Consumers Kept Spending in June as Saving Rate Fell to 2.7%

U.S. households continued to increase their spending in June, even as income growth lagged behind and the personal saving rate edged down to 2.7%.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported July 30 that real personal consumption expenditures rose 0.4% in June. Current-dollar consumer spending increased 0.3%, while personal income and disposable personal income each rose 0.2%.

The data show that household demand remained resilient during the month. They also point to a smaller aggregate saving cushion if prices, borrowing costs or job-market conditions become more difficult. The report does not show how that cushion differs among households.

Spending grew faster than income

Personal income increased by $54.9 billion in June, according to the BEA. Disposable personal income — personal income after personal current taxes — rose by $48.3 billion.

Current-dollar personal consumption expenditures increased by $65.2 billion. Services accounted for $58.2 billion of that increase, while spending on goods rose by $7.0 billion.

Real personal consumption expenditures adjust for price changes. That measure increased $68.0 billion, or 0.4%, compared with the 0.3% increase in current-dollar spending. Current-dollar figures show the change in spending measured in dollars, while real PCE is designed to show the change in the volume of goods and services purchased after accounting for price changes.

What the 2.7% saving rate means

The personal saving rate declined from 2.8% in May to 2.7% in June. The BEA defines the rate as personal saving as a percentage of disposable personal income.

That is an aggregate measure for the U.S. economy. It is not the percentage of Americans’ bank balances, and it does not show whether a particular household has an adequate emergency fund. The data also do not separate households by income, age, debt or employment status.

The direction still provides useful national context. When spending rises faster than disposable income, the share of income being saved can decline. That could leave some households with less room to absorb a future medical bill, job interruption, rent increase or other unexpected cost, although the aggregate report does not establish that Americans broadly are running out of money.

Prices eased from May but remained higher than a year earlier

The personal consumption expenditures price index fell 0.1% from May to June. That month-to-month decline does not mean the economy entered broad deflation. Prices were still 3.7% higher than in June 2025, while core PCE inflation, which excludes food and energy, was up 3.3% over the same period.

For consumers, a small monthly easing did not reverse the cumulative increase in prices. Spending can rise because households buy more, pay higher prices, or both. The BEA’s consumer-spending data distinguish nominal spending from real spending, but one month of growth is not enough to establish a durable trend.

What to watch next

The June figures suggest that household demand held up during the month, but they also show income growing more slowly than spending and the saving rate declining slightly. That combination could support economic activity in the near term while limiting how long consumers can maintain the same pace without stronger income gains or reduced price pressure. This is an interpretation of the data, not a BEA forecast.

June figures are estimates and may be revised. The next major checkpoint is the BEA’s scheduled Aug. 26 release of July income, spending, saving and PCE inflation data. That report will help show whether June’s spending increase was sustained and whether the saving rate continued to move lower.

Sources

• Personal Income and Outlays, June 2026 — U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
• U.S. economy slows, yet Americans still spending in face of inflation — Associated Press