A new study has revealed that the average price of a concert ticket in the UK has soared by 237% in the last 20 years, far outpacing inflation and wage growth. The research, conducted by digital marketing agency Dark Horse, found that fans now need to work for nearly eight hours at the median hourly wage to afford the average ticket, more than double the three hours and 14 minutes required in 2005.
The analysis highlighted several stark examples, noting a 357% increase for Oasis reunion tickets, which rose from £32.50 in 2005 to £148.50 in 2025. The most dramatic rise was for Beyoncé, whose tickets surged by 718% from £27.50 to £224.85 in the same period. In contrast, artists like Robbie Williams and Busted have kept their price increases significantly lower, at 83% and 133% respectively.
According to industry production manager AJ Sutherland, the trend is linked to a major shift in how artists tour. “Back in 2005, artists might have played 20 club shows across the UK,” Sutherland explains. “Now they do four arena gigs in major cities and make the same ticket sales in a fraction of the time.” This consolidation, while more profitable for top-tier artists, has been blamed for contributing to the closure of grassroots venues and fewer opportunities for emerging acts.
Read the official press release in full below:
- Concert ticket prices have surged dramatically since 2005, far outpacing inflation and wage growth, Oasis tickets rose 357%, Beyoncé’s by 718%
- Fans now need to work longer to afford tickets – eight hours’ worth of UK median wage is needed to cover cost of Oasis tickets in 2025 vs. just three hours in 2005
- The shift to fewer, larger arena shows rather than many smaller gigs has contributed to higher prices and fewer opportunities for grassroots artists and venues, according to industry insiders
- Some artists, like Busted and Robbie Williams have kept ticket price increases relatively modest
Oasis reunion tickets are more than triple the cost they should be if prices had risen in line with inflation, new research has revealed.
Reuniting after nearly two decades of sibling silence, Oasis became the poster child for price hikes. In 2005, a standing ticket to an Oasis gig cost just £32.50, whereas in 2025 it had risen to £148.50. That’s a 357% increase, a cost inflation alone would not have reached until 2054.
The new study by digital marketing experts Dark Horse analysed concert tickets for a selection of top artists, comparing the price in 2005 to 2025, to see whether the cost of seeing them live had kept in line with inflation or outstripped it, and how the UK’s median hourly wage compares to the cost of tickets.
The analysis found that if the cost to see Oasis live had risen in line with inflation since 2005 then a ticket should cost around £57.20 today, which is a massive £91.30 less than the actual £148.50.
Fans now need to work nearly eight hours at the 2025 median hourly wage of £18.72 to afford a single general admission ticket. Back in 2005, just three hours of labour at the then-average rate of £10.77 would have been enough.
Fans are clearly willing to work off their Oasis tickets, even when the rota jumps from three to eight hour shifts, but is it just that Gallagher cheek? The study explored a number of artists and their pricing trends to find out.
Not just Oasis: Big names, Beyonce prices
Oasis might be on everyone’s minds after the surge pricing fiasco of ’25, but they’re not the worst for it. Beyoncé, for example, has gone from £27.50 per ticket in 2005 to a staggering £224.85 in 2025, a 718% increase, and the largest in the report. That equates to 12 hours of work at the current median wage, not to mention hours of queuing time.
Destiny’s Child tickets once cost fans the equivalent of two and a half hours’ work; today, Beyoncé’s solo tour tickets demand more than six times that in labour.
Of the seven artists that were analysed, Billy Joel has the second most expensive tickets in 2025 behind Beyonce. Fans of the Piano Man are now shelling out £213 per ticket compared to just £51 two decades ago, which is a 318% increase.
Coldplay tickets are in fourth for present day ticket costs. The price to see them live has more than tripled from £35.75 to £112.75, which is a rise of 215%. If the standard rate of inflation had applied to their prices, a standard ticket would cost £62.40.
Greenday rank in fifth place, with a ticket to see them in 2025 costing £94, up from £28.50 two decades ago. Their percentage increase of 230% is actually higher than Coldplay’s.
The average price of a concert ticket has more than tripled since 2005, increasing by an astonishing 237%. It means that someone earning the current median wage of £18.72 per hour would need a full day’s work, 7h56m, to earn the average ticket price of the seven artists. That is more than double the amount needed in 2005, when the average ticket cost was £34.82, and the median hourly wage was £10.77, which meant that a fan could cover the cost of a ticket with just 3h14m of work.
A few artists resist the trend
While most headline acts have seen explosive increases in ticket pricing, a handful of performers have retained their pocket money prices.
In 2005 Robbie Williams’ £45 tickets were the second most expensive of the seven acts, whereas today the £82.50 price tag makes them the second cheapest. His tickets have increased by only 83%, which is the lowest rise, and only just above the rate of inflation.
Back in 2005, a Robbie fan earning the median hourly wage of £10.77 would have needed to work 4h11m to cover the cost of a ticket, while now someone on the median amount of £18.72 would need to work 4h25m – just 14 minutes more.
Busted had the cheapest tickets in 2005, when their farewell tour cost £23.50, and they still have the lowest cost tickets in 2025, when the price stands at £54.70. It is an increase of 133% but still under three hours of work for both years.
Arena economics vs. grassroots decline
The rise in ticket prices isn’t just about fame or greed, says AJ Sutherland, a production manager for acts like Tate McRae and Mura Masa. Instead, he links the trend to the decline of physical music sales, the rise of streaming, and the consolidation of tour venues into arena-centric schedules.
“Back in 2005, artists might have played 20 club shows across the UK. Now they do four arena gigs in major cities and make the same ticket sales in a fraction of the time,” Sutherland explains. “It’s not just more efficient, it’s far more profitable.”
However, Sutherland also highlights the devastating consequences of this shift: grassroots venues are closing, independent artists are losing touring opportunities, and fans are left paying premium prices with fewer options.
Gig price increases, ranked (2005 vs. 2025)
| Artist | Ticket price in 2005 | Ticket in 2025 if price had increased in line with inflation | Percentage increase ’05-’25 | 2025 price | Hours worked on median UK hourly wage to cover cost of ticket (2005) | Hours worked on median UK hourly wage to cover cost of ticket (2025) | |
| 1 | Beyoncé | £27.50 | £48.50 | 718% | £224.85 | 2h33m | 12h00m |
| 2 | Billy Joel | £51 | £86.39 | 318% | £213 | 4h44m | 11h23m |
| 3 | Oasis | £32.50 | £57.20 | 357% | £148.50 | 3h01m | 7h56m |
| 4 | Coldplay | £35.75 | £62.40 | 215% | £112.75 | 3h19m | 6h01m |
| 5 | Greenday | £28.50 | £50.27 | 230% | £94 | 2h39m | 5h01m |
| 6 | Robbie Williams | £45 | £78.01 | 83% | £82.50 | 4h11m | 4h25m |
| 7 | Busted | £23.50 | £41.60 | 133% | £54.70 | 2h11m | 2h55m |
| Average | £34.82 | £60.61 | £132.90 | 3h14m | 7h56m |
The future of live music: a luxury?
The Dark Horse Gig Report 2025 raises serious concerns about the sustainability and inclusivity of live music. As wage growth stagnates and ticket prices soar, attending concerts may become a privilege for the few, rather than the cultural staple it once was.
Music fans, artists, and industry professionals alike must now reckon with the question: Is the joy of live music becoming financially inaccessible?