Average Money Spent on Clothes per Month: What's Normal for You

Plenty of people have no clear idea what they spend on clothes, because it rarely shows up as one neat bill. A shirt here, kids’ sneakers there, and a dry cleaning ticket on top can add up to more than you’d guess.

That’s why the average money spent on clothes per month is a useful number to know. It gives you a reference point, so you can tell whether your own spending is normal, a little high or well under control.

Below, you’ll find the latest average, what it does and doesn’t include, and rough estimates for one person and for a family of four. We’ll also walk through how to find your own number and set a clothing budget you can actually keep.

The Average Money Spent on Clothes per Month

The average American household spends about $163 a month on apparel and services, according to Ramsey Solutions’ summary of Bureau of Labor Statistics data. The same page rounds it to $164 in one spot, so you may see either figure quoted.

Multiply $163 by 12 and you get about $1,956 a year, by our math. That’s the yearly clothing cost for a typical household, not for each person in it.

The BLS gathers these numbers through its Consumer Expenditure Survey, which tracks what households in the United States spend on everything from rent to groceries. Clothing is just one line in that survey, but it’s a line most of us can change faster than rent or a car payment.

Shoes are a big part of that total, and Ramsey’s summary of the BLS data puts average footwear spending at $38 a month. That means shoes alone take up nearly a quarter of the apparel figure.

So if you spend around $160 a month on clothes for your whole household, you’re right in line with the average. The bigger question is whether that number fits your budget, which we’ll get to shortly.

What the Apparel and Services Number Includes

That $163 isn’t only shirts, jeans and coats. Ramsey’s BLS summary notes that besides clothing, the category includes dry cleaning, alterations and jewelry.

This matters when you compare yourself with the average. If you never use dry cleaning and don’t buy jewelry, your pure clothing spending could sit below $163 and still be perfectly normal.

The figure is also an average across every kind of household. Single renters, retired couples and families with three growing kids all go into the same pot, so the result describes no one household exactly.

Averages can also get pulled up by big spenders. A few households buying designer coats or a closet full of new work clothes can raise the average, even when many households buy very little.

Here’s the practical takeaway: treat $163 as a rough benchmark for a whole household, not as a target. Your own number should come from your own spending, which is easier to find than you might think.

How Clothing Compares With Other Monthly Expenses

Clothing is one of the smaller categories in a typical budget. Here’s how Ramsey’s summary of BLS data lays out average monthly expenses for an American household, with each category’s share of total spending:

So clothing takes about 2.5% of what the average household spends. Housing, transportation and food together take far more, which is why cutting there usually frees up bigger money.

Those bigger categories bundle a lot. In Ramsey’s breakdown, housing covers rent or mortgage payments plus property taxes, homeowners insurance, gas and electric bills and furniture, while transportation covers car payments, gas, insurance and repairs.

That doesn’t make clothing unimportant. It’s a flexible expense, so you can trim it quickly when money is tight, unlike fixed costs such as rent or a mortgage.

It also helps to see where similar flexible costs land. The average household spends close to twice as much on entertainment as on clothes.

If you’re looking for places to trim, the average entertainment cost is worth a look too.

Average Cost of Clothing per Month for 1 Person

The BLS average describes a whole household, and many households have more than one person. So what’s the average cost of clothing per month for 1 person?

None of the sources we reviewed give a clothing figure for single-person households. They do give total spending, though: Ramsey reports that a single-person household spends an average of $4,716 on monthly expenses.

Say a person living alone spent the same 2.5% share on apparel and services as the average household. That would come to about $118 a month.

Treat that as a rough estimate based on our own math, not a measured statistic.

Average Cost of Clothing per Year for 1 Person

Stretch that $118 estimate across 12 months and you get roughly $1,415 a year for one person. Again, that’s a rough figure built on an assumption, so your real number could be much higher or lower.

What changes it most? Your job’s dress code, your climate and how often you replace things all play a part.

Someone who works from home in a mild climate may spend far less than someone who needs suits and a heavy winter coat.

The best use of this estimate is as a sanity check. If you’re spending $400 a month on clothes for just yourself, you’re well above it, and that’s a sign to look closer.

Average Cost of Clothing per Month for a Family of 4

Families with kids spend more on just about everything. Ramsey reports that married couples with kids spend an average of $8,809 to $9,780 on monthly expenses, depending on the kids’ ages.

If those families kept the same 2.5% share for apparel and services, their clothing would cost roughly $220 to $245 a month. That’s our hypothetical math, and real family spending can swing widely from it.

Kids are the main reason. They outgrow shoes and pants fast, so a child can need new sizes several times a year even if nothing wears out.

Seasonal costs pile on too. Back-to-school shopping, winter coats and boots, and an outfit for a wedding or graduation can all land in the same few months.

That’s why a family clothing budget works better as a yearly plan than a fixed monthly number. You can expect some months to run high and others to run low, as long as the year balances out.

Why Your Number May Look Nothing Like the Average

If your spending looks very different from $163, that’s normal. Averages blend many lifestyles together, and very few households sit right on the line.

Income is a big factor. When money is tight, clothes usually move down the list behind rent, food and utilities, and higher earners have more room to spend.

Where you live and how you work matter too. A cold climate means coats and boots, and a job with a dress code means work clothes you might not otherwise buy.

Then there’s habit, since some people buy a few pieces every month. Others buy almost nothing for a year and then replace a lot at once.

So compare yourself with the average, but don’t stop there. The more useful question is whether your clothing spending fits your income and goals, which brings us to percentages.

What Percent of Income Should Go to Clothes?

There’s no official percentage for clothing. The closest thing to a benchmark is the average share, and apparel and services make up about 2.5% of average household spending.

That 2.5% is a share of spending, not income. Income also has to cover tax, retirement saving and debt payments, so clothing usually takes an even smaller slice of your gross paycheck.

A simple budget rule can help you decide. For example, the 70/20/10 rule budget puts 70% of take-home pay toward living costs, and clothing sits inside that 70% with rent, food and transportation.

If you’d rather plan every dollar, a zero-based budget template lets you give clothing its own line each month. You decide the amount up front instead of finding out at the end of the month.

Whichever method you choose, start with what you actually spend now. A percentage only helps once you know your real starting point.

How to Find Your Own Monthly Clothing Number

The fastest way to learn what you spend is to look back. Pull three to twelve months of bank and credit card statements, because a single month can be misleading.

Next, mark every clothing-related purchase. Include shoes, accessories, kids’ clothes, dry cleaning and alterations, since those all count in the apparel and services category.

Don’t forget the less obvious charges. Online orders, store cards and cash spent at a thrift shop or boutique are easy to miss.

Add everything up and divide by the number of months. That’s your average money spent on clothes per month, and now you can compare it fairly with the $163 household average.

Here’s a quick example with made-up numbers. If three months of statements show $95 in shoes, $210 in clothes and $35 in dry cleaning, that’s $340 total, or about $113 a month.

That household would sit below the average. But if the same three months included a $150 winter coat, the monthly figure would jump to $163, which is why a longer stretch of statements gives a fairer picture.

Many budgeting apps can also sort your spending into categories for you. Just check their labels, because a department store charge might include household items as well as clothes.

How to Set a Clothing Budget That Fits

Once you know your number, you can decide what you want it to be. A good clothing budget is realistic, covers the expenses you know are coming and still leaves room for your bigger goals.

Clothing is just one piece of a working budget. If you’re building one from scratch, the budgeting basics and the key parts of a budget are good places to start.

Plan for Irregular Clothing Costs

Clothing rarely costs the same amount every month. A winter coat, new work shoes or back-to-school shopping can hit all at once.

A sinking fund smooths out those spikes. You set aside a fixed amount each month, such as $50, and spend from that pot when the big purchase arrives.

To pick the monthly amount, list the clothing you expect to buy over the next year and add it up. For example, a hypothetical $300 for back-to-school, $200 for winter gear and $100 for one special event comes to $600, or $50 a month.

Clothing works well as one of your sinking fund categories, because the costs are predictable even if the timing isn’t. Some people keep this money in a separate savings account so it doesn’t get mixed into everyday spending.

Use Cost-per-Wear to Judge Prices

Cost-per-wear is the price of an item divided by the number of times you wear it. It’s a simple way to tell whether something is good value.

Say you buy a $60 pair of jeans and wear them 60 times. That works out to $1 per wear, which is a better deal than a $20 pair you wear only twice at $10 per wear.

This way of thinking helps you avoid “good deals” that never leave the closet. Before you buy, ask yourself honestly how often you’ll wear the item.

Spend Less Without Going Without

Lowering your clothing costs doesn’t have to mean wearing worn-out clothes. It usually means buying fewer, more versatile pieces and shopping smarter for the ones you need.

Secondhand shopping is one of the biggest savers, and a few thrifting tips can help you find good pieces faster. Clothing swaps and mending what you already own stretch your money further, and gentle laundry habits help clothes last longer.

If your number came out well above the average, these ways to save on clothes can help you bring it down. Pick one or two that fit your habits and build from there.

The Bottom Line on Clothing Spending

The average American household spends about $163 a month on apparel and services, or roughly $1,956 a year. That includes extras like alterations and jewelry, and it covers the whole household.

Use that number as a benchmark, not a rule. Find your own monthly figure from your statements, decide what fits your income and plan ahead for the big seasonal purchases.

When your clothing money has a clear limit and a plan, you can buy what you need without the end-of-month surprise.