We adjust SNAP maximum allotments, deductions, and income eligibility standards at the beginning of each Federal fiscal year. The changes are based on changes in the cost of living. COLAs take effect on October 1 each year. Maximum allotments are calculated from the cost of a market basket based on the Thrifty Food Plan for a family of four, priced in June that year. The maximum allotments for households larger and smaller than four persons are determined using formulas that account for economies of scale. Smaller households get slightly more per person than the four-person household. Larger households get slightly less. Income eligibility standards are set by law. Gross monthly income limits are set at 130 percent of the poverty level for the household size. Net monthly income limits are set at 100 percent of poverty.

This table contains data on the living wage and the percent of families with incomes below the living wage for California, its counties, regions and cities/towns. Living wage is the wage needed to cover basic family expenses (basic needs budget) plus all relevant taxes; it does not include publicly provided income or housing assistance. The percent of families below the living wage was calculated using data from the Living Wage Calculator and the U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. The table is part of a series of indicators in the Healthy Communities Data and Indicators Project of the Office of Health Equity. The living wage is the wage or annual income that covers the cost of the bare necessities of life for a worker and his/her family. These necessities include housing, transportation, food, childcare, health care, and payment of taxes. Low income populations and non-white race/ethnic have disproportionately lower wages, poorer housing, and higher levels of food insecurity. More information about the data table and a data dictionary can be found in the About/Attachments section.

Dataset showing monthly living costs in seven categories: food, housing, health care, transportation, child care, other necessities and net taxes.

People in Great Britain's experiences of and actions following increases in their costs of living, and how these differed by a range of personal characteristics.

The South Australian Government provides the Cost of Living Concession to assist those on low or fixed incomes with any of their cost of living expenses, whether that be electricity, water, gas or medical bills. 2016-17 Cost of Living Concession recipients: Total number of recipients 180,513 Homeowner-occupier recipients 150,212 Homeowner-occupier recipients as % of total recipients 83% Tenant recipients 30,311 Tenant recipients as % of total recipients 17% A subset of homeowner-occupiers and tenants are the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card recipients 7,834 Commonwealth Seniors Health Card recipients as % of total recipients 4%

The FCA presents the findings from a survey undertaken in January 2024 to understand the financial impact of the increased cost of living on adults across the UK. Key findings include: Since January 2023 there has been an improvement in the number of people finding it hard to manage the higher costs of living, although challenges remain for some groups. The cost of living continues to have an impact on the financial lives of some adults in the UK. In January 2024: 7.4m (14%) felt heavily burdened by their domestic bills and credit commitments 5.5m (11%) had missed any of these bills in the previous 6 months 14.6m (28%) were not coping financially or finding it difficult to cope 5.9m (11%) had no disposable income

Information about sample sizes, response rates, household characteristics, and expenditure uncertainty metrics for the Living Costs and Food Survey.

Background:
A household food consumption and expenditure survey has been conducted each year in Great Britain (excluding Northern Ireland) since 1940. At that time the National Food Survey (NFS) covered a sample drawn solely from urban working-class households, but this was extended to a fully demographically representative sample in 1950. From 1957 onwards the Family Expenditure Survey (FES) provided information on all household expenditure patterns including food expenditure, with the NFS providing more detailed information on food consumption and expenditure. The NFS was extended to cover Northern Ireland from 1996 onwards. In April 2001 these surveys were combined to form the Expenditure and Food Survey (EFS), which completely replaced both series. From January 2008, the EFS became known as the Living Costs and Food (LCF) module of the Integrated Household Survey (IHS). As a consequence of this change, the questionnaire was altered to accommodate the insertion of a core set of questions, common to all of the separate modules which together comprised the IHS. Some of these core questions are simply questions which were previously asked in the same or a similar format on all of the IHS component surveys. For further information on the LCF questionnaire, see Volume A of the LCF 2008 User Guide, held with SN 6385. Further information about the LCF, including links to published reports based on the survey, may be found by searching for 'Living Costs and Food Survey' on the ONS website. Further information on the NFS and Living Costs and Food Module of the IHS can be found by searching for 'Family Food' on the GOV.UK website.

History:
The LCF (then EFS) was the result of more than two years' development work to bring together the FES and NFS; both survey series were well-established and important sources of information for government and the wider community, and had charted changes and patterns in spending and food consumption since the 1950s. Whilst the NFS and FES series are now finished, users should note that previous data from both series are still available from the UK Data Archive, under GNs 33071 (NFS) and 33057 (FES).

Purpose of the LCF
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has overall project management and financial responsibility for the LCF, while the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) sponsors the food data element. As with the FES and NFS, the LCF continues to be primarily used to provide information for the Retail Prices Index, National Accounts estimates of household expenditure, analysis of the effect of taxes and benefits, and trends in nutrition. The results are multi-purpose, however, providing an invaluable supply of economic and social data. The merger of the two surveys also brings benefits for users, as a single survey on food expenditure removes the difficulties of reconciling data from two sources. Design and methodology The design of the LCF is based on the old FES, although the use of new processing software by the data creators has resulted in a dataset which differs from the previous structure. The most significant change in terms of reporting expenditure, however, is the introduction of the European Standard Classification of Individual Consumption by Purpose (COICOP), in place of the codes previously used. An additional level of hierarchy has been developed to improve the mapping to the previous codes. The LCF was conducted on a financial year basis from 2001, then moved to a calendar year basis from January 2006 (to complement the IHS) until 2015-16, when the financial year survey was reinstated at the request of users. Therefore, whilst SN 5688 covers April 2005 - March 2006, SN 5986 covers January-December 2006. Subsequent years cover January-December until 2014. SN 8210 returns to the financial year survey and currently covers April 2015 - March 2016.

Northern Ireland sample
Users should note that, due to funding constraints, from January 2010 the Northern Ireland (NI) sample used for the LCF was reduced to a sample proportionate to the NI population relative to the UK.

Family Food database:
'Family Food' is an annual publication which provides detailed statistical information on purchased quantities, expenditure and nutrient intakes derived from both household and eating out food and drink. Data is collected for a sample of households in the United Kingdom using self-reported diaries of all purchases, including food eaten out, over a two week period. Where possible quantities are recorded in the diaries but otherwise estimated. Energy and nutrient intakes are calculated using standard nutrient composition data for each of some 500 types of food. Current estimates are based on data collected in the Family Food Module of the LCFS. Further information about the LCF food databases can be found on the GOV.UK Family Food Statistics web pages.

Secure Access version
A Secure Access version of the LCF from 2006 onwards is available from the UK Data Archive under SN 7047, subject to stringent access conditions. The Secure Access version includes variables that are not included in the standard End User Licence (EUL) version, including geographical variables with detail below Government Office Region, to postcode level; urban/rural area indicators; other sensitive variables; raw diary information files (derived variables are available in the EUL) and the family expenditure codes files. Users are strongly advised to check whether the EUL version is sufficient for their needs before considering an application for the Secure Access version.

Occupation data for 2021 and 2022 data files
The ONS have identified an issue with the collection of some occupational data in 2021 and 2022 data files in a number of their surveys. While they estimate any impacts will be small overall, this will affect the accuracy of the breakdowns of some detailed (four-digit Standard Occupational Classification (SOC)) occupations, and data derived from them. None of ONS' headline statistics, other than those directly sourced from occupational data, are affected and you can continue to rely on their accuracy. For further information on this issue, please see: https://www.ons.gov.uk/news/statementsandletters/occupationaldatainonssurveys.

DEFRA Family Food database:
This is available as a separate Access download zip file for those users who require it.

Latest edition information:
For the fifth edition (November 2023), the DEFRA Family Food Database has been updated; one case has been removed.

Analysis of the proportion of the British adult population experiencing some form of depression in autumn 2022, including experiences of changes in cost of living and household finances. Analysis based on the Opinions and Lifestyle Survey.

Description and Purpose This data companion pack is a resource intended to frame and be read alongside the linked rapid review of evidence for interventions to address the cost of living crisis (available on the Institute of Health Equity website) . The resource provides intelligence and context on the cost of living crisis in London only, while the accompanying rapid review of evidence for interventions to mitigate the impacts of the rising cost of living on London, contains the recommendations for action.​ This pack is intended to provide a high-level overview of the impacts of the costs of living crisis on London and the need Londoners have for support to deal with the cost of living crisis through intelligence available in the public domain.  This pack identifies how certain groups in the population already experiencing health inequalities are at greatest risk of poverty and worsening health due to the cost of living crisis. Given there are significant gaps in intelligence available, this pack also highlights these gaps and limitations in our understanding. Audience It will be useful for health leaders, analysts, officers, and policy makers from local and regional government, integrated care systems, NHS, academia, VCS organisations and partners across London to support their work to address the costs of living crisis by​ Advocating for the need for action to address the rising cost of living given impacts on health and health inequalities ​ Framing the context for the interventions highlighted in the linked rapid review of interventions​ Engaging communities ​ ​Development of this resource The Institute of Health Equity (IHE), Greater London Authority (GLA) Health, GLA City Intelligence Unit, Office for Health Improvement and Disparities London (OHID), Association of Directors of Public Health London (ADPH), and NHSE have collaboratively produced this report, as part of the Building the Evidence (BTE) programme of work The sources of data available and topics included have been identified from existing published data, working in partnership through iterative discussion The resource is provided in PDF and PowerPoint format to support colleagues in their work to There is no current plan for periodic updates of this resource, though this will be discussed on completion of this programme of work

This table contains data on the percent of households paying more than 30% (or 50%) of monthly household income towards housing costs for California, its regions, counties, cities/towns, and census tracts. Data is from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Consolidated Planning Comprehensive Housing Affordability Strategy (CHAS) and the U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS). The table is part of a series of indicators in the [Healthy Communities Data and Indicators Project of the Office of Health Equity] Affordable, quality housing is central to health, conferring protection from the environment and supporting family life. Housing costs—typically the largest, single expense in a family's budget—also impact decisions that affect health. As housing consumes larger proportions of household income, families have less income for nutrition, health care, transportation, education, etc. Severe cost burdens may induce poverty—which is associated with developmental and behavioral problems in children and accelerated cognitive and physical decline in adults. Low-income families and minority communities are disproportionately affected by the lack of affordable, quality housing. More information about the data table and a data dictionary can be found in the Attachments.

The Consumer Sentiment Index in the United States stood at 51 in November 2025. This reflected a drop of 2.6 point from the previous survey. Furthermore, this was its lowest level measured since June 2022. The index is normalized to a value of 100 in December 1964 and based on a monthly survey of consumers, conducted in the continental United States. It consists of about 50 core questions which cover consumers' assessments of their personal financial situation, their buying attitudes and overall economic conditions.

In 2025, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for medical professional services in the United States was at 432.46, compared to the period from 1982 to 1984 (=100). The CPI for hospital services was at 1,102.12.

Household income is a potential predictor for a number of environmental influences, for example, application of urban pesticides. This product is a U.S. conterminous mapping of block group income derived from the 2010-2014 Census American Community Survey (ACS), adjusted by a 2013 county-level Cost-of-Living index obtained from the Council for Community and Economic Research. The resultant raster is provided at 200-m spatial resolution, in units of adjusted household income in thousands of dollars per year.

Opinions of Londoners are at the heart of policy making at the Greater London Authority (GLA). City Hall conducts regular research with Londoners to provide evidence and insight into public opinion and behaviours, in order to support effective and impactful policy making and the development of strategies and programmes of work. These pages detail the latest research conducted by the GLA on public attitudes and behaviours in relation to the cost of living in 2022. All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc on behalf of the GLA. The surveys were carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all London adults (aged 18+).

West Virginia and Kansas had the lowest cost of living across all U.S. states, with composite costs being half of those found in Hawaii. This was according to a composite index that compares prices for various goods and services on a state-by-state basis. In West Virginia, the cost of living index amounted to **** — well below the national benchmark of 100. Virginia— which had an index value of ***** — was only slightly above that benchmark. Expensive places to live included Hawaii, Massachusetts, and California. Housing costs in the U.S. Housing is usually the highest expense in a household’s budget. In 2023, the average house sold for approximately ******* U.S. dollars, but house prices in the Northeast and West regions were significantly higher. Conversely, the South had some of the least expensive housing. In West Virginia, Mississippi, and Louisiana, the median price of the typical single-family home was less than ******* U.S. dollars. That makes living expenses in these states significantly lower than in states such as Hawaii and California, where housing is much pricier. What other expenses affect the cost of living? Utility costs such as electricity, natural gas, water, and internet also influence the cost of living. In Alaska, Hawaii, and Connecticut, the average monthly utility cost exceeded *** U.S. dollars. That was because of the significantly higher prices for electricity and natural gas in these states.