When I started travelling I used to refer to the Big Mac Index to get an idea of how cheap or expensive the city might be.Recently, I’ve found in my maturing years, the cost of beer in a city is now a popular point of reference when looking at the costs of travelling to a city. With this in mind I thought it would be a fun research exercise to find out where I could find the cheapest beer in Europe.
I looked at 35 countries in total.In my research I stumbled upon a handy website called Pintprice.com where visitors submit the cost of beer in their own city. So the price you see there is an average of beer price across the cities in one country. So while this is not the precise indicator of what the cost of beer might be, still offers a rough idea of what prices you can expect.
Based on Pintprice.com , the winner for the cheapest beer in Europe is Ukraine where the average cost of beer is just 49 pence or 58 cents.
So the top eleven most affordable countries in Europe to buy a pint are
- Ukraine £0.49
- Czech Republic £0.71
- Belarus £ 0.75
- Bulgaria £ 0.78
- Slovakia £0.79
- Bosnia Herzegovina £ 0.82
- Serbia £0.85
- Hungary £1.00
- Poland £ 1.25
- Lithuania £1.26
- Belgium £1.27
At the bottom of the post I have the league table of beer prices.
If you are looking for bars where you can find the cheapest beer in each country, here is a little guide to get you started.
Kiev
1. Where to find the cheapest beer/ cider in Ukraine
If you are visiting Kiev, they have a bunch of ‘Euro’ bars along the bustling Khreschatyk Street. With large beer costing €1 and a hot dogs for as little as €1 these bars are super popular with locals, students and backpackers alike.
Bars I would recommend visiting include The Drinkery where you can have beer /wine/ vodka/ liquers and a variety of shots from just 30 UAH which is €0.93 or just £0.78
If you are into cider another Euro bar worth checking out is Bilyi Nalyv
If you are looking for the cheapest places to eat in Kiev, checkout my cheap eats guide to Kiev.
2. Where to find the cheapest beer/cider in Czech Republic
If you are visiting Czech Republic and most likely passing through Prague, there are whole bunch of bars where you can enjoy some very good and cheap beer.
Bar No. 7 in Nove Mesto, Prague has a happy hour between 5 and 6pm where beers cost just 25 CZK or €1.03 or £0.86. Bar 69 (Navrátilova 666, 110 00 Nové Město ) also in the New Town area serves the excellent local Kozel beer ( 0.3 ) from just 25 CZK.
The cheapest beer in Prague I have found is the excellent Hany Bany (VeleslavÃnova 58, 110 00 Staré MÄ›sto ) in the Old Town area- you get a small Staropramen (0.3) on draft for just 22 CZK which is €0.91 or just £0.76 or 35 CZK for 0.5l.
3. Where to find the cheapest beer in Belarus
While it is unlikely many of us will be visiting Belarus soon, if you do manage to make it to Minsk, here is where you can find the cheapest beer in Minsk.
At the People’s Bar in Minsk, you can have a really good beer for as little as 6 rubles ( People’s Bar in Minsk) which is €2. I have been told you can get beer as cheap as 3 rubles which is €1.03 or £0.85 so I will stick with that price for the moment.
4. Where to find the cheapest beer in Bulgaria
You can get a domestic beer in Sofia between 1 and 2lv so €0.80 or around £0.60.
I have yet to visit Sofia or Bulgaria in fact so I can’t vouch for it. I have been told you can grab a beer of Kozel at Bar Road 66 for as little as 3.5lv which is €1.79 or £1.49.
If you are looking for the cheapest places to eat in Sofia , checkout my cheap eats Sofia guide.
Do you think costs are roughly indicative or inaccurate in your experience?
Great to hear your comments and thoughts about my Europe Cheap Beer Index!
PS: If you are visiting Paris, here is a list to the best craft beers places to drink in Paris.
Best beer hotels and beer hostels in Europe
If you are looking for a beer themed accommodation in Europe, here are a few ideas for you!
1. Hotel Weierich – Bamberg, Bavaria
Formerly home to protesters from the 1907 Bamberg Beer War, this historic building now houses a 3-star hotel and restaurant. It offers beer-focused programs by Bamberg’s Germany Beer Academy, including brewing seminars, a nine-beer tasting dinner, and a Beer Taster’s Tour of the city’s breweries. While you’re here, explore the nine breweries within Bamberg’s town walls. Cheers!
2. Hotel Brovaria – Poznan, Poland
Located in Poznan’s glorious Stary Rynek, this 21-room hotel features an onsite microbrewery, offering beer tours, tastings, and house brews like pils, wheat ale, and honey beer. The beer is excellent as well as their food if you are feeling a little peckish. Price of beer is pretty reasonable given the location.
While you’re here: Visit the nearby Lech Brewery for free tours, tastings, and a photo op inside a giant beer can!
3. Circus Hostel, Berlin
With a museum dedicated to David Hasselhoff, their own microbrewery in the basement plus they serve breakfast till 1pm and also the most delicious currywurst pies, Circus Hostel is a hostel like no other in the world. THE place to stay when in Berlin.
|
COUNTRY |
Average Pint Price ( in Euro) |
Average Pint Price ( in Pound) |
|
Bulgaria |
€0.91 |
£0.78 |
|
Belarus |
€0.87 |
£0.75 |
|
Hungary |
€1.18 |
£1 |
|
BosniaHerzegovina |
€0.97 |
£0.82 |
|
Serbia |
€1.00 |
£0.85 |
|
Ukraine( The winner!) |
€0.58 |
£0.49 |
|
CzechRepublic |
€0.84 |
£0.71 |
|
Lithuania |
€1.49 |
£1.26 |
|
Portugal |
€1.92 |
£1.63 |
|
Slovakia |
€0.93 |
£0.79 |
|
Romania |
€1.11 |
£0.94 |
|
Croatia |
€1.95 |
£1.65 |
|
Latvia |
€2.6 |
£2.20 |
|
Estonia |
€1.98 |
£1.68 |
|
Poland |
€1.47 |
£1.25 |
|
Wales |
€2.90 |
£2.50 |
|
Slovenia |
€1.99 |
£1.69 |
|
Austria |
€3.2 |
£2.71 |
|
Scotland |
€3.13 |
£2.70 |
|
N.Ireland |
€3.48 |
£3.00 |
|
England |
€3.48 |
£3.00 |
|
Switzerland |
€5.03 |
£4.26 |
|
Germany |
€2.5 |
£2.12 |
|
Ireland |
€4.5 |
£3.81 |
|
Belgium |
€1.50 |
£1.27 |
|
Spain |
€1.99 |
£1.69 |
|
Greece |
€3.00 |
£2.54 |
|
TheNetherlands |
€1.99 |
£1.69 |
|
France |
€5.9 |
£5 |
|
Finland |
€4.85 |
£4.11 |
|
Sweden |
€5.9 |
£5 |
|
Italy |
€4.5 |
£3.81 |
|
Denmark |
€5.5 |
£4.70 |
|
Norway |
€7.08 |
£6.00 |
|
Turkey |
€2.10 |
£1.78
|
What a brilliant measurement! Don’t think I’ll be going drinking in Norway any time soon though…
Aye-it’s pricey in Norway. Beautiful country still though 🙂
Dont know how you made this ranking, but these figures are inacurate. Average price od beer in a supermarket is (as it stands) :
Germany – 1e
Poland – 1e
Ireland – 2e
Netherlands – 1.4
While in a pub : Poland (1.5), Netherlands ( 5,5 Amsterdam ), Ireland ( 5e Dublin). From my personal experience…
Cheers for the feedback.
The figures are an average of the beer prices from across the whole country.
Even with each country, there can be huge variations- compare beer prices in Berlin and Munich for example.
I’ve taken an average so while it is not accurate, still gives people a rough idea of what to expect.
Beer prices I’ve looked at are what you would spend at a bar also.
Hey. It’s an average of beer prices from across the country so it’s a rough indicator. Can be big variations across a country so again these prices are to be used as a guide.
At the bottom of the list is says “….at a bar or restaurant”.
Anyone been to Bratislava?
Is it a good city for a Stag party?
Think the city exclusively caters to stag parties and no other tourists or humans…
1.92 euro for a beer in portugal is inacurate. Locals drink 25 to 33 cl cups anywhere from 0.5 euro to 1 euro. You will only get prices that high if you go to the fancy tourist bars in downtown Lisbon. It can be even more expensive inside the night clubs though.
Anyway, if you get to Lisbon, feel free to ask the young people where can you find “happy hours”. You will certanly not regret it, as the portuguese beer is just awesome and you will be able to get realy drunk on a budget.
Hey Joao
Thanks for the feedback and the tip. The price of 1.92 is an average of prices across Portugal. Even within cities like Lisbon I know prices can vary. I do enjoy Portuguese beers like Sagres and Super Bock 🙂 Drop by again.
Enjoyed reading your research and intend to do some of my own this year for my 40th with my twin bro and some mates.
I’m trying to find somewhere that is not too expensive to fly to and the beer is cheap. I figure if we drink enough whilst there it will offset the cost of the flight & accommodation….. Any ideas.
p.s. Not Amsterdam, done it 12 times
Hey Nigel
Thanks for dropping by and the question.
I would recommend Poland ( Krakow is great but cities like Wroclaw are cheaper and also beautiful to visit ) or Czech Republic ( out of the historic centre of Prague you can find cheap beer in the suburbs, still cheap compared to prices in UK and other parts of western Europe ) -easy to reach to and the beer there is very good.
Hope that helped. Please subscribe to my RSS feed and come by soon.
In Germany one litre bear costs only 0.58€…one pint is nearly one half of one litre so one pint costs only 0.24€…but we Germans drink much more bear like other european countries so we still spend more money in bear than you ;P
Just look for “Oettinger Original” if you want to drink cheap bear 😀 😀
~ greetings from Germany
Completely untrue. There is no menu in all of Germany where you will find half a liter for anything less than 2 euros. Usually a half liter goes for about 2.50-3.50 euros and a liter is about 6+ euros, which is a far cry from .24 cents and .58 cents respectively, unless you’re living in the 1950s. It’s spelled “beer” by the way, not “bear.” A bear is an animal.
Come to coimbatore navavvor piriru tasmac, and compare the price and location.. you will definitely go mad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
For Poland, £1.25 (6 zlotys) looks about right for local, non-touristy bars.
The cheapest beer I’ve found in Poland (as of Wed 5 Mar 2014) is at the bar called ‘No To CYK’ in the old town of Gdansk. Just 4 zlotys (80p / 1 euro) for a 50cl beer. Same price for large measure of vodka in various flavours.
Enjoy!
Hey Rob
‘No to CYK’ is on my to see list for my next trip to Gdansk…great city.
Hey Norway is great we buy everything in the shop in Sweden, drink home then go out beer in shop in Sweden cost average 1 euro for a 0.5 l
Beer in Slovakia is really incredibly cheap, as you’ve already found out. If you wanna taste some of the best Slovak brands, just give it a try, Slovakia is still an affordable country to visit.
Hope to be visiting Slovakia soon. Heard a lot of great things…
I live in Ukraine and indeed beer here is very cheap compared to other counties. Quality varies from crap till perfect (ussualy 20% more expensive)
Hey Nikolai
Country I am yet to visit but would love to. Hopefully soon I’ll be tasting that cheap and not so crap beer soon 🙂
Kash
Cheapest beer in Serbia is 50rsd or like 0.42 euros :/
Your data is wrong mate
Changes from place to place but my prices are out of date for sure- need to update it