Inflation has been running rampant across Europe, whether it be through energy costs, food prices or mortgages.

But young music fans say there is another driver of rising cost of living: Live music. 

Concert tickets have surged in price, particularly in the secondary market, to the point where economists are noticing.

Fans are shelling out a fortune for tickets to see the world's biggest music acts, including names like Taylor Swift and Bruce Springsteen who haven't toured for years. And while few doubt the star power of Beyoncé live, until now people weren't factoring her into national inflation figures.

"People are willing to splurge because they know they will get quality content, plus who knows when or if she'll do another tour after this one," said London-based Beyoncé fan Mario Ihieme.

The United Kingdom's recreation and culture prices rose 6.8 percent in the year to May 2023, their fastest in 30 years, with the largest effect from cultural services, "particularly admission fees to live music events."

Event prices in UK inflation data are based on when shows take place, not when tickets are bought. But with different artists performing every month, it's hard to compare one to the other, an Office for National Statistics spokesperson said.

"The (subjective) quality of music artists emphasizes how difficult it is to calculate a 'clean' price increase," said UBS Global Wealth Management chief economist Paul Donovan. "And for UK inflation, the pressures may persist," he added, noting a string of UK gigs by singer Harry Styles in June.

A perusal of ticket-purchasing sites is sobering. On ticket reseller Stubhub, the cheapest seat for a July Taylor Swift show in Seattle is $1,200; tickets for an August Mexico City show cost $500 each.

"I had to get nine phone numbers for three different accounts on Ticketmaster under three different credit cards," said Joel Barrios, a Beyoncé fan in Los Angeles. He spent about $7,000 on three U.S. shows for himself and friends – as well as another $6,650 for several shows in Europe.

Others say they had an easier time. Carolina Candelas saw Beyoncé in Barcelona with her sisters and parents for $101 each. "My sister purchased them in a presale link that Ticketmaster sent her, so I think it was really easy," she said.

But with live music just a subset of overall entertainment costs, which account for a smaller part of consumer spending than housing or food, some questioned the idea that concert prices could have an appreciable effect on inflation.

Andy Gensler, executive editor of Pollstar, a publication that tracks the global concert industry, called it a "ridiculous assertion" that Beyoncé's shows would affect inflation. While ticket prices have increased, he said, mid-year figures haven't shown an appreciable rise since May 2022, when U.S. inflation was 8.6 percent.

With demand far exceeding supply, TD Cowen vice president of equity research Stephen Glagola said prices for tickets on the secondary market had soared to an average 75 percent to 100 percent above face value.

Live Nation Entertainment CEO Michael Rapino said last month that ticket sales had risen 41 percent in the first quarter, with prices up by double digits.

In the UK last weekend, about 150,000 music fans paid $431 for a ticket to June's Glastonbury festival to see Elton John and hundreds of other acts. Beth Cook, a social media director from Leeds in northern England, said her expenditure of $126 a day at the five-day festival was worth it.

She said: "When the pandemic was in full swing, I think everyone was in a really low mood, and we missed out on events like this, where people all come together.

"Now I think with things up and running, the people who can afford to are saving up to come to things like this because they are amazing."

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