Most Music Fans Will Still Pay Above Expectations to See Their Heroes: ‘2025 Ticketing State of Play’ Report

Australians still love going to a show. Though, thanks to the cost-of-living crisis, buying a ticket or paying the bills is a dilemma most of us are now faced with.

Almost three in five (57%) live music fans say they’ve had to decide between attending a gig and covering basic living expenses in the past year, a figure that lifts to nearly two-thirds (64%) among Gen Z, according to the 2025 Ticketing State of Play: Behind the Ticket report, published today, September 2nd.

Now in its fourth year, the report, a project of ticket exchange platform Tixel in partnership with culture marketing agency Bolster, explores how our financial woes and shifting social habits are impacting the way we buy tickets, or choose not to.

Despite the pressures on our wallets, nearly three-quarters (72%) of live music fans say they’d still buy a ticket to see an artist they love, even when the ticket price is above expectations.

Almost four in five (79%) Australians say that mindful of cost-of-living pressures on a daily basis.

Over half of those surveyed (55%) tweaked their ticket buying habits since last year with many buying later – causing promoters to have conniptions – and others buying earlier.

“Each year this research reminds us just how complex, emotional, and social ticket buying can be,” comments Zac Leigh, CEO and co-founder of Tixel. “People are navigating tighter budgets, but they’re also finding creative ways to make live events happen – whether that’s leaning on resale for flexibility, prioritising their favourite artists above all else, or waiting until friends commit before buying.”

Getting punters to spend their hard-earned cash comes down to the talent lineup. More than 90% say the artist is their biggest motivator.

And Australians overwhelmingly back measures like “Michael’s Rule,” with 82% supporting measures to give local artists more big-stage opportunities.

Social media buzz is getting young music fans through the gate, more now than ever before. Nearly two in five (39%) of all live music fans bought tickets to see a live performance after discovering the music on TikTok or Instagram. That figure steeples to more than half of Gen Z (53%).

Alongside the standard pricing, ticketing strategy and consumer behaviour investigations, the report dips into several new themes this year including perspectives on, and the impact to, Aussie artists.

The report captures fresh data from a survey of nearly 3,000 live event attendees, in-depth interviews with consumers across key ticket-buying personas, expert insights and more.

Buying a ticket in 2025, its authors say, “is far more nuanced and complex than it was when we began this report in 2022.”

The 2025 data will be unpacked Wednesday afternoon at Fortitude Music Hall from 4:45pm, for BIGSOUND delegates. Speakers at the session include Seth Clancy (Oztix, Commercial Director). Sylvie Maclean (Tixel, Head of Commercial), Bolster Group’s Paige X. Cho and Untitled’s Jimmy Hennessy.