The Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE) program consists of two surveys, the Quarterly Interview Survey and the Diary Survey, that provide information on the buying habits of American consumers, including data on their expenditures, income, and consumer unit (families and single consumers) characteristics. The survey data are collected for the Bureau of Labor Statistics by the U.S. Census Bureau.

The CE is important because it is the only Federal survey to provide information on the complete range of consumers' expenditures and incomes, as well as the characteristics of those consumers. It is used by economic policymakers examining the impact of policy changes on economic groups, by businesses and academic researchers studying consumers' spending habits and trends, by other Federal agencies, and, perhaps most importantly, to regularly revise the Consumer Price Index market basket of goods and services and their relative importance.

The most recent data tables are for 2011, and were made available on September 25, 2012. See Featured CE Tables and Economic News Releases sections on the CE home page for current data tables and news release.

The 2011 public-use microdata is the most recent and was released on September 25, 2012.

Announcements

CE News Releases

Consumer Expenditures

September 25, 2012
Average annual expenditures per consumer unit rose 3.3 percent in 2011 following a decrease of 2.0 percent in 2010. All major components of spending increased, with transportation rising 8.0 percent and food increasing by 5.4 percent.

Reports

CE Databases

CE Database

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Featured CE Tables

Tables

2011

CURRENT EXPENDITURE TABLES

  • Age of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Composition of consumer unit — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Education of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Higher income before taxes — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Hispanic or Latino origin of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Housing tenure and type of area — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Income before taxes — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Number of earners in consumer unit — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Occupation of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Population size of area of residence — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Quintiles of income before taxes — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Race of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Region of residence — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Size of consumer unit — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Selected age of reference person — ( TXT) (PDF) (XLS)

Previous Years: 1984 to 2011 »

CURRENT EXPENDITURE SHARES TABLES

  • Age of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Composition of consumer unit — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Education of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Higher income before taxes — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Hispanic or Latino origin of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Housing tenure and type of area — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Income before taxes — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Number of earners in consumer unit — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Occupation of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Quintiles of income before taxes — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Race of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Region of residence — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Size of consumer unit — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)

Previous Years: 1989 to 2011

CURRENT AGGREGATE EXPENDITURE SHARES TABLES

  • Age of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Composition of consumer unit — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Education of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Higher income before taxes — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Hispanic or Latino origin of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Housing tenure and type of area — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Income before taxes — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Number of earners in consumer unit — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Occupation of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Quintiles of income before taxes — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Race of reference person — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Region of residence — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Size of consumer unit — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)

Previous Years: 1989 to 2011 »

CURRENT STANDARD ERROR TABLES

  • Age of reference person (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Composition of consumer unit (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Education of reference person (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Higher income before taxes (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Hispanic or Latino origin of reference person (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Housing tenure and type of area (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Income before taxes (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Number of earners in consumer unit (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Occupation of reference person (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Quintiles of income before taxes (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Race of reference person (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Region of residence (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)
  • Size of consumer unit (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)

Previous Years: 2000 to 2011 »

2006 to 2011

MOST RECENT MULTIYEAR TABLE

  • 2006-2011 Multiyear table — (TXT) (PDF) (XLS)

Previous Years: 1984 to 2011 »

Additional CE Data Tables »

CE Microdata

CE Survey Forms

Current Survey Forms

All CE Survey Forms »

CE Publications

CE Frequently Asked Questions

CE Events in Your Area

CE is Coming to Your Town!

As part of ongoing outreach efforts, CE staff attend conferences outside the Washington, DC area when circumstances permit. You may be interested in attending their presentations, or in arranging for a CE staff member to visit your organization. To see a list of upcoming or past events, click on the links below.

CE Related Links

Other BLS Programs

  • Consumer Price Indexes --monthly data on changes in the prices paid by urban consumers for a representative basket of goods and services.
  • Price and Index Number Research experimental poverty measures -- CE data are used to estimate National Academy of Sciences (NAS) based poverty measures and a Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM)

Other Useful Links

Contact Us

Methods of Contact

The economists and administrative personnel of the Consumer Expenditure Survey staff are available Monday through Friday to respond to inquiries. Please use any of the methods below to contact the CE National Office. Inquiries should include your name, and phone number, fax number, mailing address, or e-mail address, along with a brief message.

Telephone
    (202) 691-6900

Incoming calls are connected to the office's voice mail and answered promptly.  

FAX
    (202) 691-7006
 

Mail
    Bureau of Labor Statistics
   Consumer Expenditure Surveys — Branch of Information and Analysis
    Postal Square Building, Room 3985
    2 Massachusetts Avenue, N.E.
    Washington, DC 20212-0001
 

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