U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE) Respondents

CE Diary Survey

If you are a respondent in the Consumer Expenditure Diary Survey, we will ask you to write down all purchases and expenses made by anyone in your household over a period of two weeks.

The Diary is divided into four sections:

Food Away From Home: any meals, snacks or beverages anyone in your household purchased to eat while away from home
Food for Home Consumption: any food, such as groceries, anyone in the household purchased to prepare or eat at home
Clothing, Shoes, Jewelry and Accessories: any of these items anyone in the household purchased
All Other Products, Services and Expenses: any other spending anyone in the household did during the week

A Census Bureau interviewer will go over the diary form with you at your home, and will explain how to fill it out. You can also contact the interviewer to answer any questions the household may have while completing the diary.

After one week, the interviewer will return to pick up your diary for the first week’s expenses. The interviewer will work with the household to determine if all expenses were recorded, and to answer any questions you may have. During this visit, the household will receive another diary to complete for a second week.

After the second week, the interviewer will again return to pick up the diary, review it and answer any questions. The interviewer will also ask some questions about your household which provide information necessary for BLS to use the data.

Last Modified Date: April 7, 2011