‘The death of the shout': Aussies ditch round-buying at the pub

News.com.au

21 hours ago

The Aussie pub shout – the sacred social tradition of 'buying a round' for your mates – has long been a staple of Australian night-life.
But new data on how Aussies are spending their money reveals that this beloved custom is on the way out.
Rising living costs mean a full round for a table can now easily top $100, while changing drinking habits and technological advances are encouraging punters to skip the shout altogether.
Instead, Aussies are increasingly choosing to split the bill or simply pay for their own drinks.
The latest research comes from Tyro Payments, a payments platform company, and revealed a huge generational spending divide is unfolding at the pub.
Using data collected from over 1000 participants and more than 30 million food and drink orders, the report reveals that nearly half of Aussies (49 per cent) have changed their drinking habits due to cost pressures, with one in 10 cutting out alcohol altogether.
The report also found that the traditional 'shout' is dying, as Aussies are now 35 per cent less likely to buy rounds for their friends than they were last year.
Instead, they're opting to order via QR codes and sidestep the age-old question of 'whose turn is it?'
The trend is most prominent among millennials, with 42 per cent saying they'd use a QR code to order drinks specifically to avoid a shout.
Among Gen Z, 38 per cent said they use QR codes for the same reason, while 37 per cent of Gen X and 33 per cent of Baby Boomers are also embracing this tech-driven approach.
The ease of sending a quick bank transfer to a mate has also made it simpler than ever to settle up the bill without the awkwardness of unpaid drinks or unclaimed rounds.
Brian Sarkis, General Manager of ArtHouse Hotel in the Sydney CBD and co-owner of East Village Hotel in Darlinghurst said he's noticed this shift playing out in his bars.
'At East Village, we mainly see customers buy individual drinks when they're with a group of friends,' he told news.com.au.
'Even for birthdays or celebrations, they are more likely to just buy the birthday person a drink rather than shout the whole table.'
Mr Sarkis says he's noticed that people are still keen to come out and enjoy a fun night, but they're definitely being more conscious about their spending.
'Buying a round for six people in today's market, that's a big hit to the wallet. The whole 'shouting' thing has pretty much disappeared,' he admits.
'The QR system has eliminated both the generosity and the guilt of round-buying. No one has to be the generous one, but no one has to be the tight one either. Buying someone a drink used to be a gesture, now it's just more efficient to order your own.'
He's also noticed that people are much more strategic about their spending now.
'They'll calculate exactly what they want to spend before they even sit down,' he explains. 'The days of 'let's see how the night goes' spending are pretty much over. People have a budget and they stick to it.'
This trend isn't unique to Australia. A recent article in The New York Times reported that a similar thing is happening in the US.
Gen Z in the States are far less likely to open up a bar tab than they were a few years ago, preferring instead to swipe their cards after every drink, no matter how many rounds they end up having.
While bar tabs are more common in American culture than in Australia, the reasons for this change in spending habits remain the same.
Having to pull out your card each time you buy a drink serves as a reminder that you're spending money, which helps to curb overspending amid cost-of-living pressures.
Gen Z is also favouring 'one-and-done' transactions, mainly using Apple Pay and tapping their phones for a purchase, as they would for a coffee at a cafe.
So, it appears that not only is the Aussie shout coming to an end, but mindless pub spending in general.