What are the average monthly expenses for an American household?

The average American household spends about $6,545 per month—roughly $78,535 a year—according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The three biggest categories are housing ($2,189), transportation ($1,110), and food ($847), which make up more than 63% of the average monthly budget. 1

What is the average monthly cost of living for one person?

A single-person household spends an average of $4,066 per month, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. That’s significantly less than married couples without kids ($7,391) or families with children ($8,809–9,780). 1 Of course, one person is covering that $4,066 alone, while couples can share costs like housing and utilities.

How much should I spend on monthly expenses?

How much you should spend each month depends on your income, needs and financial goals. Use the averages in this article as a comparison point, then build a zero-based budget that gives every dollar a job—including giving, saving and covering your expenses. For housing, we recommend keeping your rent or mortgage (plus insurance, taxes and any HOA fees) to no more than 25% of your take-home pay.

What are considered basic living expenses?

Basic living expenses include food, utilities, shelter and transportation—what we call the Four Walls. These are the necessities you need to keep yourself and your family fed, housed and able to get where you need to go. Make sure you can cover these expenses before spending money on nonessential wants.

How can I lower my monthly expenses?

Start by tracking every dollar you spent in the last 30 days to see where your money is going. Then look at your three biggest categories—housing, transportation and food—since those offer the most room to cut. Eliminating a car payment, meal planning and switching to store brands are among the fastest ways to free up meaningful margin each month.

Average American’s Monthly Expenses by Category

11 MIN READ

PUBLISHED: SEP 26, 2024

LAST UPDATED: OCT 20, 2026

By Ramsey Solutions

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Key Takeaways

The average monthly expenses for an American household are about $6,545, or $78,535 a year.¹
Housing, transportation and food are the three biggest categories, making up more than 63% of the average monthly budget.²
Monthly expenses vary widely by household size, from $4,066 for a single person to $9,780 for a married couple with kids.³
Inflation was at 3.4% in August 2026, meaning consumer prices were 3.4% higher than they were a year earlier.⁴
Use these averages as a comparison point, then build a zero-based budget around your own income and goals.

Ever look at your bank account and wonder, Where did all my money go? Monthly expenses have a way of adding up fast, and sometimes it helps to know whether your spending is actually normal—or way off the mark. So let’s see how your monthly expenses compare to the average American’s.

Quick Answer

The average American household spends $78,535 a year, or about $6,545 a month, according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data. Housing, transportation and food take up more than 63% of that. Use these numbers to see how your spending compares, then give every dollar a job with a zero-based budget in EveryDollar.

These numbers come straight from the folks at the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), who keep track of what Americans spend on everything from cereal to toilet paper to housing.

What Are the Average Monthly Expenses by Household Size?

Average monthly expenses range from $4,066 for a single person to as much as $9,780 for a married couple with kids.⁵ Here’s how each household type breaks down—and how it compares to the national average:

Household	Monthly Expenses	Annual Total	Compared to the National Average ($6,545)⁶
Single person	$4,066	$48,794	38% below
Married couple, no kids	$7,391	$88,687	13% above
Married couple with kids (depending on the kids’ ages)	$8,809–9,780	$105,709–117,355	35–49% above⁷

Remember, these are averages, so they could look a lot different based on your family size, where you live and plenty of other factors.

What Extra Monthly Costs Do Renters Pay?

Renters may have monthly costs beyond the rent listed for an apartment or house, like renters insurance or pet rent if you have a pet. And because apartments don’t always come with a ton of storage space, you may end up renting a storage unit too. Those extra costs can sneak up on you if you don’t plan for them.

Renter-Only Cost	Typical Monthly Cost	What to Do
Renters insurance	About $14⁸	Make sure you have enough coverage to protect your belongings.
Pet rent	Set by your landlord	Ask how much pet rent costs before you sign your lease.
Storage unit	About $89⁹	Decide if you need climate-controlled storage, which typically costs more.

And yes, that storage unit is a monthly bill to hold on to stuff you don’t have room for at home. So before you sign up, go through your stuff and decide what’s actually worth paying each month to keep.

Renters insurance, on the other hand, earns its keep. For a relatively small amount each month, you can protect your belongings if they’re damaged or stolen in a covered event.

What Are the Average American Monthly Expenses?

The average American household spends $6,545 a month across 10 major expense categories, with housing, transportation and food taking the biggest bites out of the budget.¹⁰ Here’s how that monthly spending breaks down:

Monthly Expense	Monthly Cost	Percentage of Total
Housing	$2,189	33.4%
Transportation	$1,110	17%
Food	$847	12.9%
Personal insurance and pensions	$816	12.5%
Health care	$516	7.9%
Entertainment	$301	4.6%
Cash contributions	$191	2.9%
Apparel and services	$167	2.5%
Education	$131	2%
Other expenses	$276	4.2%¹¹

Keep in mind, these are what the average American spends—not necessarily what you should spend each month. Your exact budget percentages need to make sense for your income, your lifestyle and your goals. And who wants to be average anyway, right?

Your own budget won’t line up with these BLS categories one-to-one, either. The BLS groups some expenses together that you’d probably separate in your monthly budget, and we’ll point out those differences as we go.

Housing: $2,189 per Month

Housing is the biggest expense for the average American household, coming in at $2,189 per month. Keeping a roof over your head costs a lot of money—and households spent 3.3% more on housing in 2024.¹²

This category doesn’t just include rent and mortgage payments. It also covers property taxes, homeowners insurance, home repairs, gas and electric bills, and furniture.

Here's a Tip

The BLS lumps a lot into “housing.” A real budget will probably have more categories, with things like utilities, furniture and household supplies broken out into their own budget lines. EveryDollar lets you split those expenses up so you can actually see where your money went. So if your own housing number doesn’t match the BLS average, you didn’t mess up. The BLS just bundles things differently.

To avoid being house poor (aka spending too much money on housing), try to keep your rent or mortgage (plus insurance, taxes and any HOA fees) at no more than 25% of your take-home pay.

Yes, we know that’s below the average recommendation. But you want your house to be a blessing, not a burden. And if you save up a good down payment and choose a house you can afford, you’ll be able to enjoy your home—instead of stressing about how you’ll pay your mortgage.

There are also plenty of ways to save on home expenses, like being smart with the thermostat, sealing any air leaks, and using energy-efficient lightbulbs. And if you really want to offset your housing costs, you could always get a roommate or list your garage apartment on Airbnb.

“We have a programmable thermostat,” said Cortney, one of the members of THE Ramsey Baby Steps Community on Facebook. “So I took our program up a degree, waited a few days, and took it up another degree. Now we are saving $1.40–2.25 per day on electricity! I know it’s small savings, but that $40–70 a month will help a lot!”

Ramsey Baby Steps Community member Cortney from Fort Lauderdale, FL shares how adjusting her programmable thermostat by two degrees saved her family 40–70 dollars a month on electricity.

Transportation: $1,110 per Month

Airline tickets, gas, insurance, repairs and (here’s the big one) car payments—all that adds up to $1,110 a month.¹³ Yep, we sure do love our cars in the good ol’ U.S. of A. In fact, the average monthly payment for a new car is $765.¹⁴ That’s more than the average American household spends on health care in a month!¹⁵

A surefire way to cut your monthly transportation costs is to trade your car payment for a paid-for ride. We’re talking about paying cash for a car instead of taking out another car loan. You’ll spend less (and stress less) each month. Worth it!

Food: $847 per Month

The average American household spends $847 a month on food, making it the third-biggest expense on the list.¹⁶ Americans love to eat. After all, we did invent the cheeseburger!

Monthly food expenses are split between food at home ($519) and food away from home ($329).¹⁷ So, on average, Americans spend about $190 more a month on groceries than they do eating out.

If you want to lower your food budget—both at home and at restaurants—start meal planning! When you plan out your meals before you head to the grocery store, you’ll be more likely to buy only the stuff you need and skip the impulse buys. Having a plan will also keep you from making an expensive trip to a drive-thru because you didn’t know what to make for dinner.

Here's a Tip

You can still enjoy some of your favorite food splurges—just plan for them. Maybe that means keeping the good coffee on your grocery list or setting aside some fun money for a steak dinner. A budget gives you permission to spend, so decide what’s worth it before the month begins.

Personal Insurance and Pensions: $816 per Month

The average American household spends $816 per month on personal insurance and pensions, a category that includes life insurance, retirement contributions, pensions and Social Security. Spending in this category increased 2.5% from 2023 to 2024.¹⁸

Personal insurance is basically another name for life insurance, which is about $48 a month for an average American.¹⁹

Here's a Tip

We recommend term life insurance because all the other types of life insurance are rip-offs. Term life insurance is simple, affordable and designed to do what life insurance is supposed to do—replace your income if you die.

The rest of this BLS category includes things like retirement contributions, pensions and Social Security. The employee Social Security tax rate is 6.2% of eligible wages, and that money comes directly out of your paycheck.²⁰

Health Care: $516 per Month

The $516 per month for health care includes the cost of health insurance premiums and out-of-pocket costs for medical services and prescriptions.²¹ It’s a big line item for most Americans, especially if you have a family.

While you can’t always control your health-care costs, there are some ways to save money on health insurance. For example, stay in-network when you can or take advantage of a Health Savings Account (HSA) if you’re eligible for one.

Entertainment: $301 per Month

The average American household spends $301 a month on entertainment—and that category covers a lot more than movie tickets and streaming subscriptions.²² It also includes things like televisions, streaming services, countless hobbies (birdwatching, anyone?) and pets.

Cash Contributions: $191 per Month

The average American household spends $191 a month on cash contributions.²³ Charitable giving is a big part of this category, but the BLS also includes things like alimony, child support, and money spent on room or board for a college student—whether they show up for their 8 a.m. chemistry class or not!

Spending in this category decreased by 3.6% in 2024.²⁴ But giving is one area where we actually recommend being above average.

Generosity shifts our focus off ourselves (our problems and our financial shortcomings) and reminds us of our blessings. We recommend tithing 10% of your income to a church, charity or other worthy cause.

Put More Breathing Room in Your Budget

Money feeling tight? Not anymore. Our EveryDollar budgeting app helps you free up thousands of dollars you didn’t know you had—in minutes.

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Apparel and Services: $167 per Month

The average spent on clothes and other services per month is $167.²⁵ But this could vary a ton based on the size of your family and whether you have a Carrie Bradshaw-level shoe addiction (choosing shoes over rent is never a good idea, by the way).

And don’t let a clothing sale talk you into buying something you don’t need. Spending $60 on something just because it was marked down from $100 still means you spent $60.

Besides clothing, this category includes dry cleaning and jewelry.

Education: $131 per Month

At $131 a month, education is one of the smaller categories on this list.²⁶ But remember, that’s an average across all households. If you’re paying for college or private school, your education expenses will be a whole lot higher.

The average cost of college tuition for an in-state school is $11,950 a year ($996 per month).²⁷ Yikes! That’s more than the average cost of food.

Other Expenses: $276 per Month

The $276-a-month “other expenses” category is basically the BLS catchall.²⁸ It includes things like personal care products and services, books, alcohol, tobacco and miscellaneous items.

It’s like that drawer in your house that collects scissors, loose change, gum wrappers and a pile of stuff you probably don’t need. While toothpaste is essential (please brush your teeth), you can probably cut back on some of these expenses. (Hint: One of them rhymes with schlottery stickets.)

And there’s one major monthly expense you won’t see listed as its own BLS category: debt payments. If you’re sending money to credit cards, student loans, car loans or other lenders every month, those payments still need a place in your budget. And the faster you get rid of them, the faster you can put that money toward your goals instead.

How Does Inflation Affect Your Monthly Budget?

Inflation raises the cost of everyday goods and services, which means your monthly expenses can go up even when you’re buying the same stuff.

The annual inflation rate for all items was 3.4% as of August 2026. The cost of food was up 2.7%, shelter costs were up 3.0%, and gasoline prices were up 27.4% compared to a year earlier.²⁹ Gas prices can shift quickly, though, so don’t be surprised if that number looks different by the time you read this.

The moral of the story? For most things, you have to spend more money just to keep your same standard of living. And that’s why having a budget is key to keeping up with (and covering) all your monthly expenses. (More on that in a second.)

Jessica, another member of our Ramsey Baby Steps Community, listed all the ways that you can save money despite rising costs: “Buy less, buy used, find stuff for free, reuse, recycle, buy store brands, make do without, fix it, save up, stay on budget, find cheaper housing if you can, use the library, find deals, trade/barter. Use your money on costs you can’t reduce. Find ways to create more income. Inflation is nothing new and it’s not going to stop. Learn how to beat it.”

How to Track and Lower Your Monthly Expenses With a Budget

The best way to track your monthly expenses—and find places to cut back—is with a zero-based budget. That means giving every dollar a job before the month begins.

Start by looking at where your money is actually going. Compare your spending to the averages in this article, but remember: You’re not trying to make your budget look exactly like everyone else’s. In most categories, you want to come in below average. Why? Because normal is broke. And spending below average on housing, transportation and food means real breathing room in your budget every single month.

When you can see exactly where your money is going, you can make intentional decisions about where to cut, where to stay the course, and where to put the extra.

Next Steps

Look at where your money is going. Review the last 30 days of spending and compare your biggest expenses to the averages in this article.
Pick one area to cut back. Look for a specific change you can make to lower one of your expenses and free up more money for your goals.
Build your zero-based budget in EveryDollar. Give every dollar a job before the month begins so you can plan your spending instead of wondering where your money went.

Start EveryDollar for Free

What are the average monthly expenses for an American household?: The average American household spends about $6,545 per month—roughly $78,535 a year—according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The three biggest categories are housing ($2,189), transportation ($1,110), and food ($847), which make up more than 63% of the average monthly budget.¹
What is the average monthly cost of living for one person?: A single-person household spends an average of $4,066 per month, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. That’s significantly less than married couples without kids ($7,391) or families with children ($8,809–9,780).¹ Of course, one person is covering that $4,066 alone, while couples can share costs like housing and utilities.
How much should I spend on monthly expenses?: How much you should spend each month depends on your income, needs and financial goals. Use the averages in this article as a comparison point, then build a zero-based budget that gives every dollar a job—including giving, saving and covering your expenses. For housing, we recommend keeping your rent or mortgage (plus insurance, taxes and any HOA fees) to no more than 25% of your take-home pay.
What are considered basic living expenses?: Basic living expenses include food, utilities, shelter and transportation—what we call the Four Walls. These are the necessities you need to keep yourself and your family fed, housed and able to get where you need to go. Make sure you can cover these expenses before spending money on nonessential wants.
How can I lower my monthly expenses?: Start by tracking every dollar you spent in the last 30 days to see where your money is going. Then look at your three biggest categories—housing, transportation and food—since those offer the most room to cut. Eliminating a car payment, meal planning and switching to store brands are among the fastest ways to free up meaningful margin each month.

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About the author

Ramsey Solutions

Ramsey Solutions has been committed to helping people regain control of their money, build wealth, grow their leadership skills, and enhance their lives through personal development since 1992. Millions of people have used our financial advice through 22 books (including 12 national bestsellers) published by Ramsey Press, as well as two syndicated radio shows and 10 podcasts, which have over 17 million weekly listeners. Learn More.