Dubliners pay more for goods, CSO figures show

Dubliners pay more to go to the cinema, have a pint and eat salmon for dinner than their regional cousins, according to a price comparison published today by the Central Statistics Office.

Alcoholic drinks in Dublin pubs are on average 5 per cent higher in Dublin that outside the capital

Out of 73 items sampled by the CSO, 39 were more expensive in Dublin, and 34 cost less.  In twenty-seven of the items sampled, the price inside and outside Dublin was within a 3 per cent range. The average additional price paid by Dublin residents across all 27 items is 3.5 per cent.

The study also confirms what every pub-goer already knows and feels in their wallets: Dublin pubs are more expensive.

Alcoholic drinks in Dublin pubs are on average 5 per cent higher compared with hostelries outside the capital. The greatest price difference was in the cost of a half-pint of larger which is, on average, 14.6 per cent more expensive in Dublin.

However, motorists in Dublin do significantly better than their regional cousins when it comes to petrol prices, paying 1.4 per cent less for a litre of unleaded. Diseal prices are 1.5 per cent lower in Dublin.

In November, 12 of the 18 meat products sampled were more expensive in Dublin. Four out of five fish products were more expensive in the capital.

The price differences for fruit and vegetables were less stark, with just 5 out of nine products in this category more expensive in Dublin.

However, in the remaining food categories, including; milk, cheese, butter, eggs, bread, flour, sugar, tea and spaghetti, 15 of the items were cheaper in Dublin. Large eggs were an exception and are more than 6 per cent more expensive in Dublin.

More expensive in Dublin

• Going to the cinema is 20 per cent more expensive
• Hairdressing costs for women costs 19 per cent more
• Salmon is 17 per cent more expensive
• Half pint of larger is 14.6 per cent expensive

Cheaper in Dublin

• A fillet of pork is 17 per cent cheaper
• White flour is 16 per cent cheaper
• Spaghetti is 12 per cent cheaper
• Milk is 10 per cent cheaper