Consumption: in 30 years, technology and leisure overtake food

How have household consumption patterns changed over time? The answer comes from Confcommercio. It reviews thirty years of Italian history.

However, the analysis released in August by the Confederation’s Research Office does not lack many insights into the 2007-2026, therefore 20 years.

In 2026 real spending is growing

This year real per-capita spending on purchases reached 23.261 euros (it was 19.877 euros in 1995), with an increase of 314 euros compared with 2025, exceeding pre-Covid levels, but also the peak of 2007 (22.975 euros), which nevertheless coincided with the beginning of the global financial crisis.

This trend, also encouraged by the steady growth in employment and incomes, did not, however, enable the full recovery of demand levels across all segments.

The surges in technology (IT and telecommunications) and leisure-related services led the long charge, with a “monstrous” change in amounts per person. Over 1995, 30 years, we are talking about a positive difference of 3.200% for the two categories, ICT and technology in the broad sense.

Over the same period, they increased, but considerably less, the cultural and recreational services: +137%.

Few other categories show structural signs of expansion: this is the case with catering (+25,3%) and spending on travel and holidays (+17,2%), which, in any case, have not yet returned to pre-pandemic averages.

Consumption sets material goods aside

Slightly down, on the other hand, is food consumed at home (-3,5% over the last three decades), also due to highly complex demographic trends and the growth in eating out.

Among the less dynamic baskets, although still positive, remain clothing and footwear (+6,2%), with demand now appearing to be more oriented towards garments with lower intrinsic value (fast fashion), and furniture and household goods (+5,9%).

A separate case is household energy (-37,4%), which is contracting significantly due to greater caution, but also thanks to the growing use of technology-based saving products and systems.

Real per-capita spending, after the decline recorded between 2007 and 2019, has begun in recent years to move towards a gradual recovery that should materialise in the first half of 2026.

As mentioned, this was encouraged by the marked progress recorded in employment: from the January low of 2021 the people employed in the production process increased by more than 2,2 million.

In terms of consumption distribution, long-term analyses clearly highlight the gradual dematerialisation of household spending: fewer physical goods and more services.

Thus, IT and telecommunications rose from less than 8 euros per person in 1995 to 252 euros today, also thanks to the transformation of certain items (mobile phones and PCs) and their related functions into indispensable products and, for this reason, much more accessible.

Entertainment and culture: +240 euros per capita

The same applies to entertainment, leisure and holidays, which bring the estimated volume of purchases to 637 euros in 2026 compared with 394 euros in 2007 (+243 euros).

Even the increase in spending on housing, as property in which to invest (despite continuously rising prices), has not halted the growth of spending on experiences. Instead, it has accelerated a shift in the cultural model, in which families choose to manage spending on material goods (clothing, food and furnishings) more rigorously in order to continue funding travel, dining out and culture, as well as many other opportunities related to work, leisure and socialising.

Read also the Confcommercio-Swg survey on the growth of cultural consumption, updated to 2026

This article was translated from the original Italian version with the assistance of artificial intelligence. In case of discrepancies, please refer to the original Italian version.