Adelaide Cost of Living
What it costs to live in Adelaide: consumer prices, wages, jobs, earnings and property, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Prices in Adelaide rose 5.0% in the year to Sep 2026, against 4.3% nationally: the 3rd fastest rise of 8 capital cities. The all-groups index stood at 105.0.
Valid: Sep 2026 · Source: ABS Consumer Price Index (6401.0) · Index base: September 2025 = 100
Adelaide CPI over time
All-groups CPI index for Adelaide against the national index. A higher index means prices have risen more since September 2025. Hover for detail.
Price change by category in Adelaide
Annual change for each CPI category, year to Sep 2026.
- Automotive fuel +26.3%
- Electricity +21.2%
- Utilities +16.2%
- Private motoring +10.8%
- Transport +10.6%
- Insurance +8.2%
- Water and sewerage +7.5%
- Housing +7.3%
- Beef and veal +6.0%
- Medical and hospital services +5.4%
- Milk +4.7%
- Gas and other household fuels +4.5%
- Take away and fast foods +4.3%
- Rents +4.0%
- Alcohol and tobacco +4.0%
- Meals out and take away foods +3.4%
- Food and non-alcoholic beverages +2.9%
- Restaurant meals +2.6%
- Bread +2.4%
- Communication +2.3%
- Poultry +1.3%
- Motor vehicles +0.8%
- Cheese +0.8%
- Pharmaceutical products −0.2%
- Eggs −0.2%
- Coffee, tea and cocoa −0.6%
Inflation in each capital city
Annual change in the all-groups CPI for each capital city, fastest rise first.
| Rank | City | Annual change | Change, to scale |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Hobart | +5.3% | |
| #2 | Darwin | +5.2% | |
| #3 | Adelaide (this city) | +5.0% | |
| #4 | Canberra | +4.7% | |
| #5 | Perth | +4.5% | |
| #6 | Brisbane | +4.4% | |
| #7 | Sydney | +4.3% | |
| #8 | Melbourne | +4.0% |
Wages in SA
The Wage Price Index measures the change in hourly rates of pay. SA against the national index, and wage growth less Adelaide inflation.
Employment in SA
Unemployment rate and labour force participation for South Australia.
What SA earns
Full-time adult average weekly earnings for South Australia. ABS Cat. 6302.0.
Housing in SA
Mean dwelling price and affordability for South Australia. ABS Cat. 6432.0.
Mean dwelling price by state
- New South Wales $1,304,900
- Queensland $1,130,600
- Western Australia $1,123,700
- Australian Capital Territory $981,700
- South Australia $979,600
- Victoria $918,400
- Tasmania $733,200
- Northern Territory $614,400
Other capital cities
Prices, wages, jobs and property for each of the other capitals.