2025 Q3 Hospitality Sales Snapshot

The 2025 Q3 Hospitality Sales Snapshot provides top line sales statistics on the hospitality industry.

In the third quarter of 2025 New Zealand’s hospitality sector recorded $4.05 billion in sales, marking 5.9 per cent year-on-year growth—the strongest quarterly performance in recent times. However, this headline growth masks significant operational challenges for operators, who report that while customer numbers have improved over the earlier quarters of 2025, spending patterns have shifted. Cost pressures also persist across food, rent, utilities, and labour.

Regional performance varied widely, with Nelson sales revenue surging 47.5 per cent over last year, while West Coast, Manawatu-Wanganui, and Gisborne all contracted.

Cafés and restaurants led category growth at 7.3 per cent growth year-on-year, however, pubs and bars declined 0.2% as beverage-led venues face particular pressure from changing consumer priorities.

Improving economic indicators—falling interest rates, easing food inflation, and growing international visitor numbers—should help build momentum into the Summer months, however the sector’s recovery remains fragile.

With data sourced from Statistics New Zealand and the Restaurant Association, the Q3 Report provides relevant data on the state of the hospitality industry.

Selected highlights:

• Total sales for the industry over the 3rd quarter of 2025 were $4.05 billion, representing a 5.9 per cent sales increase over the same quarter a year previous.
• Dollar value of sales for the restaurant and cafe sector for the 3rd quarter of 2025 was $1.98 billion.
• Regionally, revenue growth in the Nelson region was the most significant for the 3rd quarter of 2025 vs the previous year. In dollar value, the region increased from $38.5 million sales in Q3 2024 to $56.8 million sales in Q3 2025. Neighbouring region, Tasman, also recorded revenue growth of 11.2 per cent over the same period the year previous.

The 2025 Q3 Hospitality Sales snapshot includes:

• Quarterly sales data by sector for Q3 2025 (restaurants & cafés; pubs, taverns & bars; catering; food to go; and clubs), showing sales trend over previous year and previous quarter
• Regional outlook for sales for Q3 covering the following regions:  Northland Region, Auckland Region, Waikato Region, Bay of Plenty Region, Gisborne Region, Hawke’s Bay Region, Taranaki Region, Manawatu-Wanganui Region, Wellington Region, West Coast Region, Tasman Region, Nelson Region, Marlborough Region, Kaikoura, Canterbury Region excl Kaikoura, Otago Region excl Queenstown-Lakes, Queenstown-Lakes, Southland Region

Restaurant Association members can download the full free electronic copy of the 2025 Q3 Hospitality Sales Snapshot by ordering for free here. 

If you are not a member of the Restaurant Association, the 2025 Q3 Report is available for purchase to the wider industry for $60.00 +gst. Let us know if you’d like to talk to one of our team about becoming a member, or click here for more information.