Queenstown voted top coffee spot out of Australia/NZ

Queenstown has beaten both Sydney & Melbourne in a trans Tasman ranking of locations to find the best coffee.

To crown the top coffee hotspots of Oceania, multiple data points were analysed, including over 2.37 million customer reviews on Google Maps and over 4,000 Instagram posts, to create an index.

All data was adjusted for city population sizes and the resulting scores—coffee shops per person, coffee shop customer ratings, number of customer reviews, and Instagram posts per person —were scaled to a 100-point system, providing a comprehensive look at the ultimate caffeine hotspots of Oceania that goes far beyond the number of coffee shops in the area.

Queenstown tops Remitly’s Coffee Capitals index, with an almost perfect score of 97.8 out of 100. The South Island town has a modest number of cafes according to Google Maps (112); however, its highly rated and reviewed coffee shops contribute to its high overall score—with each cafe in the town averaging over 400 reviews and an impressive rating of 4.47 out of five.

The research reveals that Queenstown ranks impressively high for coffee culture, earning an almost-perfect score of 98 out of 100. While this South Island gem may have a modest number of cafés (112 according to Google Maps), what it lacks in quantity, it makes up for in quality. Each café averages over 400 reviews with an impressive rating of 4.47 out of five — far surpassing other cities on the list. Among Queenstown’s top-rated spots is ‘Life’s a Grind’, a popular coffee van on Stanley Street that boasts glowing five-star reviews served out of a reupholstered van.

Following in second spot is Coffs Harbour, which is home not only to several popular coffee shops, but also several roasteries where caffeine enthusiasts can enjoy local produce, and learn more about the coffee-making process. With an average rated score of 4.23 out of five according to customer reviews, the coffee scene is clearly popular with locals and visitors alike, with one five-star review describing the cafe culture in Coffs as “just hitting different”.

In third spot is the Gold Coast, with an overall score of 60.7 out of 100 in the Coffee Capitals index, and boasting 379 shops to serve the over 645,000 population. With many of the popular cafes overlooking the beautiful sandy beaches in the area, coffee lovers can enjoy their drinks with a view too. Cairns and the Sunshine Coast follow to make up the top five hotspots coffee enthusiasts should consider visiting, with respective scores of 60.5 and 57.2 out of 100 in the index.

Surprisingly, despite being known for its coffee culture, Sydney misses out on a top 10 position, ranking in 12th position overall with a score of 46.5 out of 100. The city scored slightly less on average coffee shop ratings than other locations analysed, however still offers almost 280,000 cafes for people to explore and visit.

Of the top 20 cities for coffee lovers, three-quarters (15 cities) are located in Australia and just five are New Zealand-based. Interestingly, apart from Queenstown, which dominates the top position with a score of 97.8, no other major New Zealand city is in the top 20.

Taupō, a territorial authority district in New Zealand with a population of just 42,600 completes the top 10 with a score of 49, while Rotorua ranks in the 13th spot, and Nelson and Timaru occupy 19th and 20th positions.

Here's the full results: