---
title: 'POLL: How Much Do You Spend at Restaurants a Month?'
description: Menu prices at U.S. restaurants are up in the last year 2.7%. MONEY Magazine wants to know how much you spend every month on dining out.
authors:
  - name: Alexandra Mondalek
    url: https://money.com/author/alexandra-mondalek/
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published: '2016-05-18T20:28:14.000Z'
modified: '2020-07-07T11:03:06.000Z'
section: Lifestyle
tags:
  - Budget
  - money magazine
  - Poll
  - restaurants
  - Spending
  - stats
word_count: 168
canonical: https://money.com/poll-restaurant-spending-dining-out/
type: Article
source: structured-blocks
---

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![people eating dessert at restaurant](https://img.money.com/2016/05/160518_poll_diningout.jpg?crop=0px%2C0px%2C2100px%2C1181px&quality=85)

Brunches with best friends, date nights with new beaus, power lunches with your coworkers: when you think about how many times you meet friends out to eat, do you ever think about how much you're spending, too?

In a recent Morgan Stanley survey, Americans indicated they set aside 20% of their discretionary income on dining out. This data coincides with the fact that menu prices at U.S. restaurants are up 2.7% in the last year (compare that to the 0.5% *decrease* in grocery prices.) Factor in that inflation has only increased 0.9% in the last year, and it seems crazy that restaurants are charging more (and have been for 20 consecutive months) for any given dining experience.

Do you budget out your restaurant spending every month? Do you stick to that budget? Money wants to know. Below, tell us whether you're a bargain burger hunter or if your pallet prefers pricier menu items. That is to say, how much do you spend at restaurants in a month?

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