The cities where consumers spend the most on clothes are...
Increases in clothing prices have impacted consumers in some cities more than others.
A new analysis from WalletHub compared the average prices of a men’s dress shirt, a pair of boys’ jeans and a pair of women’s slacks across 100 of the nation’s largest cities and measured those costs against each city’s median household income. Cleveland emerged as the city where consumers spend the most on apparel annually, making up 3.52% of the median monthly household income.
Cleveland was followed by other lower-income cities, with Birmingham, Ala. (3.22%), Detroit (3.09%), Baton Rouge, La. (2.95%) and Toledo, Ohio (2.95%) rounding out the top five.
“In certain cities, a family can expect to shell out close to 4% of the median monthly household income just for a pair of women’s slacks, a men’s dress shirt and a pair of boys’ jeans,” said Chip Lupo, analyst at WalletHub. “In the cities where people spend the most, residents typically face high prices in conjunction with low incomes.”
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WalletHub shared the following insights on the top three:
Cleveland
“A men’s dress shirt, a pair of boys’ jeans and a pair of women’s slacks costs an average of around $120 in Cleveland, which is around 3.5% of the median monthly household income. This high percentage is the result of both high prices and low incomes for residents.
Cleveland has the 12th-most expensive women’s slacks, the 33rd-most expensive men’s dress shirts and the 33rd-most expensive boys’ jeans out of the 100 cities in our study. The city also has the second-lowest median household income in the country, at $40,801 per year.”
Birmingham, Ala.
“People living in the city can expect to spend an average of $124 for a pair of women’s slacks, a men’s dress shirt and a pair of boys’ jeans. That’s over 3.2% of the median monthly household income. This is due in large part to the fact that Birmingham has the third-lowest median household income in the country, at $46,051 per year.
Clothing prices are also quite expensive in Birmingham compared to other cities. Birmingham is the 16th-most expensive city for boys’ jeans, the 18th-most expensive for men’s dress shirts and the 27th-most expensive for women’s slacks out of the 100 cities in our study.”
Detroit
“Buying a men’s dress shirt, a pair of boys’ jeans and a pair of women’s slacks costs an average of around $103. That’s 3.1% of the city’s median monthly household income, and the third-highest percentage in the country.
Detroit is the 52nd-most expensive city for boys’ jeans, the 43rd-most expensive for men’s dress shirts and the 43rd-most expensive for women’s slacks. In addition, the city has the lowest median household income in the nation, at $39,938 per year. Because of the combination of high prices and low earnings, buying clothing takes up a disproportionately large share of Detroit residents’ incomes compared to people in most cities.”
On the other end of the spectrum, high-income cities out west spend the least on clothing relative to income. Gilbert, Ariz. (0.89%), San Jose, Calif. (0.90%), Fremont, Calif. (0.92%), Scottsdale, Ariz. (0.98%) and Irvine, Calif. (0.99%) ranked at the bottom of the list.
“Since clothing purchases can be so expensive, consumers should always ask themselves if a purchase is really necessary,” added Lupo. “They should also consider sales, coupons, buying used, clothing swaps and other ways to reduce the pressure on their wallets.”
