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By Denis Goncharenko

What Average Household Expenses Show About Price Pressure - and What They Can't

The average US consumer unit spent $78,535 in 2024 - about $6,545 a month. This page sets that spending record against the price indexes for the same two years, category by category, using our own CE-CPI crosswalk, and states plainly what the figures cannot show.

Why Car Insurance Went Up and What Actually Moves the Premium

Car insurance spending rose 12.3 percent in 2024, one of only two costs BLS called statistically significant. NAIC's 2023 state averages, why rates are falling even as the level sits 49.9 percent above 2019, what actually drives claims costs, and which levers on your policy are worth checking.

By Denis Goncharenko

Stop Blaming the Latte: Impulse Buying Isn't the Whole Budget Story

BLS data shows apparel and entertainment spending barely moved in 2024, while car insurance, housing and groceries rose - some by double digits. Why the numbers behind the top impulse-buying articles don't hold up, and a review method that starts with the bills, not the coffee.

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You know the drill: one loan request, then waiting for the calls to start. Here you stay in control — we treat your information with care, you compare the options available to you, and you choose which lender or partner to move forward with. We can't speak for every partner, but we do our best to keep unwanted calls down.

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By Denis Goncharenko

Cost of Living by State: Prices, Rent and Wages

A 51-row table built from U.S. federal series (BEA, Census, HUD, EIA, DOL), not the private volunteer survey most rankings use. Housing costs vary six times more than goods across states, cheap states aren't always affordable, and minimum wage sits below a modelled living wage everywhere checked.