“The results suggest that taking into account the family composition, households with dependent children spend, on average, 9,731 euros more annually than households without dependent children, which translates into an average monthly expenditure higher by 811 euros”, indicates the statistics office.

The main contributors to this difference were transport and housing costs, the difference between the two types of households exceeding, in both cases, 100 euros per month, according to INE. “Higher expenditure on restaurants and accommodation, food and education was also observed: 97 more, 90 more and 66 more euros per month, on average, respectively”.

Portuguese families spend, on average, 23,900 euros per year on their expenses, and this amount varies depending on the composition of the household. Families with two or more dependent children spend the most, with the average annual expenditure exceeding 32,800 euros. In turn, single-person households are, naturally, those who spend the least.

Even so, according to the INE survey, “the average annual expenditure was higher in the presence of an adult under 65 years old (17,105 euros) compared to households made up of an elderly adult (14,783 euros)”.

Regional differences

In regional terms, the average annual expenditure was highest in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, with the value standing at 26,891 euros, followed by the Algarve (24,432 euros/year). Both were above the national average. The average expenditure in the North region was below the national average, but above 23 thousand euros (23,245 euros).

The lowest average regional expenditure was observed in the Autonomous Region of the Azores (19,431 euros), which also presented the regional expenditure profile furthest from the national average. This is followed by Alentejo (21,359 euros), the Center (22,222 euros), and the Autonomous Region of Madeira (22,605 euros).