MarketXLS

Real Government Spending

3.992T for Q2 2026

Real Government Spending came in at 3.992T for Q2 2026, down 0.20% from 4T the prior quarter and 0.02% below its level of 3.993T one year ago. The series has averaged 2.29T since 1947, reaching a record high of 4.015T in July 2025 and a record low of 556B in October 1947.

Source: Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED), St. Louis Fed

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Cite this data: "Real Government Spending," MarketXLS. Data from Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED), St. Louis Fed. marketxls.com/indicators/government-spending

Historical Data

Observation dateValue
April 1, 20263.992T
January 1, 20264T
October 1, 20253.957T
July 1, 20254.015T
April 1, 20253.993T
January 1, 20253.994T
October 1, 20244.004T
July 1, 20243.971T
April 1, 20243.919T
January 1, 20243.887T
October 1, 20233.865T
July 1, 20233.821T
April 1, 20233.774T
January 1, 20233.743T
October 1, 20223.705T
July 1, 20223.668T
April 1, 20223.652T
January 1, 20223.665T
October 1, 20213.693T
July 1, 20213.694T
April 1, 20213.722T
January 1, 20213.766T
October 1, 20203.713T
July 1, 20203.71T
April 1, 20203.774T
January 1, 20203.694T
October 1, 20193.655T
July 1, 20193.626T
April 1, 20193.585T
January 1, 20193.537T
October 1, 20183.488T
July 1, 20183.484T
April 1, 20183.456T
January 1, 20183.432T
October 1, 20173.424T
July 1, 20173.394T
April 1, 20173.39T
January 1, 20173.38T
October 1, 20163.39T
July 1, 20163.384T
April 1, 20163.369T
January 1, 20163.372T
October 1, 20153.341T
July 1, 20153.327T
April 1, 20153.309T
January 1, 20153.277T
October 1, 20143.257T
July 1, 20143.26T
April 1, 20143.238T
January 1, 20143.234T
October 1, 20133.248T
July 1, 20133.273T
April 1, 20133.289T
January 1, 20133.293T
October 1, 20123.324T
July 1, 20123.357T
April 1, 20123.362T
January 1, 20123.38T
October 1, 20113.395T
July 1, 20113.397T
April 1, 20113.446T
January 1, 20113.47T
October 1, 20103.513T
July 1, 20103.535T
April 1, 20103.561T
January 1, 20103.55T
October 1, 20093.565T
July 1, 20093.559T
April 1, 20093.549T
January 1, 20093.498T
October 1, 20083.459T
July 1, 20083.435T
April 1, 20083.408T
January 1, 20083.379T
October 1, 20073.371T
July 1, 20073.344T
April 1, 20073.329T
January 1, 20073.299T
October 1, 20063.295T
July 1, 20063.268T
April 1, 20063.273T
January 1, 20063.274T
October 1, 20053.233T
July 1, 20053.23T
April 1, 20053.22T
January 1, 20053.222T
October 1, 20043.206T
July 1, 20043.208T
April 1, 20043.202T
January 1, 20043.193T
October 1, 20033.179T
July 1, 20033.16T
April 1, 20033.153T
January 1, 20033.124T
October 1, 20023.121T
July 1, 20023.099T
April 1, 20023.083T
January 1, 20023.059T
October 1, 20013.007T
July 1, 20012.958T
April 1, 20012.96T
January 1, 20012.91T
October 1, 20002.865T
July 1, 20002.848T
April 1, 20002.86T
January 1, 20002.832T
October 1, 19992.852T
July 1, 19992.808T
April 1, 19992.775T
January 1, 19992.765T
October 1, 19982.746T
July 1, 19982.729T
April 1, 19982.709T
January 1, 19982.662T
October 1, 19972.672T
July 1, 19972.659T
April 1, 19972.646T
January 1, 19972.613T
October 1, 19962.626T
July 1, 19962.608T
April 1, 19962.608T
January 1, 19962.576T
October 1, 19952.559T
July 1, 19952.586T
April 1, 19952.593T
January 1, 19952.584T
October 1, 19942.575T
July 1, 19942.598T
April 1, 19942.555T
January 1, 19942.542T
October 1, 19932.574T
July 1, 19932.565T
April 1, 19932.561T
January 1, 19932.561T
October 1, 19922.593T
July 1, 19922.594T
April 1, 19922.577T
January 1, 19922.582T
October 1, 19912.56T
July 1, 19912.578T
April 1, 19912.586T
January 1, 19912.575T
October 1, 19902.56T
July 1, 19902.543T
April 1, 19902.539T
January 1, 19902.535T
October 1, 19892.495T
July 1, 19892.483T
April 1, 19892.46T
January 1, 19892.423T
October 1, 19882.434T
July 1, 19882.388T
April 1, 19882.387T
January 1, 19882.38T
October 1, 19872.4T
July 1, 19872.365T
April 1, 19872.362T
January 1, 19872.344T
October 1, 19862.33T
July 1, 19862.34T
April 1, 19862.29T
January 1, 19862.243T
October 1, 19852.226T
July 1, 19852.217T
April 1, 19852.167T
January 1, 19852.12T
October 1, 19842.097T
July 1, 19842.054T
April 1, 19842.038T
January 1, 19841.994T
October 1, 19831.974T
July 1, 19832.006T
April 1, 19831.972T
January 1, 19831.956T
October 1, 19821.937T
July 1, 19821.908T
April 1, 19821.892T
January 1, 19821.885T
October 1, 19811.887T
July 1, 19811.864T
April 1, 19811.87T
January 1, 19811.866T
October 1, 19801.842T
July 1, 19801.842T
April 1, 19801.868T
January 1, 19801.864T
October 1, 19791.837T
July 1, 19791.825T
April 1, 19791.82T
January 1, 19791.802T
October 1, 19781.82T
July 1, 19781.804T
April 1, 19781.787T
January 1, 19781.744T
October 1, 19771.743T
July 1, 19771.747T
April 1, 19771.74T
January 1, 19771.725T
October 1, 19761.71T
July 1, 19761.711T
April 1, 19761.716T
January 1, 19761.735T
October 1, 19751.733T
July 1, 19751.718T
April 1, 19751.686T
January 1, 19751.701T
October 1, 19741.682T
July 1, 19741.674T
April 1, 19741.671T
January 1, 19741.663T
October 1, 19731.633T
July 1, 19731.621T
April 1, 19731.64T
January 1, 19731.652T
October 1, 19721.638T
July 1, 19721.624T
April 1, 19721.656T
January 1, 19721.649T
October 1, 19711.64T
July 1, 19711.652T
April 1, 19711.653T
January 1, 19711.657T
October 1, 19701.681T
July 1, 19701.681T
April 1, 19701.673T
January 1, 19701.693T
October 1, 19691.701T
July 1, 19691.725T
April 1, 19691.721T
January 1, 19691.727T
October 1, 19681.723T
July 1, 19681.721T
April 1, 19681.716T
January 1, 19681.707T
October 1, 19671.677T
July 1, 19671.665T
April 1, 19671.646T
January 1, 19671.653T
October 1, 19661.586T
July 1, 19661.559T
April 1, 19661.518T
January 1, 19661.49T
October 1, 19651.463T
July 1, 19651.435T
April 1, 19651.389T
January 1, 19651.373T
October 1, 19641.375T
July 1, 19641.375T
April 1, 19641.374T
January 1, 19641.361T
October 1, 19631.357T
July 1, 19631.371T
April 1, 19631.313T
January 1, 19631.312T
October 1, 19621.33T
July 1, 19621.321T
April 1, 19621.291T
January 1, 19621.284T
October 1, 19611.26T
July 1, 19611.233T
April 1, 19611.207T
January 1, 19611.204T
October 1, 19601.187T
July 1, 19601.178T
April 1, 19601.15T
January 1, 19601.137T
October 1, 19591.157T
July 1, 19591.167T
April 1, 19591.157T
January 1, 19591.143T
October 1, 19581.154T
July 1, 19581.132T
April 1, 19581.125T
January 1, 19581.098T
October 1, 19571.107T
July 1, 19571.089T
April 1, 19571.08T
January 1, 19571.086T
October 1, 19561.063T
July 1, 19561.037T
April 1, 19561.046T
January 1, 19561.025T
October 1, 19551.025T
July 1, 19551.046T
April 1, 19551.04T
January 1, 19551.05T
October 1, 19541.049T
July 1, 19541.056T
April 1, 19541.079T
January 1, 19541.117T
October 1, 19531.146T
July 1, 19531.149T
April 1, 19531.162T
January 1, 19531.138T
October 1, 19521.103T
July 1, 19521.085T
April 1, 19521.074T
January 1, 19521.039T
October 1, 19511.009T
July 1, 1951958B
April 1, 1951864B
January 1, 1951762B
October 1, 1950689B
July 1, 1950643B
April 1, 1950654B
January 1, 1950642B
October 1, 1949654B
July 1, 1949666B
April 1, 1949662B
January 1, 1949635B
October 1, 1948618B
July 1, 1948596B
April 1, 1948584B
January 1, 1948564B
October 1, 1947556B
July 1, 1947560B
April 1, 1947560B
January 1, 1947561B

About Real Government Spending

What it measures

Real Government Consumption Expenditures and Gross Investment (FRED series GCEC1) measures inflation-adjusted spending by federal, state, and local governments on goods, services, and investment such as infrastructure and defense equipment. The Bureau of Economic Analysis publishes it quarterly in chained dollars. Transfer payments like Social Security are excluded because they are not direct purchases.

Why it matters

Government purchases are a sizable, relatively stable slice of GDP and the direct channel through which fiscal policy adds to or subtracts from measured output. Analysts track the series to quantify fiscal impulse, distinguish defense from nondefense trends, and assess whether public spending is cushioning or amplifying the private sector cycle.

How to read it

State and local spending, the larger share, moves gradually with tax revenues and budget cycles, while federal defense outlays can swing noticeably quarter to quarter. Remember the series counts purchases, not the full budget: transfer-heavy stimulus barely appears here directly. A rising contribution to GDP growth indicates active fiscal support; a flat or negative one indicates consolidation.

Get Real Government Spending in Excel

Pull Real Government Spending directly into your spreadsheet with a single MarketXLS formula - always current, no copy-pasting:

=RealGovtExpenditure()

View the Real Government Consumption Expenditures and Gross Investment formula documentation or browse all 100+ Economic Data functions.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the current Real Government Spending?

Real Government Spending is 3.992T as of April 2026.

What is the all-time high and low of Real Government Spending?

The highest value on record is 4.015T (July 2025) and the lowest is 556B (October 1947).

How often is Real Government Spending updated?

Real Government Spending is published on a quarterly basis, sourced from Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED).

How do I get Real Government Spending in Excel?

Use the MarketXLS Excel formula =RealGovtExpenditure() to pull Real Government Spending directly into any cell, with historical values available for analysis.

Basic info
The value of services produced by government, measured as the purchases made by government on inputs of labor, intermediate goods and services, and investment expenditures.
RegionUnited States
FrequencyQuarterly
Last updatedJuly 30, 2026
Seasonal adjustmentSeasonally Adjusted Annual Rate
UnitBillions of Chained 2017 Dollars

Stats
Last Value3.992T
Latest PeriodQ2 2026
Last UpdatedJuly 30 2026, 10:07
Value Previous Quarter4T
Change From Previous Quarter-0.20%
Value 1 Year Ago3.993T
Change From Year Ago-0.02%
Average Growth Rate2.51%/yr
Record High (Jul 2025)4.015T
Record Low (Oct 1947)556B
Long-Term Average2.29T
FrequencyQuarterly
AdjustmentSeasonally Adjusted Annual Rate
UnitBillions of Chained 2017 Dollars

Annual Averages
20263.996T
20253.99T
20243.945T
20233.801T
20223.673T
20213.719T
20203.723T
20193.6T
20183.465T
20173.397T
20163.379T
20153.314T

Related Indicators
Real Gross Domestic Product
Real Personal Consumption Expenditures
Real Gross Private Domestic Investment
Real Net Exports of Goods and Services
Real Exports of Goods and Services
Real imports of goods and services
Federal Receipts
Federal Net Outlays
Federal Surplus or Deficit
US Federal Debt (Total Public Debt)
Real Private Nonresidential Fixed Investment
Real Private Residential Fixed Investment
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