A Spanish household spent an average of 30,000 euros annually before the crises consolidated into 2020, covering essentials such as food, housing, clothing, transport, and leisure. Last year, spending rose by 7.9 percent compared with 2021, reaching 31,500 euros per household. The National Institute of Statistics (INE) publishes the Household Budget Survey, which tracks broad price movements across households over 15 years and shows a general rise in prices. Since inflation has been steadily climbing, total household expenditure has grown in parallel, with an overall 16.9 percent increase over the past two years. Even if the 2022 surge is considered, the growth rate would still hover around 2 percent; the three most common budget items housing, food, and transport remain the hardest hit, collectively ending up 27.6 percent more expensive in a single year.
Prices rose gradually from January 2021, but 2022 marked an alarming pace. The year saw prices nearly 11 percent higher than the previous year, with energy costs rising sharply. As supply chains began to tighten, food prices, which had fluctuated since the summer, climbed between 12 and 16 percent before accelerating further. This pattern explains why Spanish families increased spending on basic consumer goods—from 7.9 percent to 31,568 euros in 2022—while the average cost per person rose from 11,779 euros to 12,780 euros, an 8.5 percent uptick. Both figures remain roughly 17 percent above 2020 levels, reflecting a continued rebound from 2020 and 2021 dynamics.
The pandemic caused a shift in household consumption in 2020, with a partial recovery in 2021. The new INE document notes that the recovery was not complete until 2022, when the average expenditure per household exceeded 2019 levels by 1,325 euros. However, some groups, including clothing, entertainment, and products like alcohol and tobacco, had not fully recovered to pre-crisis levels. These observations underscore ongoing shifts in spending patterns as households adjust to inflation, energy costs, and evolving consumer habits.
Shelter, Food, and Transportation
According to 2022 data, the three categories that absorb the largest shares of the family budget—housing, food, and transport—account for about 60 percent of total expenses. Together, they show notable increases across the year. Housing costs rose about 3.5 percent, translating to more than 10,242 euros per household per year and roughly 4,100 euros per person. Food expenditure grew by around 5 percent, reaching about 5,000 euros per family, while transport rose by 17.4 percent, adding roughly 3,800 euros per household annually.
Beyond these core categories, households also directed more spending toward dining out, leisure, and culture, signaling sustained consumer confidence as the post-pandemic period unfolded. Spending on restaurants and hotels climbed 29 percent in 2022, reaching about 2,953 euros per household and 1,195 euros per person per year. Entertainment and culture rose 18.6 percent to around 1,500 euros in total, with about 621 euros per person. Education expenses increased by about 6.6 percent, averaging 467 euros per household, while clothing and footwear rose 6.5 percent to 1,231 euros, still short of the pre-crisis level by about 200 euros.
Overall, these movements illustrate how inflation, energy costs, and renewed consumer activity shaped the year. The INE data indicate that while households continued to rebound from the pandemic, the most affected items remained essentials, and discretionary spending followed a pattern of growth as prices stabilized in some sectors and remained volatile in others. This snapshot helps explain why many families adjusted their budgets in response to shifting prices and changing economic expectations across Spain during the year in question. The analysis is based on the Household Budget Survey conducted by INE, which compiles detailed spending data and price trends for households across Spain.