Dubliners pay 18 per cent more for the cinema, 11 per cent more for a lady's haircut and marginally more for tobacco and diesel, according to new figures released by the Central Statistics Office yesterday.
The report, the first of its kind undertaken by the CSO, showed services were one of the areas where Dublin customers were paying significantly more than consumers in other Irish cities and towns.
Going on figures from last May, an average cinema ticket in Dublin cost €7.80, which was almost 18 per cent higher than the €6.62 being paid by cinema-goers in other towns and cities around the country. The cost of a lady's wash, cut and blow dry outside Dublin was €28.63, 11 per cent cheaper than the €31.79 paid in the capital.
The survey also revealed that there was a much wider range in prices outside the capital. Average prices for a lady's wash, cut and blow dry ranged from €17.667 to €43.93 outside Dublin compared to a range between €23.21 and €39.17 in the capital.
Cinema tickets in Dublin ranged from €6.83 to €8.50 compared to €5.48 to €7.88 elsewhere.
Differences in motor fuel prices were less dramatic. The good news for Dubliners is that motorists in the capital paid on average 0.6 per cent less for petrol (94.5 cent per litre compared with 95.1 cent) and only 0.3 per cent more for diesel (86.6 cent per litre) than those living elsewhere in Ireland.
Average prices for a litre of petrol in Dublin ranged between 92 cent and 96 cent. Elsewhere the variation was more marked, with prices ranging between 90.4 cent and 98.3 cent.
The difference in average tobacco prices was less marked, with Dublin smokers paying only 0.4 per cent more for a pack of 20 filtered, standard-sized cigarettes (€6.16).
The analysis will be carried out on a six-month basis, according to the CSO, which said the decision to undertake the price comparison was in response to a "number of requests from different interest groups".
Prices of goods and services are determined by factors such as outlet location and size, brand and quality, according to the CSO, who warned that this should be borne in mind when considering price comparisons.