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Consumers in the United States spent an average of $3,634 in 2016 to buy new or used vehicles. Spending averaged $1,909 on gasoline and motor oil and $1,149 for car or truck insurance. Adding up those and other costs, such as maintenance and licensing, total vehicle spending averaged $8,427 in 2016.
Category | All ages | Under 25 years | 25–34 years | 35–44 years | 45–55 years | 55–64 years | 65 years and older |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total spending |
$8,427 | $5,731 | $8,575 | $9,585 | $10,213 | $9,066 | $6,320 |
Vehicle purchases |
3,634 | 2,852 | 4,029 | 4,129 | 4,169 | 3,858 | 2,623 |
Gasoline and motor oil |
1,909 | 1,380 | 1,906 | 2,379 | 2,386 | 2,010 | 1,264 |
Insurance |
1,149 | 458 | 986 | 1,125 | 1,509 | 1,270 | 1,099 |
Maintenance and repairs |
849 | 516 | 745 | 837 | 1,071 | 994 | 724 |
Rental, leasing, licensing, and other charges |
660 | 380 | 646 | 797 | 791 | 720 | 492 |
Finance charges |
226 | 145 | 263 | 318 | 287 | 214 | 118 |
Spending on vehicles varied with a consumer’s age. The youngest and oldest consumers spent around $6,000 on average in 2016. Consumers ages 45 to 55 spent the most of any age group, $10,213.
Differences in spending result from several reasons, including the percentage of consumers who own vehicles, the quality of the vehicles people buy, and the number of miles driven. Consumers ages 35 to 44 and 45 to 55 may spend the most because they drive more or buy pricier vehicles.
These data are from the Consumer Expenditure Survey. To learn more, see “Consumer Expenditures — 2016” (HTML) (PDF). The age is that of the reference person, the first household member the survey respondent mentions when asked to name all the people living or staying in the household.
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, Consumer spending on vehicles averaged $8,427 in 2016 at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2017/consumer-spending-on-vehicles-averaged-8427-in-2016.htm (visited November 08, 2024).