What is the largest expenditure category in the United States?

Asked by: Eugene Beahan  |  Last update: October 12, 2025
Score: 4.2/5 (31 votes)

Spending Categories
  • 21 % Social Security.
  • 15 % National Defense.
  • 14 % Health.
  • 13 % Net Interest.
  • 13 % Medicare.
  • 9 % Income Security.
  • 6 % Veterans Benefits and Services.
  • 3 % Education, Training, Employment, and Social Services.

What is the largest expenditure category in the US?

Overall, housing accounted for the largest share of total expenditures (32.9 percent), followed by transportation (17.0 percent), food (12.9 percent), personal insurance and pensions (12.4 percent), healthcare (8.0 percent), and entertainment (4.7 percent).

What are the largest US expenditures?

Major expenditure categories are healthcare, Social Security, and defense; income and payroll taxes are the primary revenue sources.

What is the largest source of expenditures for the US government?

In 2024 the federal government spent $6.75 trillion, with the majority spent on Social Security.

What is the biggest category of state spending?

What do state and local governments spend money on? State and local governments spend most of their resources on education and health care programs. In 2021, about one-third of state and local spending went toward combined elementary and secondary education (21 percent) and higher education (8 percent).

Which is the largest expenditure category in the US CPI?

35 related questions found

What does the US spend the most money on?

About 45 percent of FY 2022 discretionary spending went towards national defense, and most of the rest went for domestic programs, including transportation, education and training, veterans' benefits, income security, and health care (figure 4).

What is the largest spending category for US households?

Expenditures on food accounted for 12.9 percent of U.S. households' spending, on average, in 2023, an increase from 12.8 percent in 2022. The share of household expenditures on food ranked third behind housing (32.9 percent) and transportation (17.0 percent).

What is the largest component of total expenditures in us?

The largest component of spending in the U.S. economy is consumption spending. As part of the GDP components, which include consumption, investment, government spending, and net exports, consumption stands out with its significant share.

Does the US spend more on military or healthcare?

The US government spends more money on healthcare than the on military. Its roughly 18% on healthcare and 3.5% on military of its GDP.

What are typically the government's 3 largest expenditures every year?

Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid account for nearly 75 percent of mandatory spending
  • Social Security. 35%
  • Medicare. 22%
  • Medicaid. 16%
  • Income. Security. 12%
  • Other Mandatory. 6%
  • Veterans' Benefits. 5%
  • Federal Civilian and Military Retirement. 3%

What is the largest expense for the majority of Americans?

Average monthly spending on housing: $2,120 (5% increase)

Housing is by far the largest expense for Americans. Monthly housing expenses in 2023 averaged $2,120, a 5% increase from 2022. Over the course of 2023, Americans spent $25,436 on housing on average.

What is the largest source of income for the federal government?

The individual income tax has been the largest single source of federal revenue since 1944, and in 2022, it comprised 54 percent of total revenues and 10.5 percent of GDP in 2022 (figure 3).

Who owns US debt?

Who owns the U.S. debt? There are two basic categories of debt owners: 1) the public, which includes foreign investors and domestic investors and, 2) federal accounts, also known as "intragovernmental holdings." Each category is explained below.

What is the largest federal expenditure in the United States?

10 Largest Budget Functions
  • Social Security ($1,354 billion). ...
  • Health ($889 billion). ...
  • Medicare ($848 billion). ...
  • National Defense ($820 billion). ...
  • Income Security ($775 billion). ...
  • Net Interest ($658 billion). ...
  • Veterans Benefits and Services ($302 billion). ...
  • Transportation ($126 billion).

Which category is your largest expense?

Your housing costs will likely be your largest monthly expense. Make sure to include your mortgage or rent, property taxes and any repairs or maintenance in your household budget. A commonly referenced guideline is to allocate about 30% of your monthly income toward your housing costs.

What is our largest source of income?

The Federal Income Tax was established in 1913 with the ratification of the 16th Amendment. Though barely 100 years old, individual income taxes are the largest source of tax revenue in the U.S. is the federal government's largest source of revenue.

What happens in America if you can't afford healthcare?

Americans are no longer taxed for not carrying health insurance. Medical debt contributes to a large number of bankruptcies in America. Access to quality primary care is critical, but doctors have the right to refuse patients without insurance or who are able to pay out-of-pocket expenses.

What does the US spend the most money on in healthcare?

Personal health care expenditures—which account for the largest shares of total national health expenditures— are outlays for goods and services relating directly to patient care, such as hospital care, physicians' and dentists' services, prescription drugs, eyeglasses, and nursing home care.

Who has the best healthcare in the world?

The Legatum Prosperity Index 2023

According to the index, Singapore ranks first for healthcare, followed by Japan in second place and South Korea in third. In contrast, the United States ranks much lower, coming in at 69th place in this assessment. The full rankings are listed below.

What is the largest component of spending in the US?

Consumption expenditure by households is the largest component of GDP, accounting for more than two-thirds of the GDP in any year.

What is the largest spending category for the US economy?

Spending Categories
  • 21 % Social Security.
  • 15 % National Defense.
  • 14 % Health.
  • 13 % Net Interest.
  • 13 % Medicare.
  • 9 % Income Security.
  • 6 % Veterans Benefits and Services.
  • 3 % Education, Training, Employment, and Social Services.

What is the third largest expense for the average American?

Food is the third largest spending category for American households at 12.6 percent
  • Food Prices, Expenditures, and Establishments.
  • Consumer and Producer Price Indexes.

What is the largest expense for Americans?

Here's how spending breaks down into a list of monthly expenses by budget categories.
  • Housing – $2,024 monthly cost in 2022.
  • Transportation - $1,024.
  • Personal insurance and pensions - $728.
  • Healthcare - $487.
  • Food at home - $475.
  • Food away from home - $303.
  • Entertainment - $288.
  • Cash contributions - $229.

What is the average monthly bills for one person?

The average monthly expenses for one person in 2022 were $3,693, up 8.5% from 2021. That translates into an increase of $287.75 per month.

Which country spends the least on food?

The US spends the least at 6.4%, Singapore spends the second lowest amount at 6.7%. Canada spends 9.1% on food, while Australia spends 9.8%. Nigeria spends over half of household income on food, and there are nine other countries that spend over 40% on food.