The Australian tradition of “shouting a round” for your mates at the pub is being quietly poured down the drain. Cost-of-living pressures and the rising price of alcohol mean the beloved custom has simply become too expensive for many.
Nearly one in three Australians (27 per cent) admitted they have stopped “shouting” food or drinks with friends in the past 12 months, a new Finder survey has found. A further 17 per cent have admitted to cutting back on buying rounds to save money.
Finder money expert Rebecca Pike said the pub tradition had now become a “luxury” that some could no longer afford if it meant not being paid back.
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“Money is tight for a lot of Aussies right now so even something as simple as buying a round can feel like a financial stretch,” she said.
“Many people just don’t have the spare room in their budget or the confidence they’ll be paid back later.
“Sometimes the favour isn’t returned, with some mates consistently avoiding or delaying returning the shout.”
Around 28 per cent of people said they were continuing to shout their friends as usual, while another 28 per cent said they “never” shouted their friends in the first place.
The survey of 1,010 people found women (32 per cent) were more likely than men (21 per cent) to have cut back on shouting rounds when out with mates.
The rise of QR codes, thanks to the pandemic, has also helped people avoid the Aussie tradition. Separate research from payment platform Tyro earlier this year found 42 per cent of Millennials had used QR codes to avoid a shout. This was followed by 38 per cent of Gen Z, 37 per cent of Gen X, and 33 per cent for Baby Boomers.
The downside of this, of course, is you can often incur an additional surcharge for paying through QR codes on top of your bill.
Pike said shouting a round was no longer a no-brainer for Aussies.
“Not everyone gets around to paying their share. For someone living paycheque to paycheque, that $40 or $50 round could mean going without something essential later in the week,” she said.
The Australian government has announced it will freeze the indexation on draught beer for two years.
The amount of alcohol excise charged for beer and spirits usually increases twice a year in February and August in line with inflation. This has been happening for decades.