What's the Average Cost for Beer at U.S. Airports?
Travelers, pay up or sober up.
Dallas Love Field and DFW International Airport have some of the most expensive beer in the country among the nation’s biggest airports, where travelers will pay more than $8 for a basic domestic macrobrew such as Budweiser or Bud Light, according to a study from FinanceBuzz.
Dallas Love Field ranks ninth out of the country’s 50 largest airports in the category with a domestic beer costing, on average, $8.32. DFW International Airport ranks just one spot lower at 10th, where a beer will cost $8.30.
Ranking No. 1 was New York City’s LaGuardia Airport, where a brew will cost passengers $12.33, while the cheapest buzz in the country was at Portland International Airport in Oregon, where a beer costs just $4.33 on average.
In fact, all three of the major airports serving New York City are in the top 5. North Texas is the only other metro area with two airports in the top 10.
The average cost across the country is $7.42.
FinanceBuzz compiled the list by polling the price for a beer for at least three establishments in the nation’s 50 largest airports. When Bud and Bud Light weren’t available, the company went with Coors or Miller.
“The average cost for a beer across America’s 50 busiest airports is $7.42,” FinanceBuzz’s study said. “But travelers should plan to shell out at least $8.30 if they want a brew at any of the 10 most expensive airports in the country.”
It’s hard to draw a correlation between what makes an airport more expensive for beer.
San Antonio International Airport is among the five cheapest at $5.83. Houston Intercontinental is the 11th least expensive at $6.52 while Houston Hobby is above the national average at $7.86. Beer at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is slightly below the average at $7.25.
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is the nation’s busiest airport but the 12th cheapest for beer. DFW is the nation’s second busiest, but in the top 10 for most expensive.
Charlotte/Douglas International Airport, American Airlines’ other major hub, is the fourth cheapest at $5.50.
Paying $8.30 for a beer at DFW isn’t too far off from the $9.50 that fans pay at AT&T Stadium during a Dallas Cowboys game, according to Bookies.com.
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