Australia Tops Beer-and-Cigarette Costs at $111.20 as Excise Taxes Drive 89% Decade Surge
Updated
Updated · The Nightly · Jul 18
Australia Tops Beer-and-Cigarette Costs at $111.20 as Excise Taxes Drive 89% Decade Surge
3 articles · Updated · The Nightly · Jul 18
Summary
$111.20 for a beer-and-cigarettes outing made Australia the world's costliest market for the combination, with Melbourne ranked first and Sydney second in Deutsche Bank's 69-city study.
Excise taxes drove the jump: Australia charges A$1.53 per tobacco stick and A$63.75 per litre of pure alcohol, lifting the cost of a smoke and beers by 89% over the past decade.
Those levies are now undermining revenue as illicit tobacco expands, with Treasury expecting tobacco excise to fall to A$3.6 billion in 2026-27 from a A$17.2 billion peak in 2019-20.
The rankings also pointed to a broader cost squeeze: Sydney was the second-priciest city for monthly public transport, while groceries, movies and internet all ranked relatively expensive in Sydney and Melbourne.