Household consumption by purpose
Data extracted in November 2020.
Planned article update: November 2021.

Source: Eurostat (nama_10_co3_p3)
This article analyses trends in the structure of household final consumption expenditure by consumption purpose (COICOP) which can be expected to have a significant influence on citizen's wellbeing.
Analysis of EU aggregates
Trends of EU-27 household expenditure 2009-2019
In 2019, EU total household expenditure amounted to 52.6 % of GDP. This was a slight decrease compared with 2018, when it amounted to 52.9 % of GDP. Except for the years 2003, 2005, 2008, 2009 and 2012, an overall downward trend has been observed since 2000, where household expenditure peaked at 55.3% of GDP.
Composition of EU-27 household expenditure in 2019
Looking at the composition of EU-27 household expenditure by consumption purpose by the main 10 COICOP categories based on current price figures (see Tables 1, 2 and Figure 1), almost a quarter of EU-27 household expenditure (23.5 % of total or 12.3 % of GDP) was devoted to 'Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels'. Other large shares are observed for 'Transport' (13.1 % of total or 6.9 % of GDP), 'Food and non-alcoholic beverages' (13.0 % of total or 6.8 % of GDP) and 'Miscellaneous goods and services' (11.2 % of total or 5.9 % of GDP). 'Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels', 'Transport' and 'Food and non-alcoholic beverages' account for almost half of the total household expenditure (49.6 %).

Source: Eurostat (nama_10_co3_p3)

Source: Eurostat (nama_10_co3_p3)

Source: Eurostat (nama_10_co3_p3)
'Restaurants and hotels' and 'Recreation and culture' (both 8.7 % of total or 4.6 % of GDP) followed. The remaining household spending was distributed over 'Furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance' (5.5 % of total or 2.9 % of GDP), 'Clothing and footwear' (4.6 % of total or 2.4 % of GDP), 'Health' (4.4 % of total or 2.3 % of GDP), 'Alcoholic beverages, tobacco and narcotics' (4.0 % of total or 2.1 % of GDP), 'Communications' (2.4 % of total or 1.3 % of GDP) and 'Education' (0.9 % of total or 0.5 % of GDP) – which together represented 21.8 % of total expenditure or 11.5 % of EU-27 GDP in 2019.
While the overall share of GDP fluctuated between a highest level of 55.0 % (2009) and a lowest level of 52.6 % of GDP (in 2019) over the period 2009-2019, the composition of household expenditure changed gradually over time.
Most notably, the biggest increase in the share of total expenditure and share of GDP over 2009-2019 is noted for 'Restaurants and hotels' (by 0.8 percentage points (p.p.) in the share of total expenditure and 0.3 p.p. in GDP), 'Transport' (by 0.4 p.p. in the share of total expenditure, however -0.1 p.p. in GDP) and 'Health' (by 0.3 p.p. in the share of total expenditure and 0.1 p.p. in GDP) while the biggest decrease is noted for 'Communications' (by 0.6 p.p. in the share of total expenditure and 0.3 p.p. in GDP), 'Clothing and footwear' (by 0.4 p.p. in the share of total expenditure and 0.4 p.p. in GDP) and 'Furnishings and household equipment' (by 0.2 p.p. in the share of total expenditure and 0.3 p.p. in GDP).
Evolution of volumes
The analysis of household consumption in terms of volumes allows also some interesting insights: the development of volumes (of total) during the period 2009-2019 shows an increase (of 12.6 %), although 2012 and 2013 show a slight decrease. The largest increases were recorded in 'Communications' (of 33.8 %), 'Health' (23.9 %) and 'Recreation and culture' (22.3 %). A reduction was noted for 'Alcoholic beverages, tobacco and narcotics' (-6.3 %).

Source: Eurostat (nama_10_co3_p3)
The detailed table corresponding to Figure 2 is available here.
Evolution of implicit deflator
Finally, some trends in the implicit deflator [1]seem worth mentioning: the development of implicit prices (of total) during the period 2009-2019 shows a steady increase (of 11.9 %). The largest increases were recorded in 'Alcoholic beverages, tobacco and narcotics' (of 31.0 %), 'Restaurants and hotels' (of 18.5 %), 'Transport' (of 17.5 %) and 'Education' (of 17.0 %); reductions were noted in 'Communications' (of -24.6 %).

Source: Eurostat (nama_10_co3_p3)
The detailed table corresponding to Figure 3 is available here.
Country specific trends
Household expenditure shares in 2019 highest in Greece and Croatia
Looking at particular countries, the analysis in this article can only point out some interesting trends: as a ratio to GDP in 2019, the highest levels of household expenditure were found in Greece (76.1 % of GDP), Croatia (73.0 %) and Cyprus (70.7 %), while the lowest levels were found in Ireland (28.2 %), Luxembourg (32.9 %), the Netherlands (43.2 %) and Sweden (43.6 %).

Source: Eurostat (nama_10_co3_p3)

Source: Eurostat (nama_10_co3_p3)
In the EU as a whole, as well as in nearly all EU countries (except Estonia, Croatia, Cyprus, Lithuania, Malta and Romania) 'Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels' was the most significant item of household expenditure, followed by 'Transport' and 'Food and non-alcoholic beverages'.
As regards expenditure on 'Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels', the highest levels of household expenditure were found in Finland (28.8 %), Slovakia (28.4 %) and Denmark (27.9 %), while the lowest levels were observed in Malta (12.3 %), Lithuania (14.9 %) and Cyprus (15.6 %).

Source: Eurostat (nama_10_co3_p3)
For expenditure on 'Food and non-alcoholic beverages', the highest shares were found in Romania (26.0 %), Lithuania (20.2 %), Estonia (19.3 %) and Bulgaria (18.4 %), while the lowest shares were observed in Ireland (8.6 %), Luxembourg (8.9 % ) and Austria (9.7 %).

Source: Eurostat (nama_10_co3_p3)
Concerning expenditure on 'Transport', the highest shares of household expenditure were found in Slovenia (17.0 %), Luxembourg (16.0 %) and Lithuania (15.8 %), while the lowest levels were found in Slovakia (6.5 %), Croatia (9.4 %) and Czechia (10.0 %).
Data sources
Eurostat collects data on household final consumption expenditure according to the international Classification of individual consumption by purpose (COICOP) in the framework of ESA2010.
The transmission requirements for each dataset are defined in ESA 2010 transmission programme. For COICOP data these are T+9 months after the reference period. Therefore, in this article the latest data available refer to the year 2019.
Breakdowns
Household consumption expenditure is classified by consumption purpose according to the COICOP classification (Classification Of Individual COnsumption by Purpose, see also Commission Regulation (EC) No 113/2002 of 23 January 2002). COICOP categories at three-digit level are as follows:
- P010 - Food and non-alcoholic beverages
- P011 - Food
- P012 - Non-alcoholic beverages
- P020 - Alcoholic beverages, tobacco and narcotics
- P021 - Alcoholic beverages
- P022 - Tobacco
- P023 - Narcotics
- P030 - Clothing and footwear
- P031 - Clothing
- P032 - Footwear
- P040 - Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels
- P041 - Actual rentals for housing
- P042 - Imputed rentals for housing
- P043 - Maintenance and repair of the dwelling
- P044 - Water supply and miscellaneous services relating to the dwelling
- P045 - Electricity, gas and other fuels
- P050 - Furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance
- P051 - Furniture and furnishings, carpets and other floor coverings
- P052 - Household textiles
- P053 - Household appliances
- P054 - Glassware, tableware and household utensils
- P055 - Tools and equipment for house and garden
- P056 - Goods and services for routine household maintenance
- P060 - Health
- P061 - Medical products, appliances and equipment
- P062 - Outpatient services
- P063 - Hospital services
- P070 - Transport
- P071 - Purchase of vehicles
- P072 - Operation of personal transport equipment
- P073 - Transport services
- P080 - Communication
- P081 - Postal services
- P082 - Telephone and telefax equipment
- P083 - Telephone and telefax services
- P090 - Recreation and culture
- P091 - Audio-visual, photographic and information processing equipment
- P092 - Other major durables for recreation and culture
- P093 - Other recreational items and equipment, gardens and pets
- P094 - Recreational and cultural services
- P095 - Newspapers, books and stationery
- P096 - Package holidays
- P100 - Education
- P101 - Pre-primary and primary education
- P102 - Secondary education
- P103 - Post-secondary non-tertiary education
- P104 - Tertiary education
- P105 - Education not definable by level
- P110 - Restaurants and hotels
- P111 - Catering services
- P112 - Accommodation services
- P120 - Miscellaneous goods and services
- P121 - Personal care
- P122 - Prostitution
- P123 - Personal effects n.e.c.
- P124 - Social protection
- P125 - Insurance
- P126 - Financial services n.e.c.
- P127 - Other services n.e.c.
Context
Consumption expenditure is what people, acting either individually or collectively, spend on goods and services to satisfy their needs and wants. A household’s economic well-being can be expressed in terms of its access to goods and services. The more that can be consumed, the higher the level of economic well-being, though the relationship between the two is not a linear one. Measuring consumption expenditure might, therefore, be a way of measuring economic well-being.
Studies of consumption investigate how and why society and individuals consume goods and services, and how this affects society and human relationships. Contemporary studies focus on meanings of goods and the role of consumption in identity making. Traditionally, consumption was seen as rather unimportant compared to production, and the political and economic issues surrounding it. However, with the development of a consumer society, increasing consumer power in the market place, the growth in marketing, advertising, sophisticated consumers, ethical consumption etc., it is recognised as central to modern life.
In national accounts, the final consumption expenditure of households is the biggest component of the expenditure approach to GDP. Its evolution allows an assessment of purchases made by households, reflecting changes in wages and other incomes, but also in employment and in savings behaviour.
- Annual national accounts (t_nama)
- National accounts detailed breakdowns (by industry, by product, by consumption purpose) (t_nama_brk)
- Final consumption expenditure of households by consumption purpose (COICOP) (t_nama_co)
- Household expenditure per inhabitant, by category (tsdpc520)
- Final consumption expenditure of households by consumption purpose (COICOP) (t_nama_co)
- National accounts detailed breakdowns (by industry, by product, by consumption purpose) (t_nama_brk)
- Mean consumption expenditure of private households (hbs_exp)
- Structure of mean consumption expenditure (hbs_struc)
- National accounts (na), see:
- Annual national accounts (nama),
- National Accounts detailed breakdowns (by industry, by product, by consumption purpose) (nama_brk)
- Final consumption expenditure of households by consumption purpose (COICOP) (nama_co)
- Final consumption expenditure of households by consumption purpose - COICOP 3 digit - aggregates at current prices (nama_co3_c)
- Final consumption expenditure of households by consumption purpose - COICOP 3 digit - volumes (nama_co3_k)
- Final consumption expenditure of households by consumption purpose - COICOP 3 digit - price indices (nama_co3_p)
- Final consumption expenditure of households by consumption purpose (COICOP) (nama_co)
- National Accounts detailed breakdowns (by industry, by product, by consumption purpose) (nama_brk)
- Prices (prc), see:
- Harmonised indices of consumer prices (HICP) (prc_hicp)
- HICP - Item weights (prc_hicp_inw)
- Essential SNA — Building the basics — 2014 edition
- European system of accounts — ESA 2010
- European system of accounts — ESA 2010 — Transmission programme of data (multilingual)
- Handbook on price and volume measures in national accounts
- Manual on the changes between ESA 95 and ESA 2010 — 2014 edition
- Regulation (EC) No 113/2002 of 23 January 2002 on Classification of expenditure according to purpose
- Regulation (EU) No 549/2013 (ESA 2010 Regulation) of 21 May 2013 on the European system of national and regional accounts in the European Union
- Implementing Decision (EU No 403/2014) of 26 June 2014 on granting derogations to Member States
- Annual national accounts (ESMS metadata file — nama_esms)
- Consumption expenditure of private households (ESMS metadata file — hbs_esms)
- Harmonised indices of consumer prices (HICP) (ESMS metadata file — prc_hicp_esms)
- Regional Statistics Illustrated - select statistical domain 'xxx' (= Agriculture, Economy, Education, Health, Information society, Labour market, Population, Science and technology, Tourism or Transport) (top right)
Notes
- ↑ Implicit deflator series are derived as a ratio of current price to chain-linked volumes series and give indication of underlying price changes.