In a new article in Economic History Review, Centre for Urban History and SHOC researcher Bas Spliet and Anne McCants measure the cost of the early modern consumer revolution. Drawing on a quantitative analysis of product and process innovations in Amsterdam, the authors explore their uneven social impact through two distinct sets of probate inventories. The study shows that middle-class consumer goods became significantly more affordable over the course of the seventeenth century, offering a more nuanced perspective on the 'industrious revolution' hypothesis in urban contexts. At the same time, it finds no sustained improvement in the material living standards of the labouring classes despite rising consumption.