region, size, or gender cross-tabulated by income before taxes and other 

demographic variables. Historical published tables back to 1984 and selected metropolitan area 

tabulations are also available. 

Standard CE midyear tables, which are similar to the annual tables but cover the third quarter of a given 

year through the second quarter of the next year, are available at www.bls.gov/cex/midyear.htm. The 

most recent set covers July 2018 through June 2019. 

A table showing results for all consumer units including the most detailed breakdown of expenditures, as 

well as other research tables (e.g., those showing expenditures by higher-than-standard income groups or 

by selected states) are available at www.bls.gov/cex/csxresearchtables.htm. Unpublished, but releasable, 

tables of detailed expenditures by demographic can be obtained by sending a request to 

cexinfo@bls.gov. 

The CE LABSTAT database provides tools to access historical CE data (1984 onward) to produce 

trends in expenditures by demographic groups of interest, and can be found at 

www.bls.gov/cex/data.htm. Documentation on how to use the CE LABSTAT database is available at 

www.bls.gov/cex/ce-labstat-getting-started-guide.pdf. 

The 1980 through 2019 CE public-use microdata, including Interview Survey data, Diary Survey data, 

and paradata (information about the data collection process), are available on the CE website at 

www.bls.gov/cex/pumd_data.htm. The Interview Survey files contain detailed expenditure data in two 

different formats: MTBI files that present monthly values in an item-coding framework based on the 

Consumer Price Index (CPI) pricing scheme, and EXPN files that organize expenditures by the section 

of the Interview questionnaire in which they are collected. Expenditure values on EXPN files cover 

different time periods depending on the specific questions asked, and the files also contain relevant nonexpenditure information not found on the MTBI files. For those interested in examining broader 

categories of expenditures (e.g., housing or owned dwellings) rather than detailed items (e.g., mortgage 

interest or property taxes), summary variables are also available on the FMLI files.

Documentation of the CE public-use microdata, its conventions, files, sample code, and methodology 

are available at www.bls.gov/cex/pumd-getting-started-guide.htm. Researchers interested in learning 

more about both the Interview and Diary files, and in receiving “hands on” training in their usage, are 

encouraged to attend the annual CE Microdata Users’ Workshop 

(www.bls.gov/cex/csxannualworkshop.htm). The next event is scheduled for July 21-23, 2021, and is 

free of charge to attendees. (See Upcoming Events for more information.)
- 8 - 

Publications

Recent CE-specific articles are available in the Beyond the Numbers publication series at 

www.bls.gov/cex/csxwebarticles.htm, and the CE Data Comparisons section of 

www.bls.gov/cex/cecomparison.htm. The BLS Beyond the Numbers publication series provides 

analyses of topical economic issues and long-term spending trends, and the data comparison articles 

examine CE data benchmarked to other sources. Additional methodological and analytical articles using 

CE data will be published in these series as they become available. 

The CE program also produces occasional articles for publication in the Monthly Labor Review (MLR) 

and Spotlight on Statistics series. The flagship publication of the BLS, the MLR publishes scholarly 

articles on many topics in labor economics. Items in the Spotlight series are meant to be shorter pieces 

accessible to the general public. A Spotlight generally includes a series of charts or graphs accompanied 

by a brief explanation of their relevance to the analysis. At the time of publication of this release, the 

most recent analytical MLR article that features CE data (June 2019) is “Not fun for young and old 

alike: how the youngest and oldest consumers have fared in recession and recovery” 

(www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2019/article/not-fun-for-young-and-old-alike-how-the-youngest-and-oldestconsumers-have-fared-in-recession-and-recovery.htm); the most recent Spotlight (April 2020) is “Meal 

Appeal: Patterns of Expenditures on Food away from Home” (www.bls.gov/spotlight/2020/food-awayfrom-home/home.htm). 

The 2019 Data Quality Profile, which reports quality metrics and indicators for the Interview and Diary 

Surveys regarding measurement, nonresponse, and processing error, will be available shortly after this 

release at www.bls.gov/cex/cecomparison.htm. 

The 2019 Annual Report, which includes more detailed information on spending patterns, will be 

published in late 2020. (See www.bls.gov/cex/csxreport.htm#annual.) 

For a listing of links to other published reports featuring CE data, see the CE publications page at 

www.bls.gov/cex/csxreport.htm. 

Survey Materials

Also available are the Diary Survey questionnaire and a modified version of the computer assisted 

personal interview (CAPI) instrument used to collect the Interview Survey data at 

www.bls.gov/cex/csxsurveyforms.htm. 

Methodology 

The change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) cited in the text was calculated as the percentage 

change between the 12-month average CPI-U for all items from January to December 2018 (251.107) 

and the 12-month average CPI-U for all items from January to December 2019 (255.657).

Income before taxes includes the following components: Wages and salaries; self-employment 

income; Social Security; private and government retirement; interest, dividends, rental income, and 

other property income; unemployment, workers' compensation and veterans' benefits; public assistance, 

supplemental security income, and food stamps; regular contributions for support; and other income. 

Income quintiles are constructed by sorting consumer units in the sample from lowest to highest income 

before taxes. The population weight (i.e., the number of consumer units within the population that each 

sampled unit represents) associated with each consumer is summed with those of the consumer units 

preceding it in the sorted set, resulting in a cumulative frequency count. The first quintile includes all 

consumer units for which the cumulative frequency count is less than or equal to 20 percent of the 
- 9 - 

number of consumer units in the population. The second quintile includes all those consumer units for 

which the cumulative frequency count is greater than 20 percent, but less than or equal to 40 percent of 

the population, and so forth. Because there were approximately 132 million consumer units in the 

population in 2019, each quintile includes over 26 million consumer units. 

For expenditures collected in both surveys, the CE program uses a statistical method to select the source 

used in publication. In 2019, while vehicle insurance spending showed a sizable year-over-year increase 

of 58.3 percent, it is important to note that the 2018 estimate was sourced from the Diary Survey and the 

2019 estimate was sourced from the Interview Survey. As noted, this source change was due to the 

determination of better measurement of vehicle insurance spending in the Interview Survey in 2019. For 

comparison, the year-over-year change for the Diary Survey estimate was –15.1 percent; and the yearover-year change for the Interview Survey estimate was 4.0 percent. Had the source for vehicle 

insurance spending remained the Diary Survey in 2019, the year-over-year change in the estimate of 

transportation expenditures would have been 2.7 percent, instead of 10.1 percent. For more information 

about the source selection process, see www.bls.gov/cex/anthology11/csxanth3.pdf. 

Composition of the consumer unit is 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. Definitions of CE terms are 

in the CE glossary at www.bls.gov/cex/csxgloss.htm. 

Information on the methodology used to calculate and collect CE data is available at 

www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cex/home.htm. General articles and research papers using CE data are in the 

CE research library at www.bls.gov/cex/research_papers/research-paper-catalog.htm. 

Upcoming Events

Each year, the CE program sponsors a symposium and a microdata users’ workshop. Both events are 

free, although registration is required. 

The CE Symposium focuses on survey methodology, and typically features invited presenters from the 

CE program, other BLS programs, and researchers who are not affiliated with the BLS. The symposium 

typically meets on one day.

The CE Microdata Users’ Workshop is a three-day event that combines practical “hands on” training in 

use of the data (Interview and Diary) with presentations from users who are not affiliated with the BLS. 

The practical training builds from an introduction to the data files and structure on the first day to expert 

topics on the final day. Presentations from researchers are selected from those who answer the call for 

presenters. (See www.bls.gov/cex/ce-2021-presenters.htm). As with registration, there is no fee for 

submitting a proposal to present in answer to the call. 

Both events are held in the same week of July. The next CE Symposium will be held July 20, 2021. The 

next CE Microdata Users’ Workshop will be held July 21-23, 2021. More information about these 

events is available on the CE website (www.bls.gov/cex/csxannualworkshop.htm). Reports on these 

events are also published in the Monthly Labor Review (MLR). The most recent report available at the 

time of publication of this news release describes the 2019 events 

(www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2020/article/consumer-expenditure-survey-methods-symposium-and-microdatausers-workshop-2019.htm). Reports on earlier events are available on the CE MLR publications 

webpage (https://www.bls.gov/cex/csxart.htm). Reports on subsequent events (2020 onward) will be 

posted at a later date. 
- 10 - 

Contact Information 

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

Living Conditions at (202) 691-6900 or by email at cexinfo@bls.gov. Information in this release will be 

made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; 

Federal Relay Service: 1 (800) 877-8339.