Contents
- Household transportation spending statistics: national totals and budget share
- Household transportation spending statistics: vehicle, fuel, and transit costs
- Household transportation spending statistics: Northeast metro costs
- Household transportation spending statistics: Midwest metro costs
- Household transportation spending statistics: Southern metro costs and vehicle counts
- Household transportation spending: regional comparisons and 2024–2025 changes
- Sources
Household transportation spending statistics: national totals and budget share
Average annual transportation expenditures for U.S. consumer units were $13,492 in 2025. Transportation represented 16.5% of total average annual expenditures, while spending across all categories averaged $81,905 per consumer unit. These national figures describe means across consumer units; they are not a bill that every household paid, and they do not show the spread between lower and higher spending units. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures Summary — 2025 A01 Results
The comparable transportation mean was $13,318 in 2024. BLS reported a 1.3% increase from 2024 to 2025. The dollar amounts and reported percentage describe the year-to-year movement in mean annual expenditures; they do not explain what drove it. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures Summary — 2025 A01 Results
| National measure | 2024 | 2025 | Reported change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average annual expenditures, all categories | — | $81,905 | — |
| Transportation expenditures | $13,318 | $13,492 | 1.3% |
| Transportation share of total expenditures | — | 16.5% in 2025 | — |
The transportation share uses total average expenditures as its denominator. It is distinct from the share of transportation spending going to vehicle purchases, fuel, or other categories. BLS also noted a collection gap in October and November 2025 during the appropriations lapse and said it used a weight adjustment to account for the missing data. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures Summary — 2025 A01 Results
Household transportation spending statistics: vehicle, fuel, and transit costs
The 2025 national transportation total includes separate measures for vehicle purchases, fuel, other vehicle expenses, and public and other transportation. BLS labels vehicle purchases as “net outlay.” The figures below are mean annual expenditures per U.S. consumer unit. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures Summary — 2025 A01 Results
| Transportation category | 2024 mean | 2025 mean | Change, 2024–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vehicle purchases (net outlay) | $5,337 | $5,023 | -5.9% |
| Gasoline and other fuels | — | $2,503 | -5.4% |
| Other vehicle expenses | — | $4,765 | 13.3% |
| Public and other transportation | $1,131 | $1,199 | 6.0% |
The categories moved in different directions. Vehicle purchases averaged $5,023 in 2025, down 5.9% from $5,337 in 2024. Gasoline and other fuels averaged $2,503 and declined 5.4% over the same period. Public and other transportation averaged $1,199, compared with $1,131 in 2024, an increase of 6.0%. These component changes help explain why a single overall transportation figure does not represent every cost category’s movement. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures Summary — 2025 A01 Results
Other vehicle expenses averaged $4,765 in 2025 and rose 13.3% from 2024. BLS footnote c says a publication-source change for a subcomponent contributed to the statistically significant increase. That note is relevant to interpreting this comparison: the reported change should be read with the source change in mind. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures Summary — 2025 A01 Results
Household transportation spending statistics: Northeast metro costs
For the 2023–24 two-year period, mean annual transportation expenditures per consumer unit were $14,525 in Boston, $13,017 in Philadelphia, and $12,483 in New York. These are selected metropolitan-area averages, not estimates for 2025 or current prices. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures for the U.S., regions, and selected metropolitan areas
| Northeastern metropolitan area | Mean annual transportation expenditures, 2023–24 |
|---|---|
| Boston | $14,525 |
| Philadelphia | $13,017 |
| New York | $12,483 |
The published component observations give additional detail for each area, though not a complete transportation breakdown for any of them. New York’s vehicle purchases (net outlay) averaged $3,578 per consumer unit. Philadelphia’s gasoline and other fuels averaged $2,244, while Boston’s other vehicle expenses averaged $4,110. Each amount is an annual mean for its named category and metro over 2023–24. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures for the U.S., regions, and selected metropolitan areas
These values work as local reference points within the selected metros. They do not indicate the range of individual budgets, and a component mean should not be mistaken for total transportation spending. The BLS tables report dollar means and percent distributions separately; the figures above are means from the dollar columns. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures for the U.S., regions, and selected metropolitan areas
Household transportation spending statistics: Midwest metro costs
Mean annual transportation expenditures per consumer unit in 2023–24 were $15,726 in Minneapolis–St. Paul, $13,425 in St. Louis, $12,941 in Chicago, and $12,503 in Detroit. All four amounts cover the same two-year period and refer to metro-area means. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures for the U.S., regions, and selected metropolitan areas
| Midwestern metropolitan area | Mean annual transportation expenditures, 2023–24 | Average vehicles per consumer unit, 2023–24 |
|---|---|---|
| Minneapolis–St. Paul | $15,726 | 2.2 |
| St. Louis | $13,425 | 2.1 |
| Chicago | $12,941 | 1.7 |
| Detroit | $12,503 | 1.9 |
The vehicle averages come from a separate characteristics table. Consumer units averaged 2.2 vehicles in Minneapolis–St. Paul, 2.1 in St. Louis, 1.9 in Detroit, and 1.7 in Chicago. These figures express vehicles per consumer unit. They do not say that each unit owned exactly that number, nor do they measure vehicle use. Reading them alongside expenditure means adds context, but does not establish why area spending differs. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures for the U.S., regions, and selected metropolitan areas
Chicago’s metro release reports that transportation represented 15.2% of average expenditures in 2023–24. It also says buying and maintaining private vehicles accounted for 86.8% of Chicago-area transportation expenditures, compared with a 91.6% national average. The 15.2% figure uses all average expenditures as its base; the 86.8% and 91.6% figures use transportation expenditures as their base. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures in the Chicago Metropolitan Area — 2023–24
Household transportation spending statistics: Southern metro costs and vehicle counts
In the selected Southern metros, mean annual transportation expenditures per consumer unit in 2023–24 were $14,889 in Washington, DC, $14,313 in Houston, $13,692 in Dallas–Fort Worth, and $9,737 in Miami. The period is a two-year average, and each number is an annual mean for its metropolitan area. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures for the U.S., regions, and selected metropolitan areas
| Southern metropolitan area | Mean annual transportation expenditures, 2023–24 |
|---|---|
| Washington, DC | $14,889 |
| Houston | $14,313 |
| Dallas–Fort Worth | $13,692 |
| Miami | $9,737 |
The vehicle characteristics series reports 1.9 vehicles per consumer unit in Atlanta, 1.7 in Dallas–Fort Worth, 1.7 in Houston, and 1.3 in Miami. Atlanta’s figure is a vehicle average; no Atlanta transportation spending amount is included here. The two measures therefore do not form a spending-and-vehicle profile for every metro. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures for the U.S., regions, and selected metropolitan areas
Miami has both a transportation spending mean and a vehicle average in these selected observations. Atlanta contributes the vehicle average alone. Vehicle averages describe the number of vehicles per consumer unit, not purchase prices, mileage, maintenance costs, or how expenses are distributed among units. They provide a separate characteristic and cannot substitute for a spending measure. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures for the U.S., regions, and selected metropolitan areas
Household transportation spending: regional comparisons and 2024–2025 changes
In 2023–24, mean annual transportation expenditures per consumer unit were $15,218 in the West, $13,126 in the Northeast, $12,746 in the Midwest, and $12,532 in the South. These are regional means over the two-year reporting period, providing a broad geographic comparison alongside the selected metro estimates. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures for the U.S., regions, and selected metropolitan areas
| Region | Mean annual transportation expenditures, 2023–24 | Share of mean total expenditures |
|---|---|---|
| Northeast | $13,126 | 15.3% |
| Midwest | $12,746 | 17.3% |
| South | $12,532 | 18.1% |
| West | $15,218 | 16.7% |
The budget-share measure gives a different ranking from the dollar means. Transportation accounted for 18.1% of mean total expenditures in the South, 17.3% in the Midwest, 16.7% in the West, and 15.3% in the Northeast. The denominator is total expenditures, so a region with a higher transportation dollar mean need not also have the highest transportation share. BLS notes that the percentages are shares of total expenditures and that components may not sum to 100% because of rounding. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures for the U.S., regions, and selected metropolitan areas
For comparison, the Chicago-area transportation share was 15.2% in 2023–24, and the national average transportation share was 17.0% for that period. These are shares of average expenditures, unlike the $13,492 national mean and 16.5% share reported for 2025. The metro and regional figures cover a two-year period, while the national summary figures refer to 2025; they should not be treated as one uninterrupted series. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures in the Chicago Metropolitan Area — 2023–24; Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures Summary — 2025 A01 Results
The Northeast regional gasoline and other fuels mean was $2,268 per consumer unit in 2023–24. It is a regional category measure, distinct from the metro component amounts above. Across these sources, national figures describe annual means for 2024 and 2025; regional and selected metro figures describe 2023–24; and vehicle averages count vehicles per consumer unit. Keeping those periods, populations, and denominators attached clarifies what each statistic can support. Source: BLS, Consumer Expenditures for the U.S., regions, and selected metropolitan areas