The CE Annual Data Quality Profile — 2025 : U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is committed to producing consistently high quality data (i.e., accurate, objective, relevant, timely, and accessible) in accordance with Statistical Policy Directive No. 1.^[1] This Directive, issued by the Office of Management and Budget, affirms the fundamental responsibilities of Federal Statistical Agencies, and recognizes statistical units in the design, collection, processing, editing, compilation, storage, analysis, release, and dissemination of statistical information. BLS provides data users with a variety of resources to assist them in analyzing overall Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE) data quality. CE data users can evaluate quality on their own by utilizing the following:

Standard errors provided for the official CE tables and the and the CE database.^[2]
CE response rates (provided for all BLS household surveys).
Published data comparisons between CE and other household survey estimates.
Published results of nonresponse bias studies.^[3]
CE public-use microdata (PUMD) datasets with variables and flags necessary to create quality metrics.^[4]

In addition, the Data Quality Profile (DQP) provides a comprehensive set of quality metrics that are timely, routinely updated, and accessible to users. For data users, DQP metrics are an indication of quality for both the CE Interview Survey and the Diary Survey.^[5] For internal stakeholders, these metrics signal areas for potential survey improvement.

The DQP includes, for each metric, a brief description of the metric, along with accompanying results, which are tabulated and charted. The DQP Reference Guide gives detailed descriptions of the metrics, computations, and methodology (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026). The purpose of the DQP report series is to highlight recent updates in the set of provided data quality metrics.

BLS began publishing annual DQPs with the release of the 2017 data, though prototype DQPs are available for 2013 and 2015. Midyear DQPs started with the 2020 midyear data release, which covered the period of July 2019 through June 2020. The last midyear DQP was released in 2024.^[6] Prior DQPs are available on the CE Library Page.

The data quality metrics are reported in a quarterly format, where the quarter represents the three-month period in which the survey data were collected. Because Interview Survey respondents are asked to recall expenditures from the prior three months, the data collected in the first quarter of 2026 include expenditures made in the fourth quarter of 2025. For example, an interview conducted in March of 2026 includes expenditures from December 2025, as well as January and February of 2026. In contrast, respondents to the Diary Survey report expenditures on the days that they were incurred in the two-week diary keeping period. This is why this report’s Interview Survey metrics appear to lead the Diary Survey by a quarter (e.g., covering the first quarter of 2026 for the Interview Survey and the fourth quarter of 2025 for the Diary Survey).

Highlights

In this section, we highlight noteworthy metric updates from the past year of available data. This time frame covers the first quarter of 2025 to the fourth quarter of 2025 for the CE Diary survey, and the second quarter of 2025 to the first quarter of 2026 for the CE Interview survey. Subsequent sections will describe all individual metrics with detailed data tables and graphical representations.

Recent Updates of Note

The data quality metrics presented in this report for the fourth quarter of 2025 only represent the month of December 2025, Due to the 2025 lapse in federal appropriations, the Census Bureau could not collect the Consumer Expenditure Surveys (CE) for BLS in October and November 2025. The Census Bureau resumed collection of CE data on December 5, 2025.^[7]
The response rate in both CE Surveys fell from the previous publication of the Annual CE Data Quality Profile.
The Diary Survey response rate was measured at 39.0 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 and 34.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025, while Interview Survey response was measured at 39.9 percent in the first quarter of 2025 and 38.5 percent in the first quarter of 2026.
The Interview Survey refusal rate was measured at 27.3 percent in the first quarter of 2025 and 32.7 percent in first quarter of 2026, although this was mostly offset by a concurrent change in other nonresponse from 18.8 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 13.1 percent in the most recent quarter.
The Diary Survey refusal rate was measured at 32.0 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 and 39.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025, and similar to the Interview Survey, were largely offset by a concurrent change in other nonresponse from 19.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 15.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025.
The rate of expenditure diaries completed online was measured at 28.0 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 and at 30.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025.

A. CE Quarterly Interview Survey

1. Final disposition rates of eligible sample units

Final disposition rates of eligible sample units in the Interview Survey represent the final participation outcomes of field staff’s survey recruitment efforts. The BLS classifies the “final outcome” of eligible sample units into the following four main categories:

Completed interview
Nonresponse due to refusal
Nonresponse due to noncontact
Nonresponse due to other reasons

More details on how these categories are defined and how BLS calculates response rates can be found in the DQP Reference Guide (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026).

The primary interest in response rates is their relationship with nonresponse bias.^[8] That is, low response rates can indicate the potential for nonresponse bias in expenditure estimates if the cause of nonresponse is correlated with spending. While recent research on nonresponse bias in the Interview Survey has not shown bias in the CE survey estimates (Ash & Rothbaum, 2024), BLS continually monitors nonresponse bias risk in the CE.

Response rates in this report are presented as unweighted values. This is because CE weights are used to estimate results for the U.S. population, and the goal of this analysis is to measure the results of data collection efforts rather than make inferences about the wider population

Final disposition rate summary

The Interview Survey response rate was measured at 39.9 percent in the first quarter of 2025 and 38.5 percent in the first quarter of 2026. This continued the general downward trend visible in the full time series of response rates (See Chart A1.1).^[9]
Refusal rates in the Interview Survey were measured at 27.3 percent in the first quarter of 2025 and 32.7 percent in first quarter of 2026.
The previous drop in refusal rates coincided with the implementation of survey fielding changes that were put in place by the BLS and Census during Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) and ended in Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25). This survey fielding change targeted Wave 4 cases that were likely to result in a refusal to participate, which effectively shifted these cases to other nonresponse.^[10]A similar dynamic between refusals and other nonresponse can be seen in the third quarter of 2022, during the temporary fielding changes in Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23).^[11]
Noncontact rates were measured at 13.9 percent in the first quarter of 2025 and 15.7 percent in the most recent quarter (the first quarter of 2026).

Other nonresponse rates were measured at 18.8 percent in the first quarter of 2025 and 13.1 percent in the most recent quarter (first quarter of 2026).

The high percentage of other nonresponse in recent quarters, relative to the full series, resulted from cost containment measures that were implemented in FY24 and ended in FY25. The change in other nonresponse was largely driven by 4th wave interview cases that had resulted in non-interviews in previous interview waves, as such cases were the main target of the survey fielding changes.
The previous instance of high other nonresponse in the third quarter of 2022 was related to a similar change to survey fielding procedures in FY23. This resulted in a 17.0 percentage point shift from 2.0 percent in the second quarter of 2022 to 19.0 percent, before moving to 2.0 percent in the fourth quarter of 2022.

^[12]

Table A1.1 Interview survey: distribution of final dispositions for eligible sample units (unweighted)^[13]
Quarter	Number of eligible sample units	Interview (in percent)	Refusal (in percent)	Noncontact (in percent)	Other nonresponse (in percent)
Q1 2016	10,123	63.5	25.7	6.6	4.2
Q2 2016	10,101	62.8	25.7	7.2	4.4
Q3 2016	10,037	63.5	25.5	6.0	5.0
Q4 2016	10,114	62.3	26.5	6.1	5.1
Q1 2017	10,113	61.4	28.7	5.3	4.6
Q2 2017	9,988	61.8	28.0	5.5	4.6
Q3 2017	9,954	61.2	28.9	5.1	4.9
Q4 2017	10,138	59.2	30.7	5.7	4.4
Q1 2018	10,077	58.7	31.1	5.7	4.5
Q2 2018	10,075	58.6	31.1	5.5	4.8
Q3 2018	10,053	57.4	32.6	5.5	4.5
Q4 2018	10,161	54.8	34.7	5.5	5.0
Q1 2019	10,108	55.6	34.3	4.8	5.2
Q2 2019	10,075	54.5	35.5	5.0	5.0
Q3 2019	10,036	53.2	36.5	5.6	4.8
Q4 2019	10,170	51.6	36.8	6.1	5.5
Q1 2020	9,956	52.2	33.8	4.7	9.3
Q2 2020	10,581	45.9	15.4	0.8	37.9
Q3 2020	11,190	44.5	24.2	3.9	27.4
Q4 2020	11,185	46.5	36.8	6.3	10.4
Q1 2021	11,125	46.0	38.9	6.8	8.3
Q2 2021	11,120	46.7	41.1	9.5	2.7
Q3 2021	11,117	46.1	43.0	8.4	2.5
Q4 2021	11,275	43.5	44.3	9.9	2.3
Q1 2022	11,320	45.8	42.8	9.3	2.1
Q2 2022	11,202	46.2	43.5	8.3	2.0
Q3 2022	11,235	40.8	23.8	16.4	19.0
Q4 2022	11,248	41.0	33.9	23.0	2.0
Q1 2023	11,299	42.5	36.5	20.1	0.9
Q2 2023	11,308	42.0	38.0	18.9	1.1
Q3 2023	11,383	41.9	39.7	16.8	1.7
Q4 2023	11,515	40.5	31.2	15.1	13.2
Q1 2024	11,453	40.9	30.4	13.6	15.1
Q2 2024	11,380	41.1	30.0	14.2	14.8
Q3 2024	11,368	40.6	28.0	12.9	18.5
Q4 2024	11,498	40.0	27.4	12.7	19.9
Q1 2025	11,916	39.9	27.3	13.9	18.8
Q2 2025	10,637	39.0	32.6	14.0	14.4
Q3 2025	10,608	41.0	33.3	14.6	11.0
Q4 2025	3,594	36.6	33.8	16.8	12.9
Q1 2026	10,708	38.5	32.7	15.7	13.1

2. Records use

The Records Use metric measures the proportion of respondents who refer to records while answering the Interview Survey questions, as reported by Census Field Representatives (FRs). Examples of records include, but are not limited to, receipts, bills, checkbooks, and bank statements. The interviewer documents records use retrospectively, at the end of the interview. Past research has shown that respondents who refer to expenditure records report more expenditures with lower rates of item nonresponse and rounded data (Abdirizak, Erhard, Lee, and McBride, 2017). The rate at which respondents refer to records, rather than relying on recall alone, is a signal of these quality measures; thus, higher records use rates indicate less likelihood of measurement error. Metrics in this section are presented by survey wave.^[14] More information on the Records Use metric appears in the DQP Reference Guide (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026).

Record use summary

The share of interview respondents using records was little changed between the publishing of the 2024 Data Quality Profile and the first quarter of 2026 (See Chart A2.1).

The share of respondents referring to records in Wave 1 experienced an overall shift of 0.8 percentage points, from 62.6 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 63.4 percent in the first quarter of 2026. The rate of 63.4 percent in the first quarter of 2026 represented the highest point in the series since the fourth quarter of 2016.
The share of respondents referring to records in Waves 2 & 3 experienced an overall shift of 0.7 percentage points from 58.3 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 59.0 percent in the first quarter of 2026.
Wave 4 records use experienced an overall shift of 2.5 percentage points from 58.7 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 61.2 percent in the first quarter of 2026.

Table A2.1 Interview survey: prevalence of records use among respondents
Quarter	Number of Wave 1 Respondents	Wave 1 Records Used (in percent)	Number of Wave 2 & 3 Respondents	Waves 2 & 3 Records Used (in percent)	Number of Wave 4 Respondents	Wave 4 Records Used (in percent)
Q1 2016	1,631	43.0	3,172	41.7	1,623	42.0
Q2 2016	1,633	42.3	3,102	40.3	1,607	41.8
Q3 2016	1,688	69.9	3,087	49.0	1,597	50.8
Q4 2016	1,660	70.3	3,108	53.8	1,533	49.2
Q1 2017	1,557	51.3	3,078	55.1	1,573	50.3
Q2 2017	1,573	52.7	3,003	50.9	1,601	56.2
Q3 2017	1,581	49.1	2,933	45.8	1,576	53.2
Q4 2017	1,592	48.2	2,935	49.2	1,477	49.2
Q1 2018	1,501	53.7	2,951	49.5	1,464	52.7
Q2 2018	1,529	50.2	2,884	47.4	1,486	50.1
Q3 2018	1,494	50.3	2,815	48.8	1,464	48.9
Q4 2018	1,399	53.3	2,782	48.7	1,390	51.5
Q1 2019	1,465	55.2	2,730	51.1	1,428	52.7
Q2 2019	1,443	51.6	2,653	51.7	1,397	53.6
Q3 2019	1,401	50.1	2,651	49.0	1,285	51.3
Q4 2019	1,318	53.0	2,637	48.8	1,293	53.1
Q1 2020	1,239	53.6	2,601	50.7	1,362	53.4
Q2 2020	965	51.9	2,559	50.0	1,334	52.4
Q3 2020	1143	49.3	2,444	49.4	1,393	51.0
Q4 2020	1,230	50.1	2,589	50.1	1,386	51.9
Q1 2021	1,250	52.0	2,515	50.3	1,350	52.4
Q2 2021	1,325	49.8	2,534	47.8	1,337	50.5
Q3 2021	1,352	53.0	2,488	48.6	1,281	49.6
Q4 2021	1,229	54.8	2,450	53.2	1,223	54.0
Q1 2022	1,347	60.3	2,551	53.9	1,289	56.7
Q2 2022	1,325	55.4	2,532	52.6	1,320	54.4
Q3 2022	1,277	57.6	2,153	55.7	1,150	57.0
Q4 2022	1,234	57.1	2,258	55.4	1,125	59.0
Q1 2023	1,288	60.8	2,400	59.8	1,119	61.7
Q2 2023	1,263	56.5	2,369	57.9	1,119	61.4
Q3 2023	1,246	57.7	2,314	57.6	1,210	56.1
Q4 2023	1,197	60.2	2,343	58.0	1,122	61.2
Q1 2024	1,201	62.6	2,337	60.5	1,150	63.1
Q2 2024	1,224	58.3	2,339	57.1	1,110	60.9
Q3 2024	1,226	58.4	2,278	55.8	1,108	59.3
Q4 2024	1,232	60.8	2,270	56.6	1,099	56.9
Q1 2025	1,183	62.6	2,448	58.3	1,127	58.7
Q2 2025	1,075	62.0	2,088	57.9	987	58.2
Q3 2025	1,215	59.0	2,084	56.6	1,055	58.4
Q4 2025	329	60.2	668	53.6	319	57.1
Q1 2026	1,088	63.4	2,110	59.0	929	61.2

3. Information Booklet use

The Information Booklet is a recall aid that the Census FR provides to respondents. The Information Booklet provides response options for demographic questions and bracket response options for income questions. Additionally, Survey respondents can use the Information Booklet to view clarifying examples for specific expenditures that each section/item code is intended to collect.

Information Booklet use captures the frequency of which respondents choose to utilize this resource. Respondents who are interviewed in-person receive a direct, hard copy of the Information Booklet from the FR. However, respondents who are interviewed by telephone typically do not have ready access to the Information Booklet, although a PDF version is available on the BLS website. In 2025, respondents only had access to the PDF version.

Thus, this metric should be interpreted in conjunction with the rise in telephone interviews during the COVID-19 pandemic. Higher Information Booklet use is encouraged, as use can improve reporting quality by clarifying concepts and providing contextual examples. More information on the Information Booklet metric appears in the DQP Reference Guide (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026).

Information booklet use summary

The rate of Information Booklet use among Wave 1 respondents saw an overall shift of 5.0 percentage points in the most recent year of available data, moving from 32.3 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 37.3 percent in the first quarter of 2026. This series experienced fluctuations between the second and fourth quarters of 2025, including in the fourth quarter of 2025 when the rate reached 38.0 percent for the first time since 2019 (See Chart A3.1).
The rate of Information Booklet use among Wave 2 & 3 respondents experienced a shift of 3.5 percentage points in the most recent year of available data, moving from 26.6 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 30.1 percent in the first quarter of 2026. Similar to Wave 1, Information Booklet use among Wave 2 & 3 respondents had fluctuations between the second and fourth quarters of 2025 and saw a six-year high in this time frame (30.4 percent).
Information Booklet use among Wave 4 respondents experienced an overall shift of 7.7 percentage points in the most recent year of data moving from 23.1 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 30.8 percent in the first quarter of 2026. Like in the previous interview wave groups, Information Booklet use among Wave 4 respondents hit a six-year high during this time period (30.4 percent).^[15]
Information Booklet use by respondents across all waves continues to be below pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels.^[16]

Table A3.1 Interview survey: prevalence of information booklet use among respondents
Quarter	Wave 1 Respondents	Wave 1 Infobook Used (in percent)	Waves 2 & 3 Respondents	Waves 2 & 3 Infobook Used (in percent)	Wave 4 Respondents	Wave 4 Infobook Used (in percent)
Q1 2016	1,631	48.9	3,172	35.0	1,623	33.5
Q2 2016	1,633	47.6	3,102	34.9	1,607	34.8
Q3 2016	1,688	58.2	3,087	39.3	1,597	35.3
Q4 2016	1,660	56.1	3,108	40.1	1,533	35.6
Q1 2017	1,557	49.6	3,078	39.6	1,573	33.8
Q2 2017	1,573	53.8	3,003	38.9	1,601	39.0
Q3 2017	1,581	52.6	2,933	38.3	1,576	38.5
Q4 2017	1,592	50.1	2,935	37.1	1,477	35.2
Q1 2018	1,501	50.2	2,951	37.2	1,464	34.4
Q2 2018	1,529	47.5	2,884	36.4	1,486	34.5
Q3 2018	1,494	48.1	2,815	36.8	1,464	33.9
Q4 2018	1,399	49.0	2,782	35.6	1,390	32.4
Q1 2019	1,465	46.3	2,730	36.2	1,428	32.8
Q2 2019	1,443	49.5	2,653	35.6	1,397	33.9
Q3 2019	1,401	47.5	2,651	35.6	1,285	35.0
Q4 2019	1,318	46.7	2,637	33.7	1,293	32.3
Q1 2020	1,239	37.8	2,601	28.1	1,362	28.8
Q2 2020	965	2.6	2,559	2.9	1,334	3.4
Q3 2020	1,143	6.7	2,444	4.8	1,393	5.2
Q4 2020	1,230	12.4	2,589	9.4	1,386	7.4
Q1 2021	1,250	13.3	2,515	9.3	1,350	8.5
Q2 2021	1,325	14.9	2,534	11.1	1,337	9.6
Q3 2021	1,352	19.3	2,488	12.7	1,281	10.8
Q4 2021	1,229	25.1	2,450	17.3	1,223	15.3
Q1 2022	1,347	26.9	2,551	18.8	1,289	19.1
Q2 2022	1,325	31.2	2,532	22.0	1,320	20.5
Q3 2022	1,277	34.3	2,153	24.1	1,150	22.8
Q4 2022	1,234	32.3	2,258	25.4	1,125	23.7
Q1 2023	1,288	35.9	2,400	28.5	1,119	26.5
Q2 2023	1,263	35.2	2,369	27.9	1,119	26.7
Q3 2023	1,246	36.2	2,314	28.3	1,210	26.5
Q4 2023	1,197	32.7	2,343	27.9	1,122	26.1
Q1 2024	1,201	36.9	2,337	28.2	1,150	26.4
Q2 2024	1,224	33.2	2,339	27.3	1,110	25.0
Q3 2024	1,226	33.4	2,278	26.2	1,108	23.2
Q4 2024	1,232	29.8	2,270	24.8	1,099	25.6
Q1 2025	1,183	32.3	2,448	26.6	1,127	23.1
Q2 2025	1,075	37.6	2,088	26.8	987	26.5
Q3 2025	1,215	34.3	2,084	29.4	1,055	26.4
Q4 2025	329	38.0	668	30.4	319	31.0
Q1 2026	1,088	37.3	2,110	30.1	929	30.8

4. Expenditure edit rates

The Expenditure edit rates metric measures the proportion of reported expenditure data that are edited. Edits are defined as changes made to reported expenditure data during CE data processing, excluding changes due to: time period conversion calculations; top-coding; or suppression of reported values. Top-coding and suppression (redacting reported values) are done to protect respondent confidentiality in the public use microdata (PUMD).^[17] Additional information on top-coding and suppression is available on the CE Website.

The Interview Survey expenditure edit rates are broken down into three categories: Imputation; Allocation; and Manual Edits:

Imputation replaces missing or invalid responses with a valid value.
Allocation edits are applied when respondents provide insufficient detail to meet tabulation requirements. For example, if a respondent provides a non-itemized total expenditure report for the category of fuels and utilities, that total amount will be allocated to the target items mentioned by the respondent (such as natural gas and electricity).
Manual edits occur whenever responses are directly edited by BLS economists based on their analysis and expert judgment.

Imputation of CE data results from item nonresponse. Allocation is a consequence of responses lacking the required details for items asked about in the survey. Lower edit rates are preferred, as it lowers the risk of processing error. However, edits based on sound methodology can improve the completeness of the data, and thereby reduce the risk of measurement error and nonresponse bias in survey estimates. Additional information on expenditure edits is available in the DQP Reference Guide (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026).

Expenditure edit rate summary

The total rate of unedited expenditures saw no overall shift from 87.4 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 87.4 percent in the first quarter of 2026 (See Chart A4.1).
Concurrently the rate of allocated expenditures experienced an overall shift of 0.3 percentage points from 8.8 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 8.5 percent in the first quarter of 2026.
The rate of imputed expenditures saw an overall shift of 0.3 percentage points from 3.5 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 3.8 percent in the first quarter of 2026.
The rate of manually imputed expenditures was 0.2 percent in the first quarter of 2025 and 0.2 percent in the first quarter of 2026.

Table A4.1 Interview survey: reported expenditure records
Quarter	Number of expenditures	Allocated (in percent)	Imputed (in percent)	Imputed & allocated (in percent)	Manual edits (in percent)	Unedited (in percent)
Q1 2016	273,729	5.5	11.6	0.1	0.1	82.7
Q2 2016	268,405	5.4	12.0	0.1	0.1	82.4
Q3 2016	279,542	5.7	10.8	0.1	0.1	83.2
Q4 2016	276,290	5.7	10.5	0.1	0.1	83.6
Q1 2017	272,929	5.7	11.0	0.1	0.1	83.1
Q2 2017	276,568	12.1	4.3	0.2	0.1	83.4
Q3 2017	281,533	12.5	4.3	0.2	0.1	82.9
Q4 2017	277,032	12.4	4.3	0.2	0.1	83.0
Q1 2018	275,949	11.7	4.3	0.2	0.1	83.7
Q2 2018	270,726	12.0	3.9	0.2	0.1	83.9
Q3 2018	269,909	12.1	3.8	0.2	0.1	83.8
Q4 2018	259,508	12.0	3.8	0.2	0.1	84.0
Q1 2019	264,424	11.8	3.6	0.2	0.1	84.3
Q2 2019	255,037	11.7	3.7	0.2	0.1	84.2
Q3 2019	251,370	11.6	3.7	0.2	0.2	84.3
Q4 2019	244,834	11.6	3.8	0.2	0.2	84.2
Q1 2020	246,488	11.6	3.9	0.2	0.2	84.1
Q2 2020	217,785	11.9	4.1	0.2	0.1	83.6
Q3 2020	224,639	11.6	4.3	0.2	0.3	83.6
Q4 2020	232,195	11.6	4.3	0.2	0.3	83.6
Q1 2021	231,850	11.2	3.9	0.2	0.6	84.0
Q2 2021	232,282	10.1	4.5	0.2	0.2	85.0
Q3 2021	231,351	10.1	4.0	0.2	0.5	85.2
Q4 2021	222,027	9.8	3.7	0.2	0.6	85.7
Q1 2022	231,495	9.4	3.6	0.2	0.5	86.4
Q2 2022	229,608	9.3	3.8	0.2	0.5	86.3
Q3 2022	215,674	9.2	3.7	0.1	0.5	86.5
Q4 2022	213,369	9.1	3.7	0.2	0.4	86.6
Q1 2023	226,199	8.6	3.5	0.1	0.4	87.3
Q2 2023	211,813	8.7	3.6	0.1	0.5	87.2
Q3 2023	215,398	8.6	3.8	0.2	0.2	87.2
Q4 2023	208,737	8.6	3.3	0.2	0.4	87.5
Q1 2024	211,517	8.3	3.4	0.2	0.5	87.7
Q2 2024	202,545	9.2	3.6	0.2	0.6	86.4
Q3 2024	207,739	8.9	3.4	0.1	0.5	87.1
Q4 2024	206,395	9.0	3.5	0.2	0.4	86.8
Q1 2025	212,506	8.8	3.5	0.2	0.2	87.4
Q2 2025	182,575	8.6	3.7	0.1	0.2	87.4
Q3 2025	194,206	8.4	3.7	0.1	0.2	87.5
Q4 2025	56,654	8.0	3.4	0.1	0.3	88.1
Q1 2026	181,657	8.5	3.8	0.2	0.2	87.4

5. Income imputation rates

The Income imputation rates metric describes edits performed on a consumer unit's (CU's) nonresponse to at least one source of income. This edit is based on three imputation methods:

Bracket response imputation: when the respondent reports receipt of an income source, but only reports that income as falling within a specified range.
Model-based imputation: when the respondent reports receipt of an income source but fails to report any information about the amount.
All valid blank (AVB) conversion: when the respondent reports no receipt of income from any source, but the BLS imputes receipt from at least one source.

After imputation, income is summed from each source for which receipt is reported or imputed to compute total income before taxes for the CU as a whole. In the following text, income before taxes is defined as “unimputed income” if no component of total income required imputation for one of the three reasons identified above.

The need for imputation arises from either item nonresponse or from response where insufficient detail was provided (e.g., the respondent provided a range of income like “between $40,000 and $50,000,”). More respondents providing precise amounts instead of ranges leads to less potential nonresponse bias in the data for imputation to address. However, imputation based on sound methodology produces a complete dataset, and reduces the risk of nonresponse bias in the event incomplete cases were excluded from the dataset. Further details on the income imputation methodology appear in the DQP Reference Guide (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026) and the User's Guide to Income Imputation in the CE (Paulin, Reyes-Morales, and Fisher, 2018).

Income imputation rate summary

The rate of unimputed total income before taxes was little changed in the most recent year of data, from 59.8 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 58.0 percent in the first quarter of 2026, with some additional fluctuations in the quarters in between (See Chart A5.1).
The rate of model-based imputation had an overall shift of 1.7 percentage points in the most recent year of available data, from 17.0 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 18.7 percent in the first quarter of 2026, with some fluctuations in the interim.

Table A5.1 Interview survey: income imputation rates for total amount of family income before taxes
Quarter	Number of respondents	Valid blanks converted (AVB) (in percent)	Bracket imputation (in percent)	Model imputation (in percent)	Model & bracket imputation (in percent)	Unedited (in percent)
Q1 2016	6,426	1.6	19.4	18.6	4.6	55.8
Q2 2016	6,342	1.5	18.3	19.2	4.5	56.4
Q3 2016	6,372	1.6	19.2	17.6	4.6	57.1
Q4 2016	6,301	1.7	18.4	17.1	4.6	58.2
Q1 2017	6,208	1.9	19.6	17.2	4.3	57.0
Q2 2017	6,177	1.1	18.4	17.7	4.0	58.8
Q3 2017	6,090	1.3	17.4	18.6	4.3	58.4
Q4 2017	6,004	1.7	17.6	18.8	4.6	57.4
Q1 2018	5,916	1.5	17.5	18.0	4.6	58.4
Q2 2018	5,899	1.2	16.8	17.1	5.2	59.8
Q3 2018	5,773	1.4	17.9	16.6	4.7	59.4
Q4 2018	5,571	1.4	18.2	17.3	4.5	58.5
Q1 2019	5,623	1.9	18.0	17.0	4.3	58.8
Q2 2019	5,493	1.4	18.3	17.5	4.4	58.4
Q3 2019	5,337	1.2	17.8	17.7	4.6	58.7
Q4 2019	5,248	1.4	18.9	17.2	5.0	57.5
Q1 2020	5,202	1.3	18.6	17.6	4.5	58.1
Q2 2020	4,858	1.2	18.1	18.7	4.9	57.1
Q3 2020	4,980	1.1	18.2	19.0	5.1	56.6
Q4 2020	5,205	1.3	18.2	20.3	5.5	54.7
Q1 2021	5,115	1.4	17.8	19.9	5.5	55.5
Q2 2021	5,196	1.3	17.4	20.5	5.8	55.0
Q3 2021	5,121	1.2	18.1	19.7	5.4	55.5
Q4 2021	4,902	1.4	17.1	18.6	5.3	57.5
Q1 2022	5,187	1.3	17.8	17.9	5.2	57.8
Q2 2022	5,177	1.4	17.0	18.3	5.4	58.0
Q3 2022	4,580	1.1	17.9	17.4	5.3	58.3
Q4 2022	4,617	1.0	18.3	17.7	4.9	58.1
Q1 2023	4,807	1.1	18.5	16.4	4.4	59.5
Q2 2023	4,751	1.2	17.6	17.2	4.7	59.3
Q3 2023	4,770	1.1	17.7	17.5	4.7	59.0
Q4 2023	4,662	1.0	18.4	16.9	4.5	59.2
Q1 2024	4,688	0.9	18.6	17.4	4.8	58.3
Q2 2024	4,673	1.0	17.5	16.5	4.5	60.4
Q3 2024	4,612	0.9	17.6	16.8	4.7	60.0
Q4 2024	4,601	1.1	18.1	17.0	5.2	58.6
Q1 2025	4,758	0.8	17.7	17.0	4.7	59.8
Q2 2025	4,150	0.0	17.8	16.7	5.0	60.5
Q3 2025	4,354	0.9	16.8	17.4	5.0	59.9
Q4 2025	1,316	1.1	16.5	17.8	5.4	59.2
Q1 2026	4,127	0.8	17.8	18.7	4.8	58.0

6. Respondent burden

Respondent burden measures the perceived level of effort exerted by respondents in answering survey questions. This metric is only recorded in the Interview Survey. Aside from wanting respondents to have a positive survey experience, survey designers are concerned about respondent burden as it may negatively affect response rates and overall response quality. As of April 2017, at the end of the Wave 4 interview, the BLS introduced a question on respondent burden in the Interview Survey with response options describing five different levels of burden. The respondent burden metric is derived from this question and maps five burden categories to three metric values: respondents perceiving the survey to be very burdensome, perceiving the survey to pose some burden, and perceiving the survey as not burdensome. Please see the DQP Reference Guide (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026) for more details on the question wording and the burden categories.

A caveat about interpreting respondent burden is that since the burden question is only asked at the end of Wave 4, the metric may underestimate survey burden due to self-selection bias. That is, respondents who have agreed to participate in the final wave of the survey presumably find the survey less burdensome than sample units who had dropped out at any point prior to completing the final survey wave. However, it is also possible that the respondent answering this question did not participate in prior interview waves. For example, the respondent who participated in the first three surveys might have moved and been replaced by someone participating in and answering the burden question for their first and only interview.

Respondent burden summary

The share of respondents perceiving the survey as not burdensome saw a shift of 2.2 percentage points in the most recent year of data, from 26.4 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 28.6 percent in the first quarter of 2026. The series experienced additional fluctuations between the second and fourth quarters of 2025, most notably in the fourth quarter of 2025 when the series exceeded 31.0 percent for the first time since the fourth quarter of 2019 (See Chart A6.1).
The share of respondents perceiving some burden in the survey had an overall shift of 2.2 percentage points in the most recent year of data, going from 56.1 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 53.9 percent in the first quarter of 2026. The percentage of respondents reporting some burden fluctuated between the second and fourth quarters of 2025, notably fourth quarter of 2025 when the series dropped below 53.0 percent for the first time since 2019.
The share of respondents perceiving the survey to be very burdensome experienced an overall shift of 0.2 percentage points in the most recent year of data, from 16.0 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 15.8 percent in the first quarter of 2026. Though there was a notable fluctuation in the second quarter of 2025 when the estimate was measured at 14.3 percent.

Table A6.1 Interview survey: respondents’ perceived burden in the final survey wave
Quarter	Number of respondents	Not burdensome (in percent)	Some burden (in percent)	Very burdensome (in percent)	Missing response (in percent)
Q2 2017	1,601	34.2	52.5	10.0	3.2
Q3 2017	1,576	32.7	51.8	12.1	3.5
Q4 2017	1,477	33.6	52.7	11.0	2.6
Q1 2018	1,464	31.7	52.7	12.4	3.2
Q2 2018	1,486	32.4	52.8	12.2	2.6
Q3 2018	1,464	33.7	51.4	13.0	1.9
Q4 2018	1,390	34.2	50.8	12.1	2.9
Q1 2019	1,428	30.5	55.1	12.7	1.6
Q2 2019	1,397	30.9	52.4	13.7	2.9
Q3 2019	1,285	29.4	54.3	13.4	2.9
Q4 2019	1,293	32.9	53.8	11.3	2.0
Q1 2020	1,362	30.8	54.0	12.0	3.2
Q2 2020	1,334	30.7	54.3	12.5	2.5
Q3 2020	1,393	30.5	54.1	12.8	2.7
Q4 2020	1,386	29.7	53.5	14.9	1.9
Q1 2021	1,350	26.0	55.0	15.6	3.4
Q2 2021	1,337	29.0	55.8	12.3	2.9
Q3 2021	1,281	27.9	53.9	15.4	2.7
Q4 2021	1,223	24.2	57.9	15.3	2.6
Q1 2022	1,289	26.3	55.2	16.3	2.2
Q2 2022	1,320	28.4	54.7	14.6	2.3
Q3 2022	1,150	27.1	57.1	13.4	2.3
Q4 2022	1,125	28.3	54.8	15.0	1.9
Q1 2023	1,119	28.7	55.5	13.1	2.7
Q2 2023	1,119	28.2	55.9	13.6	2.4
Q3 2023	1,210	29.3	54.0	14.5	2.1
Q4 2023	1,122	27.0	57.0	15.1	0.9
Q1 2024	1,150	29.0	53.2	16.3	1.5
Q2 2024	1,110	28.2	54.3	15.7	1.8
Q3 2024	1,108	30.2	53.8	14.4	1.6
Q4 2024	1,099	26.2	55.1	16.9	1.7
Q1 2025	1,127	26.4	56.1	16.0	1.6
Q2 2025	987	28.2	56.2	14.3	1.3
Q3 2025	1,055	26.5	55.1	16.8	1.6
Q4 2025	319	31.0	52.0	16.6	0.3
Q1 2026	929	28.6	53.9	15.8	1.6

7. Survey response time

For the Interview Survey, the survey response time metric is the median number of minutes required to complete a given interview wave. Interview duration is calculated as the difference between the timestamps of the interviewer’s entry and exit from the survey instrument. Various instrument handling issues experienced by the interviewer can also be captured within the timestamps, leading to occasional extreme or unusual observations, and the median measure is robust to these outliers.

In the Interview Survey, Wave 1 and 4 interviews are typically longer because Census FRs collect additional information, mainly CU demographics (Wave 1), assets and liabilities (Wave 4) and income (Waves 1 and 4). Past internal CE research has found that higher respondent burden negatively affects both response rates and data quality. Longer survey response time could (in some circumstances) represent an indicator the respondent experienced more burden. However, survey response time could also reflect a respondent’s degree of engagement. Engaged and conscientious respondents might take longer to complete the survey because they report more thoroughly or use records more extensively. Tracking the median survey response time can be useful for assessing the effect of survey design changes. More information on Survey Response time metric can be found in the DQP Reference Guide (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026)

Survey response time summary

Median interview time for Wave 1 respondents experienced an overall shift of 1.1 minutes from 80.0 minutes in the first quarter of 2025 to 81.1 minutes in the first quarter of 2026, with some fluctuations in the interim (See Chart A7.1).
Median interview durations for Waves 2 & 3 respondents saw an overall shift of 8.1 minutes from 58.9 minutes in the first quarter of 2025 to 67.0 minutes in the first quarter of 2026. The increase in the first quarter of 2026 is likely related to responding CUs that were originally slated for a Wave 1 interview in October or November of 2025 participating in the Wave 2 interview in January of February of 2026. CUs in this situation would get all the Wave 1 questions that were missed as a result of the lapse in appropriations, prolonging the interviews relative to typical Wave 2 interviews.
Median interview time for Wave 4 respondents experienced an overall shift of 0.2 minutes from 65.7 minutes in the first quarter of 2025 to 65.9 minutes in the first quarter of 2026. There was a fluctuation of note during this period as the median interview time for Wave 4 respondents reached 69.0 minutes in the third quarter of 2025, which was the highest point since the third quarter of 2022 (69.2 minutes).

Table A7.1 Interview survey: median length of time to complete survey
Quarter	Number of respondents	Wave 1 (in minutes)	Waves 2 & 3 (in minutes)	Wave 4 (in minutes)
Q1 2016	6,421	69.9	47.8	51.9
Q2 2016	6,336	71.4	46.9	52.6
Q3 2016	6,367	76.9	49.0	53.9
Q4 2016	6,297	77.0	49.6	52.8
Q1 2017	6,202	71.3	50.2	52.9
Q2 2017	6,163	71.5	50.5	57.2
Q3 2017	6,081	71.5	50.4	57.1
Q4 2017	6,003	70.5	50.0	56.4
Q1 2018	5,910	73.4	51.5	56.2
Q2 2018	5,894	70.5	49.6	56.4
Q3 2018	5,771	77.0	53.8	60.3
Q4 2018	5,570	76.7	52.0	58.6
Q1 2019	5,618	75.8	52.8	58.8
Q2 2019	5,486	75.9	56.4	60.3
Q3 2019	5,332	74.1	54.1	62.8
Q4 2019	5,239	77.4	53.3	60.9
Q1 2020	5,199	78.8	56.0	59.9
Q2 2020	4,855	76.4	54.6	62.2
Q3 2020	4,980	76.9	56.7	62.2
Q4 2020	5,205	75.0	56.3	60.4
Q1 2021	5,115	74.4	54.6	61.7
Q2 2021	5,196	76.7	54.6	58.8
Q3 2021	5,121	78.0	54.6	60.0
Q4 2021	4,902	80.3	57.8	69.5
Q1 2022	5,187	79.6	57.7	62.8
Q2 2022	5,177	79.2	57.7	63.1
Q3 2022	4,580	88.5	61.8	69.2
Q4 2022	4,617	84.1	62.0	68.2
Q1 2023	4,807	83.9	62.5	67.7
Q2 2023	4,751	81.0	60.0	65.6
Q3 2023	4,770	84.9	59.7	67.1
Q4 2023	4,662	81.2	59.6	65.5
Q1 2024	4,688	81.8	59.7	64.6
Q2 2024	4,673	80.0	58.5	65.5
Q3 2024	4,612	80.6	60.4	64.3
Q4 2024	4,601	81.9	57.5	62.4
Q1 2025	4,758	80.0	58.9	65.7
Q2 2025	4,150	78.3	60.1	66.0
Q3 2025	4,354	81.0	61.6	69.0
Q4 2025	1,316	82.2	58.6	66.5
Q1 2026	4,127	81.1	67.0	65.9

8. Survey mode

The Interview Survey was designed to be conducted in-person. However, the interviewer can also collect data over the phone, or by a combination of the two modes. In general, survey practitioners prefer higher in-person data collection rates, because the interviewer can actively prompt the respondent, as well as encourage the use of recall aids, thereby reducing the risk of measurement error. Conducting Wave 1 interviews in person is especially important as this is typically the respondent’s first exposure to the survey. This serves as an opportunity for the Census FR to build rapport with the respondent. As a data quality measure, the BLS has inter-agency agreements with the Census Bureau stipulating that the average share of telephone interviews, defined as interviews in which 50 percent or more of the survey sections are completed by telephone, should be limited to 25 percent for Wave 1 interviews, and 50 percent for all subsequent interview waves, or as feasible, to be determined by factors that may restrict or limit in-person interviewing in selected geographies. More information on how the mode metrics are calculated is available in the DQP Reference Guide (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026).

Survey mode summary

The rate of in-person interviews, across all waves, experienced an overall shift of 2.1 percentage points from 37.4 percent in the first quarter of 2025, and to 39.5 percent in the first quarter of 2026. Except for the fourth quarter of 2025, the rate of in-person interviews has hovered around or below 40.0 percent over the past three years of data (See Chart A8.1).
The rate of Wave 1 in-person interviews saw a shift of 3.1 percentage points from 48.6 percent in the first quarter of 2025 to 45.5 percent in the first quarter of 2026. The rate of Wave 1 in-person interviews in the first quarter of 2026 (45.5 percent) and the fourth quarter of 2025 (43.5 percent) were the lowest points in the series since it reached 42.1 percent first quarter of 2022 (See Chart A8.2).^[19]
The rate of in-person interviews for Waves 2 & 3 experienced a shift of 2.6 percentage points from 35.5 percent in first quarter of 2025, to 38.1 percent in the first quarter of 2026, with some fluctuation in the interim (See Chart A8.2).
The rate of in-person interviews for Waves 4 interviews experienced a shift of 5.6 percentage points from 29.8 percent in first quarter of 2025, to 35.4 percent in the first quarter of 2026, with some fluctuation in the interim (See Chart A8.2).

Table A8.1 Interview survey: survey mode
Quarter	Number of respondents	In-person (in percent)	Telephone (in percent)	Missing (in percent)
Q1 2016	6,426	63.8	35.7	0.5
Q2 2016	6,342	64.7	34.7	0.6
Q3 2016	6,372	66.1	33.6	0.3
Q4 2016	6,301	64.9	34.7	0.4
Q1 2017	6,208	62.7	36.8	0.6
Q2 2017	6,177	65.9	33.7	0.5
Q3 2017	6,090	65.6	33.9	0.6
Q4 2017	6,004	64.4	35.0	0.6
Q1 2018	5,916	63.0	36.4	0.7
Q2 2018	5,899	63.7	35.8	0.5
Q3 2018	5,773	64.8	34.7	0.5
Q4 2018	5,571	64.2	35.4	0.4
Q1 2019	5,623	62.5	37.0	0.5
Q2 2019	5,493	64.4	35.3	0.3
Q3 2019	5,337	64.4	35.2	0.4
Q4 2019	5,248	61.9	37.8	0.3
Q1 2020	5,202	53.1	46.5	0.4
Q2 2020	4,858	1.7	98.0	0.3
Q3 2020	4,980	9.3	90.5	0.3
Q4 2020	5,205	19.5	80.3	0.2
Q1 2021	5,115	18.1	81.6	0.3
Q2 2021	5,196	26.3	73.4	0.3
Q3 2021	5,121	31.8	67.8	0.4
Q4 2021	4,902	30.7	69.0	0.3
Q1 2022	5,187	31.0	68.8	0.2
Q2 2022	5,177	36.4	63.0	0.5
Q3 2022	4,580	35.9	62.9	1.1
Q4 2022	4,617	35.3	63.3	1.5
Q1 2023	4,807	37.5	62.0	0.6
Q2 2023	4,751	39.7	59.8	0.5
Q3 2023	4,770	40.4	59.1	0.5
Q4 2023	4,662	39.5	60.1	0.4
Q1 2024	4,688	38.0	61.6	0.3
Q2 2024	4,673	39.4	60.4	0.2
Q3 2024	4,612	41.0	58.5	0.5
Q4 2024	4,601	39.2	60.6	0.2
Q1 2025	4,758	37.4	62.2	0.4
Q2 2025	4,150	38.9	60.9	0.2
Q3 2025	4,354	40.0	59.3	0.5
Q4 2025	1,316	35.4	64.2	0.4
Q1 2026	4,127	39.5	60.2	0.4

Table A8.2 Interview survey: in-person interviews
Quarter	Number of respondents	Wave 1 (in percent)	Waves 2 & 3 (in percent)	Wave 4 (in percent)
Q1 2016	6,426	77.4	59.9	57.9
Q2 2016	6,342	78.6	60.6	58.5
Q3 2016	6,372	82.5	62.0	56.7
Q4 2016	6,301	76.7	61.9	58.3
Q1 2017	6,208	76.0	59.5	55.6
Q2 2017	6,177	80.6	61.7	59.3
Q3 2017	6,090	79.3	62.2	58.1
Q4 2017	6,004	76.1	60.7	59.1
Q1 2018	5,916	76.4	59.3	56.6
Q2 2018	5,899	77.0	59.7	57.8
Q3 2018	5,773	79.2	61.1	57.1
Q4 2018	5,571	77.3	60.8	57.7
Q1 2019	5,623	73.7	59.3	57.1
Q2 2019	5,493	76.9	60.5	58.9
Q3 2019	5,337	78.3	60.2	58.0
Q4 2019	5,248	75.0	58.4	55.8
Q1 2020	5,202	64.2	50.1	48.8
Q2 2020	4,858	1.5	1.8	1.9
Q3 2020	4,980	13.0	8.6	7.4
Q4 2020	5,205	28.9	17.6	14.6
Q1 2021	5,115	28.7	15.9	12.2
Q2 2021	5,196	36.7	24.0	20.5
Q3 2021	5,121	46.1	28.1	24.0
Q4 2021	4,902	42.6	27.6	25.0
Q1 2022	5,187	42.1	28.5	24.2
Q2 2022	5,177	50.3	32.1	30.8
Q3 2022	4,580	49.3	32.1	28.3
Q4 2022	4,617	46.8	32.5	28.2
Q1 2023	4,807	49.1	34.3	31.0
Q2 2023	4,751	52.5	35.8	33.4
Q3 2023	4,770	49.8	38.7	34.1
Q4 2023	4,662	51.0	36.3	34.0
Q1 2024	4,688	49.5	34.2	33.8
Q2 2024	4,673	52.3	36.4	31.3
Q3 2024	4,612	53.6	38.1	32.9
Q4 2024	4,601	50.7	35.5	34.0
Q1 2025	4,758	48.6	35.5	29.8
Q2 2025	4,150	50.0	36.5	31.7
Q3 2025	4,354	49.1	36.8	35.6
Q4 2025	1,316	43.5	33.9	30.1
Q1 2026	4,127	45.5	38.1	35.4

B. Diary Survey Metrics

1. Final disposition rates of eligible sample units

Final disposition rates of eligible sample units in the Diary Survey represent the final participation outcomes of field staff survey recruitment efforts and are calculated using the same methods as the Interview Survey.

While recent research on nonresponse bias for the Diary Survey has not shown significant bias in the CE survey estimates during the COVID-19 pandemic (Ash, Nix, and Steinberg, 2022), BLS continues to monitor this risk.^[20]

Like in the Interview Survey results (section A1) response rates are presented as unweighted values.

Additional information on how BLS staff calculate response rates can be found in the DQP Reference Guide (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026).

Final disposition rate summary

The rate of response in the Diary Survey was measured at 39.0 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 and 34.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025 (See Chart B1.1).^[21]

While not the largest shift in response rates in the available time series, the shift from the second quarter of 2024 to fourth quarter of 2025 represents the longest period of consecutive quarter to quarter movement on record.

Refusal rates shifted 7.7 percentage points from the previously published figures, moving from 32.0 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 39.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025.

The recent change in refusal rates was likely related to the introduction of cost-containment measures by the BLS in FY24 and coincided with the change in the rate of other nonresponse described below.

Noncontact rates shifted 2.0 percentage points from the previously published figures, moving from 8.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 10.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025.
Other nonresponse rates shifted 4.5 percentage points from the previously published figures, moving from 19.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 15.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025.^[22]

Table B1.1 Diary survey: distribution of final dispositions for eligible sample units (unweighted)
Quarter	Number of eligible sample units	Interview (in percent)	Refusal (in percent)	Noncontact (in percent)	Other nonresponse (in percent)
Q1 2016	5,050	58.4	16.8	5.8	18.9
Q2 2016	5,108	57.6	16.7	6.0	19.8
Q3 2016	5,076	57.9	17.9	4.9	19.3
Q4 2016	5,157	52.7	18.3	6.1	22.9
Q1 2017	4,972	57.1	24.8	6.0	12.0
Q2 2017	5,054	59.4	23.3	5.5	11.8
Q3 2017	4,916	59.1	23.3	5.1	12.5
Q4 2017	5,168	56.3	25.3	6.8	11.6
Q1 2018	5,032	55.5	25.0	6.9	12.7
Q2 2018	5,015	55.5	25.9	6.4	12.2
Q3 2018	5,014	57.8	24.8	6.2	11.2
Q4 2018	5,072	51.5	27.9	7.3	13.3
Q1 2019	4,926	54.2	28.5	4.9	12.4
Q2 2019	5,082	53.4	27.2	6.1	13.2
Q3 2019	5,020	54.7	25.8	6.1	13.4
Q4 2019	5,216	48.9	29.9	7.6	13.5
Q1 2020	7,474	44.0	22.5	7.3	26.3
Q2 2020	7,409	26.1	12.1	2.7	59.1
Q3 2020	7,784	32.9	22.2	7.2	37.7
Q4 2020	7,774	36.5	34.7	10.1	18.8
Q1 2021	7,488	39.4	34.4	7.6	18.6
Q2 2021	7,584	42.5	34.9	8.8	13.8
Q3 2021	7,456	40.7	37.0	11.1	11.2
Q4 2021	7,676	37.3	39.0	11.9	11.8
Q1 2022	7,645	43.9	36.3	9.5	10.3
Q2 2022	7,556	42.9	36.9	9.8	10.4
Q3 2022	7,594	42.8	36.9	9.7	10.7
Q4 2022	7,749	37.0	39.8	12.1	11.1
Q1 2023	7,610	41.6	39.2	10.1	9.1
Q2 2023	7,695	40.2	39.7	10.3	9.9
Q3 2023	7,570	40.5	40.5	10.4	8.5
Q4 2023	8,032	38.2	38.4	11.2	12.1
Q1 2024	7,662	39.8	37.2	9.8	13.1
Q2 2024	7,708	41.0	35.6	10.2	13.2
Q3 2024	7,814	40.8	35.4	10.3	13.5
Q4 2024	7,956	39.0	32.0	8.8	19.8
Q1 2025	7,034	37.7	32.8	7.9	21.5
Q2 2025	7,195	36.1	37.9	8.2	17.8
Q3 2025	7,196	35.1	39.8	10.5	14.6
Q4 2025	2,446	34.2	39.7	10.8	15.3

2. Information Booklet use

As indicated in Section A3, the Information Booklet is a recall aid that the Census FR provides to respondents. For the Diary Survey, the Information Booklet provides response options for demographic questions and bracket response options for income questions.

This metric measures Information Booklet use among respondents during diary placement and pickup interviews, as captured by Census FRs. Typically, for diary interviews conducted over the phone, the Information Booklet is not readily available to the respondent (although a PDF version is available on the BLS website). Similar to the Interview Survey, this metric should be interpreted in conjunction with the rise in telephone use as a more common modality for diary placement interviews since the COVID-19 pandemic. Higher rates of Information Booklet use are encouraged, as Information Booklet use can improve reporting quality by clarifying concepts and providing examples for respondents.

Information Booklet summary

Information Booklet use among Diary Survey respondents experienced an overall shift of 5.1 percentage points in the most recent year of data from 22.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 27.4 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025, with some fluctuations in the interim (See Chart B2.1).
Information booklet use by respondents continues to be below pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels.^[23]

Table B2.1 Diary survey: prevalence of information booklet use among respondents
Quarter	Number of respondents	Used (in percent)	Did not use (in percent)	Missing response (in percent)
Q1 2016	2,951	42.5	51.8	5.8
Q2 2016	2,942	41.8	51.0	7.2
Q3 2016	2,939	44.3	49.7	6.0
Q4 2016	2,720	44.6	48.3	7.1
Q1 2017	2,841	45.1	50.8	4.1
Q2 2017	3,003	43.9	52.7	3.4
Q3 2017	2,904	43.6	53.1	3.2
Q4 2017	2,910	39.7	57.3	3.0
Q1 2018	2,791	42.0	54.3	3.8
Q2 2018	2,781	37.7	59.2	3.1
Q3 2018	2,896	39.5	56.5	4.0
Q4 2018	2,611	38.3	58.6	3.1
Q1 2019	2,671	42.0	54.9	3.1
Q2 2019	2,713	40.6	56.3	3.1
Q3 2019	2,745	39.2	58.1	2.7
Q4 2019	2,553	37.1	59.6	3.3
Q1 2020	3,285	33.1	64.0	3.0
Q2 2020	1,936	4.1	94.0	1.9
Q3 2020	2,559	7.3	90.8	1.9
Q4 2020	2,835	10.5	86.4	3.1
Q1 2021	2,952	12.7	84.2	3.1
Q2 2021	3,224	16.7	79.6	3.7
Q3 2021	3,027	20.0	77.5	2.5
Q4 2021	2,864	22.2	71.3	6.4
Q1 2022	3,357	25.9	69.8	4.3
Q2 2022	3,239	26.8	67.7	5.5
Q3 2022	3,248	27.9	68.1	4.0
Q4 2022	2,865	27.8	68.1	4.1
Q1 2023	3,162	27.9	67.9	4.2
Q2 2023	3,095	26.5	69.7	3.8
Q3 2023	3,064	26.2	70.3	3.5
Q4 2023	3,068	27.4	69.2	3.4
Q1 2024	3,053	24.7	72.0	3.4
Q2 2024	3,159	24.2	72.7	3.2
Q3 2024	3,190	21.6	74.1	4.3
Q4 2024	3,105	22.3	74.0	3.7
Q1 2025	2,655	20.8	76.1	3.1
Q2 2025	2,597	23.6	73.2	3.2
Q3 2025	2,526	23.0	71.7	5.4
Q4 2025	837	27.4	68.9	3.7

3. Expenditure edit rates

The Diary Expenditure edit rates metric measures the proportion of reported expenditure data that are edited, similar to the Interview Survey

The Diary Survey expenditure edit rates are broken down into two categories: Allocations and Other Edits. The vast majority of edits in the Diary Survey are allocations. Table B3.1 below shows the “Other Edits” category, which covers all other expenditure edits including imputation and manual edits. According to the data in Table B3.1, these data edits are relatively rare.

Beginning in 2022, the BLS changed the way expenditure edit rates are calculated for Diary Survey data. As of 2022, changes to the alcohol cost flag are now considered an expenditure edit under the “Other Edits” category, rather than categorized as “Unedited”. This change was retroactively applied to the full metric series and has led to comparatively higher estimates for “Other Edits” and lower estimates for “Unedited” compared to previous reports.

Additional information on expenditure edits is available in the DQP Reference Guide (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026).

Expenditure edit rate summary

The total rate of unedited expenditures experienced a shift of 0.4 percentage points from 92.0 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 92.4 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025 (See Chart B3.1).
The rate of other expenditures experienced a shift of 0.1 percentage points from 1.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 1.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025.

Table B3.1 Diary survey: reported expenditure records
Quarter	Number of expenditures	Allocated (in percent)	Other edits (in percent)	Unedited (in percent)
Q1 2016	87,411	11.0	0.1	88.9
Q2 2016	84,232	11.4	0.1	88.5
Q3 2016	82,285	11.1	0.2	88.7
Q4 2016	80,515	10.9	0.3	88.8
Q1 2017	88,654	10.6	0.3	89.2
Q2 2017	92,985	10.9	0.2	88.9
Q3 2017	89,370	11.0	0.1	88.8
Q4 2017	92,031	10.3	0.1	89.6
Q1 2018	86,798	9.8	0.3	89.9
Q2 2018	87,649	10.0	0.3	89.8
Q3 2018	88,342	10.0	0.4	89.6
Q4 2018	80,129	10.3	0.3	89.5
Q1 2019	79,626	10.2	0.2	89.6
Q2 2019	85,329	9.1	0.1	90.8
Q3 2019	83,639	10.5	0.1	89.4
Q4 2019	80,510	9.5	0.2	90.3
Q1 2020	102,693	9.2	0.2	90.5
Q2 2020	41,257	10.2	0.2	89.5
Q3 2020	56,071	11.6	0.1	88.3
Q4 2020	69,959	10.7	0.2	89.2
Q1 2021	72,138	10.9	0.2	89.0
Q2 2021	80,646	11.1	0.3	88.5
Q3 2021	75,663	11.3	0.5	88.2
Q4 2021	71,144	10.1	1.0	88.9
Q1 2022	82,352	10.1	0.6	89.4
Q2 2022	79,454	10.5	0.4	89.1
Q3 2022	83,957	10.9	1.2	87.9
Q4 2022	74,215	10.3	2.2	87.5
Q1 2023	81,434	7.1	1.4	91.5
Q2 2023	79,016	7.3	1.8	91.0
Q3 2023	78,763	6.9	1.6	91.5
Q4 2023	78,890	6.2	1.6	92.2
Q1 2024	76,822	6.8	1.7	91.5
Q2 2024	80,377	7.2	1.6	91.2
Q3 2024	81,344	6.8	1.6	91.5
Q4 2024	81,933	6.7	1.3	92.0
Q1 2025	67,541	6.1	1.4	92.5
Q2 2025	66,419	6.6	1.7	91.8
Q3 2025	65,283	6.9	2.1	90.9
Q4 2025	22,335	6.4	1.2	92.4

4. Income imputation rates

The Income imputation rates metric in the Diary Survey is calculated using the same methods as the Interview Survey.

Additional information on CE income imputation methodology appear in the DQP Reference Guide (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026) and the User's Guide to Income Imputation in the CE (Paulin, Reyes-Morales, and Fisher, 2018).

Income imputation rate summary

Bracket imputation rates saw a shift of 3.9 percentage points from 16.6 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 20.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025, which represents the highest point for the series since the second quarter of 2020 (20.8 percent) (See Chart B4.1).^[24]
The rate of model-based imputations experienced a shift of 4.3 percentage points from 18.6 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 14.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025, the lowest value in the last ten years of data.
AVB imputation rates saw a shift of 1.6 percentage points from 1.6 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to near-zero in the fourth quarter of 2025, the lowest value in the last ten years of data.

Table B4.1 Diary survey: income imputation rates for total amount of family income before taxes
Quarter	Number of respondents	Valid blanks converted (AVB) (in percent)	Bracket imputation (in percent)	Model imputation (in percent)	Model & bracket imputation (in percent)	Unedited (in percent)
Q1 2016	2,951	3.2	18.0	21.5	6.0	51.3
Q2 2016	2,942	3.4	19.2	26.6	4.1	46.7
Q3 2016	2,939	3.2	19.4	22.4	5.5	49.4
Q4 2016	2,720	3.6	18.2	23.5	5.8	48.9
Q1 2017	2,841	1.8	19.4	19.7	5.9	53.2
Q2 2017	3,003	2.5	20.2	18.2	5.8	53.3
Q3 2017	2,904	1.8	19.2	18.8	4.8	55.4
Q4 2017	2,910	1.8	19.7	19.4	4.7	54.5
Q1 2018	2,791	1.9	18.9	18.7	4.1	56.5
Q2 2018	2,781	1.9	17.4	19.6	4.5	56.7
Q3 2018	2,896	1.5	18.4	21.3	5.1	53.8
Q4 2018	2,611	2.4	19.1	18.3	6.0	54.3
Q1 2019	2,671	1.8	18.7	17.8	4.9	56.8
Q2 2019	2,713	2.9	20.2	17.6	5.0	54.3
Q3 2019	2,745	2.1	22.1	18.5	4.9	52.4
Q4 2019	2,553	2.6	19.2	15.2	6.5	56.4
Q1 2020	3,285	1.9	20.0	17.5	5.1	55.5
Q2 2020	1,936	1.5	20.8	16.5	6.2	55.0
Q3 2020	2,559	2.6	18.1	19.5	6.7	53.1
Q4 2020	2,835	1.9	18.9	19.9	6.0	53.3
Q1 2021	2,952	2.0	18.7	18.4	5.6	55.2
Q2 2021	3,224	2.1	17.5	19.9	5.6	54.9
Q3 2021	3,027	2.5	19.3	18.4	5.3	54.5
Q4 2021	2,864	2.4	17.8	22.4	4.6	52.8
Q1 2022	3,357	2.3	19.0	19.5	4.5	54.7
Q2 2022	3,239	2.3	18.7	18.9	4.4	55.8
Q3 2022	3,248	1.8	17.6	19.4	6.1	55.1
Q4 2022	2,865	3.9	17.6	18.1	3.7	56.6
Q1 2023	3,162	2.4	16.8	18.8	4.6	57.4
Q2 2023	3,095	2.1	17.0	18.7	5.2	57.1
Q3 2023	3,064	2.4	18.0	18.5	4.8	56.1
Q4 2023	3,068	1.9	19.7	17.6	4.9	55.9
Q1 2024	3,053	2.2	20.4	16.3	3.6	57.4
Q2 2024	3,159	1.4	19.7	16.4	3.8	58.7
Q3 2024	3,190	2.0	19.3	17.1	5.1	56.6
Q4 2024	3,105	1.6	16.6	18.6	5.7	57.5
Q1 2025	2,655	1.7	18.3	17.0	5.2	57.8
Q2 2025	2,597	1.9	17.7	16.1	4.4	60.0
Q3 2025	2,526	2.3	18.7	17.9	4.9	56.2
Q4 2025	837	0.0	20.5	14.3	6.1	59.0

5. Survey response time

In the Diary Survey, the survey response time metric is the median number of minutes to complete the personal interview component that collects information on CU income and demographics via the survey instrument. The median number of minutes is used for this metric, as the mean estimate of time can be skewed by outlier values in particularly long or short interviews. Interview duration is calculated as the difference between the timestamps of the interviewer’s entry and exit from the survey instrument. Various instrument handling issues experienced by the interviewer can also be captured within the timestamps, leading to occasional extreme or unusual observations, and the median measure is robust to these outliers. Presumably, the longer the time needed to complete the income and demographics section of the diary, the more burdensome the process. Along with measuring objective burden, tracking the median survey response time can be useful for assessing whether changes to questionnaire design increased or decreased burden.

Survey response time summary

Median Diary Survey response time experienced a shift of 0.1 minutes from 33.1 minutes in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 33.2 minutes in the fourth quarter of 2025, with some fluctuations in the interim (See Chart B5.1).
No changes to the personal interview component of the Diary survey have been implemented in the last ten years, and the median interview duration has changed little in that time.

Table B5.1 Diary survey: median length of time to complete the interview components (income and demographics)
Quarter	Number of diary cases	Minutes
Q1 2016	2,951	34.0
Q2 2016	2,942	32.2
Q3 2016	2,939	33.1
Q4 2016	2,720	32.4
Q1 2017	2,841	32.5
Q2 2017	3,003	32.7
Q3 2017	2,904	32.0
Q4 2017	2,910	32.0
Q1 2018	2,791	31.2
Q2 2018	2,781	32.2
Q3 2018	2,896	34.2
Q4 2018	2,611	33.2
Q1 2019	2,671	35.0
Q2 2019	2,713	33.8
Q3 2019	2,745	34.3
Q4 2019	2,553	34.4
Q1 2020	3,281	33.3
Q2 2020	1,936	34.9
Q3 2020	2,559	34.9
Q4 2020	2,835	32.7
Q1 2021	2,952	32.7
Q2 2021	3,224	32.9
Q3 2021	3,027	32.4
Q4 2021	2,864	34.9
Q1 2022	3,357	34.4
Q2 2022	3,239	35.1
Q3 2022	3,248	38.0
Q4 2022	2,865	34.4
Q1 2023	3,162	35.3
Q2 2023	3,093	34.7
Q3 2023	3,064	35.2
Q4 2023	3,068	34.9
Q1 2024	3,053	33.5
Q2 2024	3,159	33.0
Q3 2024	3,190	34.3
Q4 2024	3,105	33.1
Q1 2025	2,655	33.2
Q2 2025	2,597	33.7
Q3 2025	2,526	35.0
Q4 2025	837	33.2

6. Survey mode

In the Diary Survey, the mode of data collection is two dimensional. The first dimension is how data about the CU (e.g., CU size, demographic characteristics, income and assets, etc.) were collected by the Census FR (i.e., mostly in-person or mostly over the phone). The second dimension is the expenditure diary type used by respondents when entering expenses during the diary-keeping period (i.e., online or paper). Until 2020, the Diary Survey was administered strictly in paper form. As part of the redesign effort, the BLS introduced a new online diary mode in CE.^[25] This new mode prompted the inclusion of a quality metric that tracks the diary respondents’ mode at the time of placement. It should be noted that while the online diary became available in July 2020 as a supplemental data collection tool during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was not officially implemented into CE production until July 2022.

More information on how the mode metrics are calculated is available in the DQP Reference Guide (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026).

Interview phase mode summary

The rate of in-person diary interviews experienced a shift of 5.2 percentage points from 69.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 64.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025 (See Chart B6.1).
The rate of in-person diary interviews in the fourth quarter of 2025 (64.3 percent) represents the lowest rate measured since the first quarter of 2022 (63.1 percent).^[26]

Table B6.1 Diary survey: interview phase mode
Quarter	Number of diary cases	In-person (in percent)	Telephone (in percent)	Missing (in percent)
Q1 2016	2,951	89.0	5.4	5.6
Q2 2016	2,942	85.9	6.9	7.2
Q3 2016	2,939	88.2	5.9	6.0
Q4 2016	2,720	88.9	4.0	7.1
Q1 2017	2,841	91.6	4.4	4.0
Q2 2017	3,003	91.4	5.2	3.4
Q3 2017	2,904	92.5	4.2	3.2
Q4 2017	2,910	91.7	5.4	3.0
Q1 2018	2,791	91.4	4.9	3.7
Q2 2018	2,781	92.3	4.7	3.0
Q3 2018	2,896	91.5	4.5	4.0
Q4 2018	2,611	91.1	5.9	3.1
Q1 2019	2,671	92.0	4.9	3.1
Q2 2019	2,713	92.3	4.6	3.1
Q3 2019	2,745	92.3	5.1	2.6
Q4 2019	2,553	91.4	5.3	3.3
Q1 2020	3,285	76.3	20.8	3.0
Q2 2020	1,936	0.9	97.2	1.9
Q3 2020	2,559	24.5	73.6	1.9
Q4 2020	2,835	43.8	53.1	3.1
Q1 2021	2,952	46.5	50.3	3.1
Q2 2021	3,224	59.6	36.7	3.7
Q3 2021	3,027	64.6	32.9	2.5
Q4 2021	2,864	60.8	32.8	6.4
Q1 2022	3,357	63.1	32.7	4.3
Q2 2022	3,239	69.6	25.0	5.4
Q3 2022	3,248	69.5	26.5	4.0
Q4 2022	2,865	69.9	26.0	4.1
Q1 2023	3,162	69.4	26.4	4.1
Q2 2023	3,095	70.8	25.4	3.8
Q3 2023	3,064	71.7	25.0	3.3
Q4 2023	3,068	72.4	24.2	3.4
Q1 2024	3,053	68.4	28.2	3.4
Q2 2024	3,159	70.5	26.4	3.2
Q3 2024	3,190	71.2	24.6	4.1
Q4 2024	3,105	69.5	26.9	3.7
Q1 2025	2,655	71.0	25.8	3.1
Q2 2025	2,597	70.5	26.4	3.1
Q3 2025	2,526	69.5	25.3	5.2
Q4 2025	837	64.3	32.3	3.5

Expenditure diary survey mode summary

The rate of paper diary use experienced a shift of 2.6 percentage points from 69.0 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024, to 66.4 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025 (See Chart B6.2).
The rate of online diary use saw a shift of 2.7 percentage points from 28.0 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 30.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025.
The rate of online diary use in the fourth quarter of 2025 (30.7 percent) was the highest point in the series since the third quarter of 2020 (33.1 percent).^[27]

Table B6.2 Diary survey: expenditure diary survey mode (in percent)
Quarter	Number of diary cases	Paper (in percent)	Online (in percent)	Missing (in percent)
Q3 2020	2,559	66.3	33.1	0.6
Q4 2020	2,835	71.3	26.8	1.9
Q1 2021	2,952	71.2	27.1	1.6
Q2 2021	3,224	70.8	27.1	2.1
Q3 2021	3,027	70.5	27.9	1.6
Q4 2021	2,864	69.6	26.0	4.3
Q1 2022	3,357	69.1	27.8	3.2
Q2 2022	3,239	68.4	28.7	2.9
Q3 2022	3,248	71.4	25.5	3.1
Q4 2022	2,865	71.4	25.4	3.2
Q1 2023	3,162	69.9	27.8	2.3
Q2 2023	3,095	71.1	26.3	2.6
Q3 2023	3,064	68.8	29.1	2.1
Q4 2023	3,068	68.9	29.1	2.0
Q1 2024	3,053	67.5	30.1	2.4
Q2 2024	3,159	68.3	29.8	2.0
Q3 2024	3,190	67.1	29.6	3.3
Q4 2024	3,105	69.0	28.0	3.0
Q1 2025	2,655	74.3	22.7	2.9
Q2 2025	2,597	75.4	22.3	2.3
Q3 2025	2,526	69.7	26.8	3.6
Q4 2025	837	66.4	30.7	2.9

7. Online Diary Paradata

The metrics described in this section pertain only to respondents who completed an online expenditure diary, as the metric outputs are calculated using online diary paradata. Online diary paradata are a detailed collection of actions taken within the diary survey web pages by respondents, along with their movement from web page to web page. These documented actions are organized by respondent and sorted chronologically as a sequence of “events” designed to go from first login attempt to final entry.

BLS research (Jones & Krishnamurty, 2024), which analyzed the 2021 CE online diary paradata, revealed that respondent login activity, device use, and time spent in the online diary have utility as indicators of data quality in the CE Diary Survey. The results indicated that fewer (successful) logins per respondent, more failed logins per respondent, using only a mobile device to access the online diary (as opposed to mobile and desktop devices), and less time spent in the diary were all associated with suboptimal expenditure reporting patterns.^[28] Informed by these findings, the BLS used the available paradata to create three separate online diary paradata metrics:

Average Total Successful Logins per Respondent
Online Diary Version Used
Average Time Spent in the Diary

More information on how the online diary metrics are calculated is available in the DQP Reference Guide (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026).

Total logins per respondent summary

The average number of online diary logins experienced a shift of 0.9 logins from 7.5 in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 8.4 in the fourth quarter of 2025 (See Chart B7.1).
The median number of online diary logins saw no overall shift between the fourth quarter of 2024 (5 logins) to the fourth quarter of 2025 (5 logins), but there was some fluctuation in the interim.

Table B7.1 Diary survey: total logins per respondent
Quarter	Number of respondents	Average Logins	Median Logins
Q1 2021	361	7.0	6
Q2 2021	399	6.9	6
Q3 2021	389	7.1	5
Q4 2021	349	6.7	5
Q1 2022	421	7.2	5
Q2 2022	403	7.1	5
Q3 2022	351	7.5	6
Q4 2022	338	7.8	6
Q1 2023	392	7.5	5
Q2 2023	371	6.7	5
Q3 2023	419	7.2	5
Q4 2023	395	8.0	5
Q1 2024	416	7.3	5
Q2 2024	414	7.4	5
Q3 2024	413	7.8	5
Q4 2024	385	7.5	5
Q1 2025	256	7.6	6
Q2 2025	241	6.8	4
Q3 2025	292	7.7	6
Q4 2025	105	8.4	5

Online diary version used summary

The rate of respondents that used desktop only to enter expenses experienced a shift of 8.3 percentage points from 59.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 51.4 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025 (See Chart B7.2 , "Desktop Only").
The rate of respondents that used mobile only to enter expenses in the online diary experienced an overall shift of 3.2 percentage points from 21.6 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 24.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025.
The rate of respondents that used both (desktop and mobile) to enter expenses in the online diary experienced an overall shift of 5.1 percentage points from 18.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 23.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025

Table B7.2 Diary survey: online diary version used
Quarter	Number of respondents	Desktop Only (in percent)	Mobile Only (in percent)	Both (in percent)
Q1 2021	361	68.1	17.2	14.7
Q2 2021	399	66.4	17.8	15.8
Q3 2021	389	68.9	17.5	13.6
Q4 2021	349	64.5	19.8	15.8
Q1 2022	421	61.8	24.5	13.8
Q2 2022	403	61.5	21.8	16.6
Q3 2022	351	63.0	22.5	14.5
Q4 2022	338	61.5	23.4	15.1
Q1 2023	392	62.5	18.9	18.6
Q2 2023	371	60.6	19.7	19.7
Q3 2023	419	53.9	22.7	23.4
Q4 2023	395	57.0	23.0	20.0
Q1 2024	416	59.6	20.0	20.4
Q2 2024	414	57.0	23.4	19.6
Q3 2024	413	58.4	23.5	18.2
Q4 2024	385	59.7	21.6	18.7
Q1 2025	256	62.5	17.6	19.9
Q2 2025	241	58.9	22.8	18.3
Q3 2025	292	57.5	23.3	19.2
Q4 2025	105	51.4	24.8	23.8

Time spent in the diary summary

The average amount of time spent entering expenses in the online diary by respondents experienced an overall shift of 4.3 minutes from 37.8 minutes in the fourth quarter of 2024, to 33.5 minutes in the fourth quarter of 2025(See Chart B7.3).

In the second quarter of 2025, both the average and median amount of time spent entering expenses in the online diary reached series lows, possibly related to the relatively low level of average and median logins in the same quarter.
The median amount of time spent entering expenses in the online diary by respondents experienced an overall shift of 0.2 minutes from 25.7 minutes in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 25.9 minutes in the fourth quarter of 2025.

Table B7.3 Diary survey: time spent in the diary
Quarter	Number of respondents	Average Minutes	Median Minutes
Q1 2021	361	31.8	23.3
Q2 2021	399	34.6	25.2
Q3 2021	389	37.8	27.5
Q4 2021	349	38.2	27.5
Q1 2022	421	37.3	25.5
Q2 2022	403	38.1	28.2
Q3 2022	351	40.9	28.7
Q4 2022	338	37.5	26.7
Q1 2023	392	37.8	25.9
Q2 2023	371	35.0	25.2
Q3 2023	419	39.4	25.4
Q4 2023	395	37.1	25.6
Q1 2024	416	37.5	26.5
Q2 2024	414	37.2	27.9
Q3 2024	413	38.2	26.5
Q4 2024	385	37.8	25.7
Q1 2025	256	31.1	23.7
Q2 2025	241	28.5	18.0
Q3 2025	292	34.5	24.2
Q4 2025	105	33.5	25.9

Summary

The BLS is committed to producing data that are consistently of high statistical quality. As part of that commitment, the BLS publishes the DQP and its accompanying Reference Guide (Armstrong, Carlton, Carr, Jones, and Petit, 2026) to assist data users as they evaluate CE data quality metrics and judge whether CE data fit their needs. DQP metrics therefore cover both the Interview and Diary Surveys, multiple dimensions of data quality, and several stages of the survey lifecycle. Additionally, the BLS uses these metrics internally to identify areas for potential survey improvement, to evaluate the effects of survey changes, and to monitor the health of the surveys.

Interview Survey response rates continued to stay below 40 percent. This followed a downward trend for the Interview Survey for most of 2022, 2023, and 2024. The Diary Survey followed a similar downward trend in the rate of interviews completed in 2022 and 2023, before rising in the first two quarters of 2024, and then falling for the entirety of 2025. While rates are trending downward, it is important to reiterate that the BLS continues to monitor the risk of nonresponse bias through regular studies, and these have not found cause for concern.

With respect to the administration of the CE Surveys, rates of records use in the Interview Survey and CE Information Booklet use in both CE Surveys have increased nominally in the most recently available quarters.

Regarding survey processing, the percentage of allocation and imputation in the Interview Survey and the percentage of allocation in the Diary Survey held relatively steady, respectively. The rate of income imputations also experienced little variation for both CE Surveys over the period covered.

With respect to respondent survey experience, respondent burden appeared to show some improvement with an increase in the rate of respondents feeling the Interview Survey to be not burdensome. Median Interview Survey times experienced some variation in 2025, but without a clear trend.

Respondent expenditure reporting patterns in the online mode of the Diary Survey varied somewhat in 2025. The average number of times a respondent successfully logged in to the online diary instrument fluctuated between 6.8 and 8.4 times, more respondents utilized a mobile device for part of their expenditure reporting, and time spent by respondents reporting expenses in the online diary instrument was lower than in the previous year of data.

BLS will continue to monitor these trends, with the next issue of the CE Data Quality Profile to be released in the Fall of 2027 as a part of the BLS’s annual release of 2026 CE data. That report will feature Diary Survey data through the fourth quarter of 2026, and Interview Survey data through the first quarter of 2027.

References

Abdirizak, S., L. Erhard, Y. Lee, and B. McBride (2017). Enhancing Data Quality Using Expenditure Records. Paper Presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, New Orleans, LA.

Armstrong, G., W. Carlton, P. Carr, G. Jones, and L. Petit (2026). CE Data Quality Profile Reference Guide. Program Report Series, the Consumer Expenditure Surveys. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Ash, S., B. Nix, and B. Steinberg (2022). Report on Nonresponse Bias during the COVID-19 Period for the Consumer Expenditures Diary Survey. Published as part of the Consumer Expenditure Surveys Program Report Series. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Ash, S., and J. Rothbaum (2024). Nonresponse Bias Analysis of the 2018-2020 Consumer Expenditure Interview Survey using Census Administrative Records. Published as part of the Consumer Expenditure Surveys Program Report Series. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Elkin, I., B. McBride, and B. Steinberg (2018). Results from the Incentives Field Test for the Consumer Expenditure Survey Interview Survey. Published as part of the Consumer Expenditure Surveys Program Report Series. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Fricker, S., J. Gonzalez, and L. Tan. (2011). Are you burdened? Let's find out. Paper Presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Phoenix, AZ.

Krishnamurty, P., G. Jones, and B. McBride (2021). Large Scale Feasibility Test Final Report. Published as part of the Consumer Expenditure Surveys Program Report Series. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Paulin, G., S. Reyes-Morales, and J. Fisher (2018). User's Guide to Income Imputation in the CE. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Wilson, T. J. (2017). The Impact of Record Use in the CE Interview Survey. CE Survey Methods Symposium. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Footnotes

[1]The Office of Management and Budget has oversight over all Federal surveys and provides the rules under which they operate. See the Federal Register notice for more details.

[2]Standard errors became available in the CE LABSTAT database, in 2022.

[3]Nonresponse bias refers to bias that arises from the omission of sampled units in the final measured sample, when key variable values associated with missed units differ from that of measured units.

[4]Instructions on using the CE PUMD to create variables and flags for quality analysis can be found in the CE PUMD Getting Started Guide.

[5]More information may be found on the CE Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page.

[6]The BLS did not release midyear CE data in 2025 or 2026, so midyear CE DQP reports were not published.

[7]More information on the impact of the lapse in appropriations on CE Survey data collection can be found on the BLS website.

[8]Nonresponse bias occurs when potential survey respondents who do not participate in a study differ systematically from those who do, leading to a sample that is not representative of the whole population. More information can be found in the “Final disposition rates of eligible units” section of the 2025 DQP Reference Guide.

[9]Estimates of Final Disposition in the fourth quarter of 2025 were based only on cases from December of 2025, as a lapse in appropriations prevented data collection in October in November of 2025.

[10]See the "Summary of cost containment measures" section of the 2025 DQP Reference Guide for specifics on the FY24 fielding changes.

[11]See the "Summary of cost containment measures" section of the 2025 DQP Reference Guide for specifics on the FY23 fielding changes.

[12]For the metric estimates in Tables throughout the report representing the fourth quarter of 2025, please note that October 2025 and November 2025 were excluded from the calculation. No data were collected in these months due to the lapse in appropriations in late 2025, leaving only December 2025, which led to the lower number of observations.

[13]For the metric estimates in Charts throughout the report representing the fourth quarter of 2025, please note that October 2025 and November 2025 were excluded from the calculation. No data were collected in these months due to the lapse in appropriations in late 2025, leaving only December 2025, which led to the lower number of observations.

[14]In the Interview Survey, each family in the sample is interviewed every 3 months over four calendar quarters. These interviews are commonly referred to as waves. For more information on survey administration please see CE handbook of methods.

[15]When interpreting a series high point for Information Booklet Use associated with the fourth quarter of 2025, please note that October 2025 and November 2025 were excluded from the calculation. No data were collected in these months due to the lapse in appropriations in late 2025, leaving only December 2025, which led to the lower number of observations.

[16]More information on how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted data collection can be found in the "Summary of changes to data collection during COVID-19" in the 2025 DQP Reference Guide.

[17]Top-coding refers to replacing data when the value of the original reported data exceeds a preset critical value, which is calculated in accordance with Census Review Board guidelines. Suppression refers to the suppression of data if the value of the original data could reveal respondent identity, and top-coding is not suitable. More information on top-coding and suppression can be found on the CE Protection of Respondent Confidentiality page.

[18]For the metric estimates in Table A4 representing the fourth quarter of 2025, please note that October 2025 and November 2025 were excluded from the calculation. No data were collected in these months due to the lapse in appropriations in late 2025, leaving only December 2025, which led to the lower number of reported expenditures.

[19]When interpreting a series low or high point from Survey Mode associated with the fourth quarter of 2025, please note that October 2025 and November 2025 were excluded from the calculation. No data were collected in these months due to the lapse in appropriations in late 2025, leaving only December 2025, which led to the lower number of observations.

[20]The most recent BLS study of nonresponse bias in the CE Diary Survey can be found on the BLS Site.

[21]Estimates of Final Disposition in the fourth quarter of 2025 were based only on cases from December of 2025, as a lapse in appropriations prevented data collection in October in November of 2025.

[22]The shift in other nonresponse was likely related to the discontinuing of the contact attempt limit in May of 2025, implemented as a part of the previously mentioned cost containment measures. See the ‘Summary of cost containment measures’ section of the 2025 DQP Reference Guide for specifics on the FY24 fielding changes.

[23]More information on how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted data collection can be found in the "Summary of changes to data collection during COVID-19" in the 2025 DQP Reference Guide.

[24]It should be noted that the local minimums and maximums related to Income Imputation in the fourth quarter of 2025 were based only on cases from December of 2025, as a lapse in appropriations prevented data collection in October in November of 2025.

[25] The CE Redesign Project was launched to research and develop a redesign of the CE Surveys, addressing issues of measurement error and respondent burden.

[26]It should be noted that the local low related to In-Person Diary Interview Time in the fourth quarter of 2025 was based only on cases from December of 2025, as a lapse in appropriations prevented data collection in October in November of 2025.

[27]It should be noted that the local high related to Online Diary Use in the fourth quarter of 2025 was based only on cases from December of 2025, as a lapse in appropriations prevented data collection in October in November of 2025.

[28] Suboptimal reporting patterns in the CE Diary survey typically refer to a lower-than-average number of individual expenditures, lower overall expenditure totals in dollars, and a higher rate of item descriptions lacking sufficient detail, which ultimately require allocation or other expenditure edits.

Last Modified Date: October 29, 2026