What Are the Typical Expenses per Month for a Family?

In this economy, some younger people growing up may question how others can afford to support an entire family?

This is not without cause, as the typical expenses per month for a family of 4-5 people can be around $7,000 per month.

So, what things drive up the monthly expenses for families? Here are a few items that stand out.

Mortgage

Whether you are single or supporting an entire family, you need a roof over your head. This is where a mortgage comes in for a family of 4-5 people because a family of that size will most likely need a house for extra space.

The average monthly mortgage for a household in the United States is currently around $1,275 per month.

Taking the initial monthly expenses stat above into account, that can mean that a mortgage can be almost 20% of the monthly expenses that a typical family will have to deal with.

Health Care

Next, you have health care. In the United States, this is far from a cheap expense because while children can go under their parents’ plan until they are 26 years old, there are still other expenses that need to be taken into account.

An example of this is braces. Some children may end up needing this in their puberty years, and not all standard health care plans will cover the braces cost.

Health care costs per month can already be several hundred dollars just for a standard plan, but if you have extra items like that to account for, it can put that cost in the thousands.

Car Payments

Let’s face it, in the United States; you are most likely going to need a car to get around if you are living in the suburbs. Vehicle purchase expenses actually went up 10.5% for a typical American household in 2019.

When it comes to cars, you are very likely going to need at least two for both parents to not only get around but potentially be able to travel to work. Then, if you have children that are getting older, they may need a car of their own soon.

You would not only have to save up for another car but also plan for the likely dramatic increase in your car insurance premiums since new drivers tend to be the most expensive for car insurance plans.

Groceries

Finally, the more people you have in your household, the more food you will need to keep everybody fed. This is one cost that increases as you have more people to support, but the average cost per person can go down because you can buy some items in bulk.

Nevertheless, you are still looking at spending several hundred dollars per month on groceries and other food that you order out.

Discover Your Typical Expenses per Month

These are just four of the typical expenses per month that an average household accounts for. Of course, there can be more costs like entertainment and clothing that you have to factor in as well.

To see more on this subject, check out our Lifestyle section.