Coffee consumption in Australia – which, where when and how much?

Research by mobile POS company Square reveals some fascinating facts about coffee consumption in Australia – who drinks what when in each state and how much they pay for it.

Square, the mobile point of sale company, is celebrating its one-year anniversary of Register – its free and powerful POS app – being available in this country. To mark this milestone, the company has pulled together an analysis of 12 months of coffee sales from Square sellers across the country to reveal trends of coffee consumption in Australia.

Square has crunched the numbers across millions of coffee cups sold to explore what Australia’s favourite espresso beverages are, what the average price is for the most popular brews, and a state by state view of what Aussies are drinking the most of.


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The analysis reveals that:

  • Sydneysiders awake earlier than Melbournian counterparts? Coffee-shop owners in Sydney can start their day earlier than those in Melbourne in order to meet the peak coffee sales time at 8.00 am, in comparison to the later peak coffee sales time of 9.30 am in Melbourne.

Coffee Hit

  • Latte is the most popular type of coffee sold in VIC, QLD, WA, NT – with NSW and TAS favouring cappuccinos.

Coffee - Australian map

  • Queenslanders are paying more for their caffeine hit – customer demand and price can vary dramatically by location, with Latte drinkers in Queensland often paying up to 6% more than those in Victoria.

Coffee - State vs State

Ben Pfisterer, Australian Country Manager for Square, said, ‘Great coffee is something that has quickly become part of Australia’s cultural identity and Square is proud to work with leading coffee bars and cafes in every state and territory since Square Register, our free point-of-sale app, was made available in Australia 12 months ago.’

His assertion that coffee is deeply embedded in our culture is backed up by recent Australian Bureau of Statistics research that showed coffee consumption in Australia is on the rise, with more people drinking coffee – 46% – than tea – 38% – in 2014.

‘The Square Australian Coffee Report is an example of how data can reveal unique insights into industries, and within independent businesses,’he added. ‘The report demonstrates that customer demand and price sensitivity can vary dramatically by location, as seen by Latte drinkers in Queensland who can pay up to 6% more than those in Victoria. We can also see that coffee shop owners in Sydney start their day earlier than those in Melbourne in order to meet their peak coffee sales time.’


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