U.S. consumers spent 11.2 percent of disposable personal income on food in 2023

In 2023, U.S. consumers spent an average of 11.2 percent of their disposable personal income on food, consistent with the level observed in 2022. Disposable personal income is the amount of money that U.S. consumers have left to spend or save after paying taxes. Consumer preferences between food-at-home and food-away-from-home spending shifted over time and have returned to trends observed before the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Specifically, 5.3 percent of disposable personal income was spent on food at home, down from 5.6 percent in 2022. Conversely, expenditures on food away from home rose to 5.9 percent from 5.6 percent the previous year. This shows a growing consumer preference for dining out and buying prepared meals. Several factors may contribute to this shift, including lifestyle changes that emerged after the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, more desire for convenience in meal options, and an increase in disposable personal income, which rose by 8.1 percent in 2023. An increase in disposable personal income provides consumers with greater financial flexibility, allowing more dining experiences outside the home. The chart is drawn from USDA, Economic Research Service’s Food Expenditure Series data product, Ag and Food Statistics: Charting the Essentials, the recently updated Interactive Charts: Food Expenditures and the Amber Waves article U.S. Consumers Increased Spending on Food Away From Home in 2023, Driving Overall Food Spending Growth.

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