A History of The U.S. Consumer Expenditure Survey: 1935–36 to 1988–89

Expenditure patterns of different demographic groups are examined using the Consumer Expenditure Survey. Such information is essential for describing the social and economic situation of the times. This paper outlines and discusses the evolution of the methodology of the Consumer Expenditure Survey in the U.S. and changes in the spending patterns of American families since 1935–36 as revealed by these surveys. Both the collection methodology and results from the survey reflect the society of each era. The survey periods covered are 1935–36, 1960–61, 1972–73, and 1988–89.

The survey has evolved from a relatively short questionnaire where respondents were asked to recall their expenditures over the last year to two separate instruments (weekly diaries and quarterly interviews) with shorter recall periods but, in the case of the interview component, many more detailed questions. This study reveals that over this period there was a significant shift in family budget shares away from food and toward transportation. The distribution of total aggregate spending has remained about the same across quartiles of income.