When comparing the cost in the same month (August) over the previous three years, in 2019 the average was £3.71, 2020 was £3.80 and in August this year, the figures found the price on average was £3.88.
The latest increase is similar to that of 2019 to 2020 where in the former, the average cost of a pint of draught lager was £3.71 and, in the latter, £3.80 – a difference of 9p and percentage-wise, up by 2.4%.
Price increase history
How much has the average cost of a pint risen over the past 10 years?
August 2021 – 2.1% rise to £3.88
August 2020 – 2.4% rise to £3.80
August 2019 – 1.6% rise to £3.71
August 2018 – 1.7% rise to £3.65
August 2017 – 2.9% rise to £3.59
August 2016 – 1.2% rise to £3.49
August 2015 – 2.4% rise to £3.45
August 2014 – 2.1% rise to £3.37
August 2013 – 3.1% rise to £3.30
August 2012 – 3.2% rise to £3.20
August 2011 – 4.7% rise to £3.10
Should the price increase by the same amount over the next 12 months, a 2.1% rise would mean the average cost of a pint will be about £3.96.
ONS figures revealed the price has steadily risen when looking at the data over the past decade, with the biggest incremental increase was from August 2010 to August 2011 – a rise of 14p equating to just under 5%.
The smallest rise was from August 2015 to August 2016 where the price increased by just 4p – a percentage increase of just over 1%.
Looking ahead
This comes after night-time economy adviser and operator Sacha Lord predicted the price of a pint will rise by 25p, in line with the 7.5% VAT increase to cover the overall losses felt by operators.
The cut, from 20% to 5%, came into effect from 15 July 2020 and was set to end on 31 March 2021. However, from 1 October 2021, the rate increased to 12.5%. until 31 March 2022.
