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Consumption disparity in major cities
Tents of the homeless on the sidewalk in Skid Row, Los Angeles
An affluent house in Holmby Hills, Los Angeles, roughly 12 miles from downtown (above)
In economics, the consumption distribution or consumption inequality is an alternative to the income distribution or wealth distribution for judging economic inequality, comparing levels of consumption or spending rather than income or wealth.[1] This is an important measure of inequality as the basic utility of the wealth or income is the expenditure.[2] People experience the inequality directly in consumption, rather than income or wealth.[3]