Thursday, November 05, 2020

We Spend More on Pets than Child Care

The average American household spent $681 on pets in 2019, including pet food, veterinary services, medicines, toys, grooming, doggy daycare, and so on. This is more than the average household spent on cable television ($647) and many other items, such as...

Alcoholic beverages ($579)
Lodging on trips ($619)
Child care ($429)
Internet services ($557)
Furniture ($521)
Women's clothes ($602)
Airline fares ($513)
Drugs ($486)

Average household spending on pets was 21 percent greater in 2019 than in 2010 ($563), after adjusting for inflation. It was more than double the $311 spent by the average household in 2000. But the 2019 figure is not the highest it has ever been. Peak pet spending occurred in 2017, when the average household spent $740 on pets. 

Source: Demo Memo analysis of unpublished tables from the Bureau of Labor Statistics 2019 Consumer Expenditure Survey

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