Australia’s most expensive coffee is no longer found in Sydney or Melbourne
Sydney and Melbourne are no longer Australia’s most expensive cities to buy coffee in. Instead, Tasmania is proving to be the priciest for your morning brew.
An average cup of barista coffee costs $5.44 in Tassie, which is 75c higher than the national average of $4.69, Hey You and Westpac DataX’s Daily Brew Report states.
Sydney and Melbourne are no longer Australia’s priciest coffee locations. iStock
And while the average price of a cup of coffee has risen 1.65 per cent over the past year, the smallest increase recorded since 2020, coffee prices in Australia have risen by as much as 37.5 per cent since 2020.
Queensland saw the fastest rise in coffee price, copping a 7.8 per cent increase. Victorian coffee price increases slowed, clocking a 1.1 per cent increase, and the state also recorded the most affordable price for an average cup of coffee at $4.61.
Despite this, Australia’s café industry continues to thrive and is now worth an estimated $10.15 billion annually, dropping by only 1.4 per cent over the past 12 months as cost of living pressures continue.
This decline has been explained by fewer customers visiting cafés, and existing customers visiting less often than they once did.
The report also found that customers are increasingly skipping upsizes and there are fewer requests for milk alternatives which typically attract a higher price.
Younger customers aged 18-24 account for 36 per cent of café visits across the country.
Beverage trends such as matcha are proving popular with the age group, with orders increasing by 133 per cent year-on-year.
Café owners are also bracing themselves for the impact of the Reserve Bank’s credit card surcharge ban, which kicks in on October 1.
Younger customers are visiting cafés in increasing numbers for their beloved matcha. iStock
Geoff, owner of Hester’s & June’s Shoppe in Sydney, warned this will drive coffee prices up even further.
“We understand why customers dislike surcharges,” he said.
“But with café operating on tight margins, many will simply need to include those costs in menu prices to keep serving great coffee, food, and experiences.”
Eighty-three per cent of food operators across Australia said they’d noticed a drop in visits over the past year, with half of these expressing concerns for the future of their businesses.
Café owners are bracing themselves for the impact of the Reserve Bank’s credit card surcharge ban. Getty
Two-thirds of operators said they had no plans to change pricing in response to the surcharge ban, treating it as one more cost to manage quietly rather than react to.
For many, avoiding another visible price rise matters more than recovering every dollar.
