Households in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md., metropolitan area spent an average of $62,563 per year in 2015–16, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Sheila Watkins noted that this figure was significantly higher than the $56,648 average expenditure level for households in the United States. Philadelphia-area households allocated their dollars similarly to the nation in five of the eight selected major categories, with three differing significantly from their respective U.S. averages. For example, the share of expenditures for transportation, which accounted for 14.4 percent of the average household’s budget in the Philadelphia area, was significantly lower than the national average of 16.4 percent. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

  

Highlights of the Philadelphia area’s 2015–16 spending patterns:

• Housing: This was the largest expenditure category for Philadelphia-area households and averaged $21,170. Housing accounted for 33.8 percent of the area’s household budget, not significantly different than the 32.9-percent U.S. average. (See table 1.) Housing expenditure shares among the 22 published areas nationwide ranged from 40.3 percent in San Francisco to 30.3 percent in Detroit. (See table 2.)
• Transportation: A Philadelphia-area household spent 14.4 percent of its budget on transportation, significantly lower than the national average of 16.4 percent. Of the $9,007 in annual transportation expenditures in Philadelphia, 90.6 percent was spent buying and maintaining private vehicles; this compared to the national average of 93.1 percent. Among 22 metropolitan areas nationwide for which data were available, Philadelphia was 1 of 8 areas to have a transportation expenditure share that was significantly lower than the national average; only Houston had a significantly higher-than-average share. (See table 2.) The shares for transportation expenditures ranged from 21.0 percent in Houston to 11.4 percent in New York.
• Personal insurance and pensions: Philadelphia households spent 13.2 percent ($8,248) of their annual budget on personal insurance and pensions, making this the third-largest expenditure category for the area’s households. The portion a local-area household spent on personal insurance and pensions was significantly above the national average of 11.6 percent.
• Food: The portion of a Philadelphia household’s budget spent on food, 11.7 percent, was not significantly different from the 12.6-percent U.S. average. Philadelphia-area households spent $4,388, or 59.7 percent, of their food dollars on food at home and $2,962 (40.3 percent) on food away from home. In comparison, the average U.S. household spent 56.7 percent of its food budget on food at home and 43.3 percent on food away from home.

Additional Information

Data in this release are from the Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE), which the U.S. Census Bureau conducts for the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The data in this release were averaged over a 2-year period, 2015 and 2016.

A household in the CE survey is defined as a consumer unit which includes 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 expenses. The terms household or consumer unit are used interchangeably for convenience.

Differences in spending among metropolitan areas may reflect differences in the cost of living, but they also may reflect other causes. Spending differences may result from different consumer preferences or variations in demographic characteristics, such as household size, age, or income levels. However, expenditure shares, or the percentage of a household’s budget spent on a particular category, can be used to compare spending patterns across areas. Sample sizes for the metropolitan areas are much smaller than for the nation, so the U.S. estimates and year-to-year changes are more reliable than those for the metropolitan areas. Users should also keep in mind that prices for many goods and services have changed since the survey was conducted.

A value that is statistically different from another does not necessarily mean that the difference has economic or practical significance. Statistical significance is concerned with our ability to make confident statements about a universe based on a sample. A large difference between two values may not be statistically significant, while a small difference could be significant; both the sample size and the variation among the values in the sample affect the relative error of the estimates.

For additional technical and related information, see www.bls.gov/opub/hom/pdf/homch16.pdf. Data for the nation, the four geographic regions of the U.S., and 22 metropolitan areas nationwide are available at www.bls.gov/cex/tables.htm. Metropolitan definitions used in the survey are available at www.bls.gov/cex/ce_msa_201516.htm. The metropolitan area discussed in this release is the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md. Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia Counties in Pennsylvania; Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, and Salem Counties in New Jersey; New Castle County in Delaware; and Cecil County in Maryland. Metropolitan area news releases for the Consumer Expenditure Survey are available at www.bls.gov/regions/subjects/consumer-spending.htm.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; Federal Relay Service: 800-877-8339.