How Many Times a Week Does the Average Person Eat Out?
Eating out is something most people have in common because everybody needs to eat, and it is nicer and more enjoyable to eat out. There are many reasons why customers choose a restaurant, and what type of restaurant they choose to dine but one thing is certain, most of us love to eat out somewhere.
In this article, I will teach you how many times an average person eats out and some other questions about the subject, which we will get more in later after we understand the average eating out statistics.
On average, people eat 1,86 times per week in a restaurant, order takeout or delivery. My survey of 744 people included people of all ages and situations to make as realistic an answer as possible.
Most people answered that they eat out less than once per week; therefore, eating out might not be as usual as we believed. Of course, this greatly varies between locations and naturally big cities have more people dining out than a town in the countryside. Also, the nature of a job and income level will affect whether a person eats their lunch out every day, or prepares their own, etc.
Below you can see the exact answers to my survey so you can examine how people are really eating out.
Times Eating Out | Answers | % Answers |
0 | 325 | 44% |
1-2 | 297 | 40% |
3-4 | 82 | 11% |
5+ | 40 | 5% |
Before proceeding to some other aspects of eating out, it’s important to understand what affects the fact on how often people eat out in a restaurant or order a takeout meal from them. Let’s take a quick look!
Contents
Person’s location
The location has a huge effect on how often people eat out; let’s take an example. One person lives in New York City, where there are hundreds of restaurants within walking distance, so it is easier to go out to eat; in fact, it might be more convenient and time-saving to eat out every day when living in a big city than in the countryside.
Of course, this would cost money, and the restaurants should be chosen with care because fast food isn’t good if consumed every day.
Another scenario is if a person lives in Wyoming where there aren’t restaurants around every corner, and in Wyoming, you’re lucky to find a corner around the corner… Jokes aside, you get the point that in cities and densely populated areas, it’s more common to eat out than areas with low population densities.
Type of employment
The biggest gaps between people and their dining out habits come from workplaces. Think about it, if a person works at an office and has a great place nearby, then the chances are that they take their lunch breaks to that restaurant. Depending on a restaurant’s pricing and menu, it either can be an affordable and healthy choice, or it can get costly and unhealthy.
For example, if you eat at a buffet type of restaurant with affordable pricing and a large variety of different choices, the chances are you can get the ultimate plate model from there.
However, if you eat a heavy steak dinner with extra fries and a large soda every day, it will get costly in the long run, and some gained weight. The cost of dining outside is relative after all, which brings us to income level and wealth.
Income level/wealth
It goes without saying that if you make a decent living or are wealthy, dining outside at a restaurant multiple times a day isn’t a problem. However, many people don’t have so much money to spend $200 per week for dining outside. Therefore there are huge differences between peoples eating outside habits when talking about money.
Special occasions
Last but not least are special occasions such as anniversaries, birthdays, holidays, and any kind of celebration that people might have. As everyone probably knows, there are many milestones every year that is celebrated.
There are big differences between people and their special occasion celebration habits. Some people will always go to a nice restaurant and celebrate, whereas others do something different by finding entertainment ideas elsewhere.
How much does an average person spend on eating out
According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, people spend $3,008 on food away from home, on average. This means that the monthly spend on eating out is $250 and weekly is $58.
Take notice that there are huge differences between people who attended this survey; therefore, I have gathered the information below to see that the differences can be up to x4 about peoples dining away from home habits.
All consumers | Lowest 20% | Second 20% | Third 20% | Fourth 20% | Highest’s 20% |
$3,008 | $1,268 | $1,751 | $2,354 | $3,620 | $6,040 |
Is it bad to eat out every day
Depending on how you choose a restaurant, eating out every day can be bad or optimal. If you decide to eat at a healthy restaurant with cholesterol, sugar, and fat, in mind, it can be extremely beneficial. On the other hand, if you eat fast food every day with sugary drinks and deep-fried foods, it isn’t good.
How many times should I eat out a week
If it would be convenient for you to eat out every day but are concerned whether you should or not, it really depends on your budget and choice of restaurant. If you choose a healthy restaurant with healthy, diverse offerings and a reasonable price for you, then there is no problem with eating out every single day.
Which generation eats out most
According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, people born between 1965 and 1980 spend the most money on food away from home, which is $3,864 annually. That being said, Generation X eats out the most.
Below you can see a table about all the generations and their spending habits on restaurants and takeaway food. The money spent is annual numbers.
Generation | All consumers | Millennials (1981 and later) | Generation X (1965 – 1980) | Baby Boom (1946 – 1964) | Silent (1929 – 1945) | GI (1928 and earlier) |
Money spent | $3,008 | $2,890 | $3,864 | $2,900 | $1,963 | $1,086 |
How often do you usually eat out
Personally, I eat out once in a couple of weeks on average. However, I use food delivery at least once a week, so I technically eat out 1.5 times per week. This differs depending on a time when sometimes I can dine 4 times a week and sometimes 0.
Conclusion
This article was all about people eating out, and there are big differences between surveys and areas, so I decided to survey people from everywhere and from all ages. The results I got were that people eat out 1,86 per week, on average.
I hope that this article was helpful to you and you now understand how different people tend to eat out in very different ways. Think about your own situation and determine whether you are below or above the average and let me know in the comments below!