When Harold Macmillan told the British people that they had never had it so good, he knew what he was talking about. With rationing only recently ended families might not have had that much in 1957, but they certainly knew how to enjoy what they had.

A comparative study of spending habits then and now shows that although, 50 years on, we earn more, own more and have the world at our feet thanks to cheap air travel, our lives are not nearly as much fun. Burdened by big mortgages, council tax and endless bills, today’s families have to work harder in order to enjoy the simplest things of life.

Once 1950s families had paid the rent, they concentrated on spending their income on smoking, drinking and having tea out at the local café. Cigarettes were a mainstay of the weekly shop – the second most important item on the list, accounting for almost 6 per cent of weekly spending despite being a fraction of the price that they are today.

Eating out was also popular. “Meals away from home” were the third biggest item of weekly spending, accounting for a greater slice of household spending than they do today.

And 1950s families were no strangers to alcohol. Beer and cider ranked tenth on the household spending list. Once spirits were added, families were spending 3 per cent of their money on alcohol, a greater proportion than we do today.

The findings are part of the Office for National Statistics’ Family Spendingreport, a one-off study to celebrate 50 years of the Family Expenditure Survey, which was introduced by the Government to chart changes in consumption after the end of rationing in 1954.

It shows that, despite our illusion that we live our lives in far more luxury than our grandparents, the harsh reality is that today’s families are ground down by big mortgages and high rents, which now eat up a fifth of the weekly household budget, compared with just 8.7 per cent 50 years ago.

Once insurance, maintenance and water are added in, housing accounts for one quarter of all our spending.

But the dominance of factory farming, supermarket price wars and cheap food has also had a major impact on the home. In 1957, 30 per cent of spending each week went on food compared with just 15 per cent today.

Basics such as milk and chicken featured in the Top Ten items in 1957. These days, with some chickens costing as little as £5 for two, poultry does not even feature in the Top 50 items of our household expenditure.

Butter, eggs and sugar still enjoyed luxury status and each had their own separate entry in the top 50 of 1957.

But today’s essentials – mobile phones and televisions - don’t even figure.

We have so many more possessions that household insurance is today a major financial headache. All our spending on new technology also means bigger phone bills, mobile phone bills, car insurance and satellite and cable rental, which all feature prominently in 2006’s shopping list.

Motoring and travel costs have risen from 8 per cent of the household budget in 1957 to 16 per cent in 2006, largely thanks to rising car ownership; three out of four households now own at least one vehicle.

Even gambling makes an appearance in 2006, with more spent at the bookies, both real and virtual, than on fresh vegetables.

Only when these bills are out of the way can today’s families begin to plan their foreign holidays, which rank at 37 on the list of Top 50 items.

And the report shows that, because of our increased wealth, we are now much more divided than in the 1950s when few families had very much at all.

Nearly every household in the richest tenth of the population now has a computer and internet connection compared with just 21 per cent among the poorest.

Explore UK News

• Crime News

• Education News

• Health News

• Science News

• Scotland News

Times Recommends

• The day they dropped a bomb on the banks
• Methodist minister sent herself hate mail
• Japanese insect to be used to fight knotweed