5 Monthly Expenses That Have Quietly Nearly Doubled Since 2020

It may seem as though your monthly bills have doubled in recent years, and in many cases, that impression is not far off.

Prices have kept climbing across the board. According to In2013dollars, cumulative inflation since 2020 has reached 30.19%, meaning goods and services cost about a third more than they did in 2020. But how much have specific recurring expenses actually risen? Here are five monthly bills that have doubled, or come close, since 2020, and the reasons behind the increases.

1. Homeowners Insurance

In 2020, the average monthly homeowners insurance premium was $212. It is now $279, according to Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED).

That is not quite double, but it is still an increase of nearly 32%. And these are only national averages. In some parts of the U.S., homeowners insurance costs far more.

Census data shows that 5.3 million households pay more than $4,000 a year for homeowners insurance, or about $333 per month. Premiums are especially high in places such as Florida and Louisiana, where severe weather is a major factor in pricing.

2. Car-Related Expenses

Auto insurance has climbed by an average of 28% over the past six years, based on FRED data. That is still short of doubling, but it is a substantial jump for anyone on a tight budget.

The rise makes sense when you consider how much more expensive cars have become. The average amount financed for new car loans is now just under $42,000, according to FRED, which is roughly $10,000 more than in 2020 and represents a 31% increase.

Then there is gasoline. In early 2020, regular fuel averaged $2.46 per gallon. FRED data puts it at about $4.50 now, after a run-up that reached its highest level since the summer of 2022, when Russia's invasion of Ukraine sent crude prices soaring, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. That is a 63% increase. Much of the pressure on gas prices still comes down to basic supply-and-demand forces.

Put all of those costs together, and many drivers may be spending well over twice as much as they did six years ago.

3. Food

Food prices have risen by nearly 30% since 2020, according to the USDA. If you were spending $500 a month on groceries in 2020, you would now be spending about $650 for the same basket of food.

The steepest single-year increase came in 2022, when food prices rose 9.9%. Supply chain disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic were a major factor. Labor shortages and extreme weather changes have also pushed costs higher.

4. Monthly Subscription Services

A recent DepositAccounts study found that people are spending about 49% more on monthly digital subscriptions. Once inflation is taken into account, that still works out to a striking 19% increase since 2020.

Prices have not risen only because of inflation. Subscription services have also become more expensive as platforms add larger libraries, better features, and new tools. Higher energy costs may be contributing as well.

The services with the biggest price increases are:

• Disney+ (up 116.9%)

• Apple TV (up 107.9%)

• Xbox Game Pass (up 59.8%)

• New York Times (up 59.7%)

5. Student Loans

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act paused federal student loan payments from 2020 until late 2023, giving more than 43 million borrowers temporary relief.

Even with that pause, the Federal Reserve said the average borrower was paying between $200 and $299 per month on student loans in 2020. By comparison, the Education Data Initiative says the average payment is now $434. That amounts to an increase of between 45% and 117%.