The Household Budget Survey starts with a short preliminary interview, after which questions about the household’s consumption can be answered via an online form or by telephone. In addition, the household’s consumption is monitored over a period of two weeks.
The monitoring period of household consumption - Instructions for using the application
The monitoring includes collection of receipts and marking of purchases without receipts by means of an application downloaded on the phone or a paper notebook and a receipt bag. The time of the 14-day monitoring period is agreed in the preliminary interview.
The application is easy to use - Detailed instructions are provided below:
Download the Household Budget Survey application to your smartphone or tablet according to the instructions provided by your statistical interviewer.
- You can find the application in app stores by searching for “Kulutustutkimus”.
- The application is published by Statistics Finland.
Log in to the application using the login code sent by your statistical interviewer.
- All members of your household use the same login code so that the data you provide can be combined at Statistics Finland to form an overall picture of your household’s consumption.
- Please note: The application view is device-specific. You cannot see purchases entered on other household members’ devices. This ensures the privacy of all participants.
You do not need to log out between uses.
You can record purchases daily or less frequently, according to your situation. Everything you need is available on the application’s front page.
Your tracking period shows the dates agreed with your statistical interviewer for collecting receipts.
From the Save your receipt section you can choose the most suitable method for each purchase:
- Add image: Take a photo of the receipt by allowing the app to use your device’s camera, or select a previously taken photo from your gallery. You can take a photo of the receipt by pressing the Add image button and selecting Take photo. More detailed instructions for photographing can be found in the FAQ section on this page. Finally, enter the details about the place of purchase requested by the application, check the receipt’s total amount, and approve the receipt.
- Enter manually: If your household makes purchases during the monitoring period without receiving a receipt, press Enter manually. Enter the store, product, price and
type of purchase place.
- Add PDF: Upload an electronic receipt in PDF format from your device files by pressing the Add PDF button, selecting the desired file, and entering the requested purchase details.
Selecting the type of purchase place: For shops and service providers (e.g., grocery and clothing stores, hairdressers, cobblers, massage therapists), select Store or online shop. For restaurant and café purchases, choose the most appropriate restaurant type. For purchases not fitting these categories, select Other place of purchase.
Please do not include personal contact details or sensitive health information with your purchase data.
- For example, if your name appears on an online store receipt, you can enter the purchase manually instead of photographing the receipt.
- For medicine purchases, you can enter “prescription medicine” or “over-the-counter medicine” without specifying the product name.
After the receipt collection period ends, confirm that your household’s data has been submitted.
- Open the app once more, add any missing purchases, and ensure all household members have entered their data.
- Then select End collection from the menu that appears automatically when you open the app.
- After pressing the button, the data will be sent to Statistics Finland, and you can no longer add or delete purchase information.
If you have difficulties, you can always contact your statistical interviewer or the Household Budget Survey researchers directly: kulutus.tilastokeskus@stat.fi.