The Hidden Cost of Convenience

We've living in a convenience economy.

Groceries can arrive in under an hour at your door, dinner kits delivered save you cooking time, Uber gets you home without parking stress, and tap-and-go means you barely touch your physical wallet.

It’s fast, frictionless, and quietly expensive.

Convenience doesn’t just cost more money, it changes the way we spend. We stop comparing, stop planning, and start paying premiums for things we could easily do ourselves.

But while it makes life easier, it also makes spending easier, and that’s where things start to add up.

The price of saving time

A recent CHOICE study compared grocery prices on delivery apps like DoorDash, Milkrun, and Uber Eats against the same baskets bought in-store.

On average, the items (featured below) were around 11% more expensive, and once you add delivery and service fees, the total bill was between 30% and 40% higher.

That means a $50 grocery shop can quietly become $70 by the time it lands at your doorstep. That extra $20 premium, if you shop once a week, adds up to $1,040 per year in additional fees. Yikes.

Other research shows that people who regularly use delivery apps can easily spend hundreds of dollars extra each month once you factor in mark-ups, tips, and service fees.

What feels like the occasional shortcut can start chewing up all your money away from your important goals.

How it adds up

Take something as simple as lunches. If two people each spend $75 a week buying lunch, that’s $150 a week combined, or $7,800 a year. Add in coffees, snacks, and the occasional takeaway, and it’s closer to $9,000.

That’s the quiet cost of convenience. Small, repeated choices that seem harmless in isolation but add up to the cost of a family holiday, a year’s worth of extra super contributions, or several months off a mortgage.

It’s not just delivery apps either. IBISWorld Data shows the ready-made meals and convenience store markets are growing fast, fuelled by demand for quick food and drinks. Those items are often 30–50% more expensive than if you made them yourself.

The bigger picture

Monash University research found that as the cost of living rises, Australians are changing how they spend to save money:

• More than half of shoppers (54%) are now buying cheaper brands, and

• 42% are buying second-hand

Yet even in this environment, spending on convenience continues to grow. CommBank’s Cost of Living Insights report found that food delivery, streaming, and online marketplace purchases are all increasing despite flat wage growth.

We’re cutting back on essentials, but still paying more for ease. Convenience isn’t just a service; it’s become a habit.

One way to think of the cost of convenience is to think of it as a tax. Not one collected by the ATO, but one you pay at your own choosing.

Next time you find yourself with a choice of paying more for convenience, ask yourself:

• Does this genuinely save me time that I’ll use well?

• Or is it just helping me avoid a five-minute inconvenience?

Written by Lachlan Nicolson.