Prague’s Surprising Ranking In the 2016 Beer Price Index

The Czech capital came in first in a couple of categories in the annual index, but not the ones you might expect

Expats.cz Staff Jason Pirodsky

Written by Expats.cz StaffJason Pirodsky Published on 12.04.2017 07:27:35 (updated on 12.04.2017) Reading time: 1 minute

“Cheap beer” is quite often the joking answer expats give to the question, “What made you move to Prague?” A new cost-of-living ranking may have us rethinking that particular response.

Compiled by the GoEuro travel booking site, research for the 2016 Beer Price Index combines data from 70 cities from around the world and compares the average price of local beers between bars and shops, as well as comparing yearly average purchasing and consumption.

Compared to the 2015 review, the prices for this year have changed for multiple reasons, including currency exchange rate fluctuations, domestic inflation and deflation, manufacturers and retailers changing their prices, and changes in domestic tax rates.

Prague is conspicuously absent in the category of Europe’s Top 10 Cheapest Cities to Have a Beer; that honor went to neighboring Bratislava.

This year Prague came in 23rd place on the index with the average price for a 33cl beer (supermarket) given as 1.06 USD (27 CZK); average price for 33cl beer (bar) was given as 4.87 USD (122 CZK)!

In terms of average annual consumption per capita, Praguers topped the list at 18 gallons (68 liters), with the average annual spend per capita listed at $1,279.72 (over 32,000 CZK), putting it at number three on the list of European cities that spend the most on beer.

Those of us who live in Prague and would rather die than spend more than 50 CZK on a pint, know that the numbers should be much lower; most cost-of-living data puts the price of a domestic beer as 35-40 CZK (0.5 liter draft); imported beer 60-70 CZK (0.5 liter bottle).

The beer index sources its bar price from draught beers in major hotel chains worldwide. Perhaps accounting for the astronomical price of a Czech beer? Annual consumption numbers come from the World Health Organization.

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