Americans spend a lot on food. On average, U.S. households shell out $7,923 a year for food eaten at home and away from home. It’s the third-biggest expense after housing and transportation, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2018 Consumer Expenditure Survey.
You have to eat, so spending on food consumes a significant percentage of your budget (forgive the pun). But maybe you’re spending more than you have to. After all, about 43% of household spending on food goes toward eating out. You probably don’t need to be told that dining out tends to cost more than preparing food at home.
And when you consider how much you spend on food over a lifetime, the amount can be mind-blowing. GOBankingRates did the math to find out how much the average person in each state spends on groceries and dining out from age 18 to the average life expectancy of age 79.
GOBankingRates first used the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2018 Consumer Expenditure Survey data to find how much the average American in each age bracket spends annually on food at home and food away from home. The spending average for food at home was adjusted for each state by using the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center’s grocery index, which reflects how much more, or less, groceries in each state cost compared with the national average. The center’s miscellaneous spending index was used to adjust spending averages for food away from home for each state.
GOBankingRates then estimated how much the average person in every state can be expected to spend on food in a lifetime by multiplying each age group’s average expenditure on food by the number of years contained in it and adding the totals. The results might surprise you. Find out whether you’re spending more than the average American when it comes to food.
Last updated: Dec. 29, 2020
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Michigan
Grocery index: 88.7
Average spent per year: $7,169.58
Lifetime total: $437,344.46
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Texas
Grocery index: 89.0
Average spent per year: $7,182.85
Lifetime total: $438,153.89
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Mississippi
Grocery index: 93.8
Average spent per year: $7,275.68
Lifetime total: $443,816.77
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Kansas
Grocery index: 92.6
Average spent per year: $7,290.88
Lifetime total: $444,743.61
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Arkansas
Grocery index: 91.2
Average spent per year: $7,297.23
Lifetime total: $445,130.82
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Oklahoma
Grocery index: 94.1
Average spent per year: $7,302.61
Lifetime total: $445,459.11
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Tennessee
Grocery index: 94.0
Average spent per year: $7,373.28
Lifetime total: $449,770.29
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Idaho
Grocery index: 92.0
Average spent per year: $7,383.81
Lifetime total: $450,412.70
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Indiana
Grocery index: 92.6
Average spent per year: $7,389.87
Lifetime total: $450,782.19
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West Virginia
Grocery index: 91.7
Average spent per year: $7,459.30
Lifetime total: $455,017.17
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New Mexico
Grocery index: 100.9
Average spent per year: $7,490.73
Lifetime total: $456,934.63
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Kentucky
Grocery index: 90.6
Average spent per year: $7,492.57
Lifetime total: $457,046.72
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Missouri
Grocery index: 97.2
Average spent per year: $7,514.82
Lifetime total: $458,404.18
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Nebraska
Grocery index: 96.5
Average spent per year: $7,528.24
Lifetime total: $459,222.47
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Illinois
Grocery index: 96.3
Average spent per year: $7,567.18
Lifetime total: $461,598.03
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Alabama
Grocery index: 95.5
Average spent per year: $7,597.01
Lifetime total: $463,417.64
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Georgia
Grocery index: 98.1
Average spent per year: $7,602.42
Lifetime total: $463,747.64
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Louisiana
Grocery index: 98.5
Average spent per year: $7,654.25
Lifetime total: $466,909.15
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Arizona
Grocery index: 98.4
Average spent per year: $7,660.07
Lifetime total: $467,264.02
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Wisconsin
Grocery index: 97.5
Average spent per year: $7,664.63
Lifetime total: $467,542.69
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Virginia
Grocery index: 96.8
Average spent per year: $7,681.46
Lifetime total: $468,569.20
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Ohio
Grocery index: 98.0
Average spent per year: $7,772.09
Lifetime total: $474,097.41
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North Carolina
Grocery index: 97.9
Average spent per year: $7,798.39
Lifetime total: $475,701.64
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South Dakota
Grocery index: 103.9
Average spent per year: $7,824.82
Lifetime total: $477,314.29
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Utah
Grocery index: 99.7
Average spent per year: $7,864.35
Lifetime total: $479,725.30
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Colorado
Grocery index: 99.7
Average spent per year: $7,878.00
Lifetime total: $480,558.21
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Florida
Grocery index: 103.4
Average spent per year: $7,908.53
Lifetime total: $482,420.29
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South Carolina
Grocery index: 101.7
Average spent per year: $7,959.64
Lifetime total: $485,537.93
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North Dakota
Grocery index: 105.9
Average spent per year: $7,988.38
Lifetime total: $487,291.47
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Pennsylvania
Grocery index: 106.5
Average spent per year: $8,090.02
Lifetime total: $493,491.32
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Nevada
Grocery index: 107.0
Average spent per year: $8,173.58
Lifetime total: $498,588.45
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New Hampshire
Grocery index: 102.0
Average spent per year: $8,225.51
Lifetime total: $501,756.16
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Montana
Grocery index: 104.1
Average spent per year: $8,236.47
Lifetime total: $502,424.70
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Microsoft may earn an Affiliate Commission if you purchase something through recommended links in this article.
Washington
Grocery index: 107.4
Average spent per year: $8,437.05
Lifetime total: $514,660.03
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Vermont
Grocery index: 110.8
Average spent per year: $8,440.65
Lifetime total: $514,879.77
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Minnesota
Grocery index: 106.3
Average spent per year: $8,449.84
Lifetime total: $515,440.21
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Rhode Island
Grocery index: 106.4
Average spent per year: $8,614.70
Lifetime total: $525,496.69
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Maryland
Grocery index: 112.3
Average spent per year: $8,629.89
Lifetime total: $526,423.08
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New Jersey
Grocery index: 109.5
Average spent per year: $8,642.58
Lifetime total: $527,197.51
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Maine
Grocery index: 108.3
Average spent per year: $8,722.63
Lifetime total: $532,080.65
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New York
Grocery index: 114.4
Average spent per year: $8,900.28
Lifetime total: $542,916.87
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Oregon
Grocery index: 112.1
Average spent per year: $9,030.67
Lifetime total: $550,870.70
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California
Grocery index: 119.3
Average spent per year: $9,052.15
Lifetime total: $552,181.20
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Massachusetts
Grocery index: 113.8
Average spent per year: $9,071.72
Lifetime total: $553,375.18
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Connecticut
Grocery index: 110.1
Average spent per year: $9,078.75
Lifetime total: $553,803.60
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Delaware
Grocery index: 117.2
Average spent per year: $9,201.63
Lifetime total: $561,299.33
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Alaska
Grocery index: 134.0
Average spent per year: $9,774.03
Lifetime total: $596,215.89
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Hawaii
Grocery index: 164.6
Average spent per year: $11,516.64
Lifetime total: $702,515.32
More From GOBankingRates
Methodology: GOBankingRates used the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2018 Consumer Expenditure Survey data on average expenditures by age to find how much the average American in each age bracket spends annually on “food at home,” or groceries, and “food away from home,” or dining out. GOBankingRates adjusted these numbers for each state by multiplying the national average spending on “food at home” in each age bracket by the “grocery” index and the “food away from home” average by the “miscellaneous” index from the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center’s 2019 composite cost-of-living indices. GOBankingRates then was able to estimate how much the average person in every state can be expected to spend on food in a lifetime by multiplying each age group’s average expenditure on food by the number of years contained in it and adding the totals to create a cumulative expense report that spans a lifetime. For this study, GOBankingRates calculated expenses assuming a subject begins paying for food at 18 and lives to 79 (U.S. life expectancy as of 2017, according to The World Bank). All data was compiled on and up to date as of Feb. 24, 2020.
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