MILAN – New research from Remitly, a trusted provider of financial services that transcend borders, reveals the coffee capitals of Australia and New Zealand, with Queensland being revealed as the top destination that coffee-lovers should be visiting. To crown the top coffee hotspots of Oceania, multiple data points were analysed, including over 2.37 million customer reviews on Google Maps and over 4,000 Instagram posts, to create an index.
All data was adjusted for city population sizes and the resulting scores—coffee shops per person, coffee shop customer ratings, number of customer reviews, and Instagram posts per person —were scaled to a 100-point system, providing a comprehensive look at the ultimate caffeine hotspots of Oceania that goes far beyond the number of coffee shops in the area.
Top 20 best destinations for coffee lovers in Australia and New Zealand
Queenstown tops Remitly’s Coffee Capitals index, with an almost perfect score of 97.8 out of 100. The South Island town has a modest number of cafes according to Google Maps (112); however, its highly rated and reviewed coffee shops contribute to its high overall score—with each cafe in the town averaging over 400 reviews and an impressive rating of 4.47 out of five.
Following in second spot is Coffs Harbour, which is home not only to several popular coffee shops, but also several roasteries where caffeine enthusiasts can enjoy local produce, and learn more about the coffee-making process. With an average rated score of 4.23 out of five according to customer reviews, the coffee scene is clearly popular with locals and visitors alike, with one five-star review describing the cafe culture in Coffs as “just hitting different”.
In third spot is the Gold Coast, with an overall score of 60.7 out of 100 in the Coffee Capitals index, and boasting 379 shops to serve the over 645,000 population. With many of the popular cafes overlooking the beautiful sandy beaches in the area, coffee lovers can enjoy their drinks with a view too. Cairns and the Sunshine Coast follow to make up the top five hotspots coffee enthusiasts should consider visiting, with respective scores of 60.5 and 57.2 out of 100 in the index. Surprisingly, despite being known for its coffee culture, Sydney misses out on a top 10 position, ranking in 12th position overall with a score of 46.5 out of 100. The city scored slightly less on average coffee shop ratings than other locations analysed, however still offers almost 280,000 cafes for people to explore and visit.
Of the top 20 cities for coffee lovers, three-quarters (15 cities) are located in Australia and just five are New Zealand-based. Interestingly, apart from Queenstown, which dominates the top position with a score of 97.8, no other major New Zealand city is in the top 20. Taupō, a territorial authority district in New Zealand with a population of just 42,600 completes the top 10 with a score of 49, while Rotorua ranks in the 13th spot, and Nelson and Timaru occupy 19th and 20th positions.
| Rank | Destination | Country | No. of coffee shops | Customer reviews | Avg. coffee shop rating | Final score (/100) |
| 1 | Queenstown | New Zealand | 112 | 44,762 | 4.47 | 97.8 |
| 2 | Coffs Harbour | Australia | 149 | 42,804 | 4.23 | 66.4 |
| 3 | Gold Coast | Australia | 379 | 117,894 | 4.42 | 60.7 |
| 4 | Cairns | Australia | 172 | 40,065 | 4.26 | 60.5 |
| 5 | Sunshine Coast | Australia | 271 | 49,283 | 4.40 | 57.2 |
| 6 | Shepparton | Australia | 106 | 17,296 | 4.23 | 57.0 |
| 7 | Melbourne | Australia | 1,127 | 325,105 | 4.37 | 55.0 |
| 8 | Mildura | Australia | 66 | 15,465 | 4.34 | 52.3 |
| 9 | Brisbane | Australia | 883 | 167,782 | 4.42 | 49.3 |
| 10 | Taupō | New Zealand | 70 | 30,644 | 4.36 | 49.0 |
| 11 | Adelaide | Australia | 574 | 114,003 | 4.37 | 47.4 |
| 12 | Sydney | Australia | 1,340 | 279,046 | 4.35 | 46.5 |
| 13 | Rotorua | New Zealand | 111 | 38,657 | 4.43 | 46.5 |
| 14 | Ballarat | Australia | 161 | 41,818 | 4.19 | 46.4 |
| 15 | Hobart | Australia | 228 | 47,222 | 4.37 | 46.3 |
| 16 | Hervey Bay | Australia | 117 | 28,469 | 4.29 | 46.1 |
| 17 | Launceston | Australia | 182 | 37,267 | 4.31 | 45.0 |
| 18 | Newcastle | Australia | 281 | 48,313 | 4.34 | 44.9 |
| 19 | Nelson | New Zealand | 143 | 24,582 | 4.46 | 44.7 |
| 20 | Timaru | New Zealand | 85 | 24,238 | 4.40 | 43.6 |
Ryan Riley, VP of Marketing for EMEA and APAC at Remitly, commented: “Anyone considering a move or visit to Australia or New Zealand will likely already be aware of the thriving coffee culture and café scene in both countries. With espresso-based brews at the heart of every menu, these nations offer incredible coffee that rivals even Italy’s best. Beyond exceptional coffee though, the shops and cafes dotted around the region provide the perfect opportunity for new residents of an area to establish a routine, meet new people, and sample some of the finest local produce the region has to offer.
Coffee shops here aren’t just about getting a caffeine hit, they allow connection to a community and are just one part of what it means to live life as an Aussie or Kiwi. We hope our data will help inspire people to explore the best coffee shops in their area, especially independents that might need some extra support this summer.”
To find out which cities in Australia and New Zealand top the list of coffee capitals click here.
Methodology
The number of coffee shops, reviews, and average review scores were analysed using Google Maps by searching for coffee shops and cafes in and around the given cities. We analysed over 2.37 million customer reviews on Google Maps.
To find out how many Instagram posts about coffee were present across the countries, we reviewed 110,414 posts from the #coffee hashtag, isolating 4,193 from Australia and New Zealand. This smaller dataset was then analysed to find which towns and cities were posting about coffee the most.
Population numbers for each city were sourced from https://worldpopulationreview.com.
All data was pooled together and transposed into scores out of 100, where 100 is the highest value in the country. These scores are calculated as follows:
Coffee Shops Per Person Score:
Number of coffee shops per person (city population).
Coffee Shop Rating Score:
The average rating for a coffee shop in that city. The average rating of any establishment included in our study on Google Maps is 4.11, which is considered “zero” for this score. i.e. If the average score of coffee chops in a city is 4.11 or lower, it gets a 0 on this score.
Coffee Shop Reviews Score:
The average number of reviews per coffee shop in the city.
#Coffee Posts Per Person Score:
The number of Instagram posts to #coffee per person (city population).
About Remitly
Remitly is a trusted provider of digital financial services that transcend borders. With a global footprint spanning more than 170 countries, Remitly’s digitally native, cross-border payments app delights customers with a fast, reliable, and transparent money movement experience. Building on its strong foundation, Remitly is expanding its suite of products to further its vision and transform lives around the world.
