Beer prices in Australia have climbed sharply since 2020, with the average pint now costing $13.76 nationally, while Melbourne has emerged as the most expensive capital city for several of the country’s best-known beers.
Data provided by Square shows the average price of a pint has risen from $9.96 in January 2020. Prices have increased by almost $1 every 18 months, although the pace of rises has begun to ease.
A pint of Balter XPA costs an average of $15.70 in Melbourne, the highest price recorded in any Australian city. Melbourne also leads the country for Guinness, at $15.51, Carlton Draught at $13.91, Carlton Dry at $12.86 and Great Northern Super Crisp at $12.95.
Perth is generally the cheapest capital city for those beers. Beer expert James Smith, founder of The Crafty Pint, said the pattern could reflect discounting aimed at building market share in Western Australia.
“That to me suggests [those beers are] trying to do some sort of targeted discounting or trying to break in to the Western Australia market,” he said.
“WA as a whole, in terms of hospitality and the beer production industry, has generally held firm longer than other states did.”
Melbourne beer prices among Australia’s highest
The steepest increases came after pandemic restrictions ended in 2022, when the price of most pints rose by about 10 per cent, according to David Schnabl of Square.
“Most [pubs] held prices for as long as they could, which is why pub beer may have felt like it lagged the grocery aisle in the early inflation years,” he said. “Increases have moderated every year since, but they’ve never reversed.”
The national average for a pint of Balter XPA is now $14.53, while Guinness averages $14.48. The cheapest beer tracked was XXXX Gold, but even that costs an average of $11.24.
“Craft beer was already trading at a premium, but the gap between premium and mainstream has continued to widen. The $10 pint is effectively extinct in this dataset,” Mr Schnabl said.
Great Northern, Australia’s best-selling beer, has recorded the largest increase among the major tap beers, rising 43 per cent from $8.21 a pint in 2020 to $11.73. Guinness has risen by 41 per cent, from $10.25 to $14.48.
Victoria’s pub operators face a range of additional costs, including the mental health wellbeing levy and a payroll tax linked to the repayment of Covid debt for businesses with payrolls above $10 million. Higher land tax, council rates and stricter licensing requirements have also put pressure on venues.
Mr Smith said the popularity of Carlton Draught, Melbourne’s most ordered tap beer, meant some customers continued to buy it despite the cost.
“I reckon there could be an element in Victoria or in Melbourne, people knowing we can charge more because people are going to buy it anyway,” he said.
Stone & Wood Pacific Ale was the most consistently priced beer across the cities, with less than $1 separating the cheapest average price, $14.25 in Sydney, from the highest, $15.23 in Adelaide.
Adelaide residents pay more than people in other cities for Coopers Pale Ale, at $13.81, apart from those in Perth. The measurement of a pint also varies: in South Australia it is 425ml, the equivalent of a schooner elsewhere, while ordering a schooner in Adelaide produces a 285ml serving.
Beer excise adds to pressure on pub prices
Australia has the world’s third-highest alcohol tax rate, with beer excise increasing twice a year in line with inflation. AMP analysis found that beer prices have risen by about 27 per cent in real terms since 2000.
The Federal Government froze excise on draught beer for two years last year, but the measure applies only to tap beer. About 90 per cent of that market is controlled by Lion and Carlton & United Breweries, subsidiaries of Japanese beverage companies Kirin and Asahi respectively.
Independent Brewers Association chief executive Kylie Lethbridge said the freeze would offer only limited relief to smaller producers.
“All the freeze is doing is giving producers a little breathing room to either not increase prices or to absorb the cost. It will not have any impact on the cost and/or price of beer now,” she said.
“While [the freeze] would provide some relief to excise-paying independent breweries, the benefit would predominantly go to the big multinationals.”
Pint prices have risen by 2.7 per cent so far this year, the first increase below 3 per cent since the pandemic. However, Mr Schnabl warned that slower growth did not mean prices would fall.
“Easing isn’t the same as stopping,” he said. “The national [pint price] average could hit $14 around late 2027.”
