Would You Pay £7.50 for a Pint of Guinness?

Why It Matters

Escalating pint prices threaten pub profitability and could accelerate closures, while consumer price sensitivity may reshape brand strategies across the hospitality sector.

Key Takeaways

• Advocate Arms may raise Guinness to £7.50 per pint.
• Diageo cites £0.04 cost increase per draught pint.
• UK average pint price reached £5.21, rising steadily since 1987.
• Pubs face pressure from energy bills, rates, and VAT.
• Some breweries cap drinks at £5 to avoid waste.

Pulse Analysis

The UK’s pub landscape is confronting a new pricing dilemma as iconic brands like Guinness become more expensive to serve. Historical data shows a steady climb from under £1 in the late 1980s to just over £5 today, reflecting broader inflation and supply‑chain pressures. Diageo’s modest £0.04 cost increase per draught pint masks the cumulative effect on margins, especially for independent landlords who must balance supplier demands with customer willingness to pay. This environment forces operators to reconsider pricing structures and product mixes.

Landlords such as Matthew Horsfield are turning to direct customer feedback to gauge tolerance for higher prices, while industry bodies like CAMRA warn that persistent hikes could push many pubs toward closure. Government interventions, including a 15% business‑rate discount, aim to alleviate some cost burdens, yet critics argue that VAT, energy bills, and National Insurance remain prohibitive. The tension between maintaining brand integrity and preserving footfall is prompting a strategic reassessment across the hospitality sector.

In response, some breweries are proactively limiting drink prices to £5, accepting lower margins to avoid waste and retain patron loyalty. This price‑capping trend signals a shift toward value‑focused offerings, potentially reshaping consumer expectations and competitive dynamics. As the market adapts, operators will need to leverage data‑driven pricing, diversify revenue streams, and advocate for policy support to sustain the traditional pub experience amid rising costs.

Would you pay £7.50 for a pint of Guinness?

Simon Spark and David McKenna, East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire · 2 hours ago

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A pub landlord is asking customers if they would be happy paying £7.50 for a pint of Guinness.

The Advocate Arms in Market Rasen, Lincolnshire, currently charges £6 but said it was considering a price increase due to a “significant rise” from the brand.

“We wanted to see what customers thought and what they would like to see, and weigh up our options,” said landlord Matthew Horsfield.

Diageo, the distributor for Guinness, said it had kept price increases to a minimum, reflecting rising costs in the supply chain, and that retail pricing was “entirely at the discretion of the retailer/wholesaler”.

Landlord Matthew Horsfield described the price rise as “frustrating”

Horsfield, 42, added:

“Guinness seems to be one of the major brands that just keeps increasing prices yearly.

It starts from the top, so your suppliers get those increases and then it gets fed all the way to us.

It’s really frustrating. You’re constantly trying to weigh it up and balance it out. It’s a lot of money for a pint at any pub nowadays.”

Diageo said Guinness was priced very competitively in the marketplace, with the average cost in the UK being £5.21 a pint. Following the increase, due to take effect in April, it said the impact per draught pint for customers would be approximately £0.04.

The company added:

“Like all businesses, Diageo must carefully manage the rising cost of doing business through regular pricing review of our products.

This increase allows Diageo to continue investing in our brands to bring high‑quality stout and spirits to market, and to support investment in initiatives to drive mutual growth for our customers across the hospitality sector.”

Data from the Office for National Statistics shows that in 1987 the average price of a pint of draught lager was under £1, by 2000 it had risen to £2, and by 2025 it was £4.83.

In January, the government announced pubs and music venues in England would be given a 15 % discount on their business rates from April after a backlash against November’s Budget.

Ash Corbett‑Collins, chairman of the Campaign for Real Ale, said pubs were facing a “gigantic fight every day to keep their doors open”.

“The ever‑increasing price of a pint means supporting your local is becoming unaffordable for many pub‑goers, but for publicans the only choice is to raise prices or close their doors for good,” he said.

Corbett‑Collins called for urgent government action:

“They [landlords] must be given support with unrelenting energy bills, increases to National Insurance contributions must be reversed; VAT on food and drink, as well as duty charged on pints in pubs, must be lowered.

Pubs desperately need permanently lower business rate bills if they are to thrive, not just survive.”

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Simon Spark/BBC

Heather Dempsey, director of Shadowbridge Brewery, has set a £5 limit on drinks

Heather Dempsey, director of Shadowbridge Brewery in Scunthorpe, has set a limit of £5 for drinks, meaning some brands are not stocked.

“We can’t justify it,” she said. “At the prices we would have to buy them we’d have to sell them at maybe £7 a pint – possibly more.

This would mean we would sell less of it and, therefore, we would waste more because it’s not selling. It’s a bit of a vicious cycle, really.”

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How much is too much?

The BBC asked people in Barton, North Lincolnshire, which has a number of pubs, how much they would pay for a pint and whether £7.50 was too much.

Josh Kelly, 26

“You see a lot of IPAs that are priced at £6.50 to £7. I wouldn’t want to pay more than £5.50, maybe £6 depending on what you’re drinking.”

“The maximum I would pay for a pint would be £6.”

Carol Jacklin

“I am totally shocked, no wonder pubs are closing.”

Reverend Kathy Colwell

“That’s an extortionate amount for a drink, but then everything has gone up, hasn’t it?”

James Toomey, 81

“£4.50 and above would be too much to pay for a pint.”

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