Lowest-spending households stretch budgets

Households in Spain with the lowest levels of spending dedicate 61.5% of their total expenditure to housing, utilities, and food, according to the latest Household Budget Survey (HBS) data for 2025, published by the National Statistics Institute (INE) on 25 June 2026. This compares with 41.2% for the highest-spending 20% of households, highlighting a 20.3 percentage point gap in how family budgets are structured. The survey classifies households into five expenditure quintiles based on equivalent average expenditure, which adjusts for household size and composition using the modified OECD scale.

Housing costs dominate essential spending

Among the lowest-spending quintile, housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels alone account for 41.9% of total spending. Food and non-alcoholic beverages make up a further 19.6%, bringing the combined share to more than six out of every ten euros. In contrast, households in the highest-spending group allocate 28.9% to housing and utilities, and 12.3% to food. These proportions reflect relative spending, not absolute euro amounts. The data does not imply that lower-spending households pay more in cash terms, but that these essentials consume a far larger share of their overall budget.

Higher costs in Catalonia for housing and energy

Territorial data from the Institut d'Estadística de Catalunya (Idescat), based on the same INE survey, shows that average spending on housing-related items in Catalonia exceeds the Spanish average. In 2025, actual rental payments by households in Catalonia averaged 2,328 euros annually, compared to 1,457 euros nationally. Imputed rent, the estimated value of housing services for owner-occupiers, stood at 8,396 euros per household in Catalonia, versus 7,779 euros in Spain. Catalan households also spent more on utilities: 1,052 euros on water and related services, and 1,362 euros on electricity, gas, and other fuels, compared to national averages of 952 and 1,255 euros respectively.

Spending rises across Spain in 2025

Average annual household expenditure in Spain rose by 3.1% to 35,101 euros in 2025, with per-person spending reaching 14,066 euros. The largest increases were in housing and utilities, up 5.8%, and personal care and miscellaneous services, up 5.2%. Food spending rose by 4.4% to an average of 5,626 euros per household. Transport, restaurants, and leisure spending accounted for 33.6% of budgets among the highest-spending households, compared to just 15.7% among the lowest, underscoring disparities in discretionary spending capacity.

Family size affects overall expenditure

Households consisting of couples with children had the highest average annual expenditure at 44,438 euros, while single-person households under 65 spent 23,784 euros and those with individuals aged 65 or over spent 23,024 euros. These differences reflect household size and needs, not necessarily greater individual wealth.

The structure of household spending is heavily conditioned by total available resources, with essentials taking precedence where budgets are tight.

Sources: CatalunyaPress, ine.es, idescat.cat.