Consumption

Consumption, in economics, use of goods and services. Wearing clothes, eating food, and washing with soap are examples of consumption. Patterns of consumption are related to size of income. Higher income families tend to spend larger portions of their earnings on nonessentials such as education and entertainment, while lower income families spend the greater part of their income on essentials such as food and housing. Two-thirds of all goods and services in the United States are used by consumers, while the remaining one-third is used or invested by the government.