The bar chart compares the spending patterns on three different consumer goods among different age groups of UK citizens in 2004.
Overall, expenditure on food and drink as well as entertainment tended to rise with age, except for entertainment among those aged 76 and above, whereas spending on restaurant and hotel declined as people got older. Notably, food and drink accounted for the largest outlay across all age categories, with the exception of those under 30, who spent the most on restaurant and hotel, and individuals aged 61-75, who allocated the highest proportion of their budget to entertainment.
Spending levels on food and drink and entertainment increased as people grew older. Starting at around 6% among individuals under 30, the proportion spent on food and drink grew steadily with age, rising by about five percentage points per age group to reach nearly 24% among those aged 76 and over. Similarly, the amount spent on entertainment also rose as age increased, rising from just over 5% among those aged 30 and under to around 24% in the 61-75 age cohort, which was the same proportion recorded for food and drink in the 76 and over category. For 76+ age group, however, the outlay on entertainment dropped significantly to about 13%, still remaining higher than proportion for people under 30.
Expenditure patterns on restaurant and hotel, on the other hand, exhibited a downward trend as age increased. At just under 15% among people under 30, the percentage for this spending category declined slightly with age to approximately 12% in 46-60 age set, before a more dramatic drop to about 2% among people between 61 and 75. Among the oldest age group, 7% of their total spending was on restaurants and hotels.