Brisbane is the most expensive place to build in Australia, according to the 2025 Global Construction Market Intelligence report.

The report by Turner and Townsend says it now costs $5009 per square metre to build in Brisbane. Project director Tiffany Emmett says Construction costs in Brisbane rose 4.4% in 2024, and are expected to increase a further 5.5% in 2025. She says the Brisbane cost increases are exacerbated by a growing pipeline of major infrastructure projects, including the Cross River Rail, Brisbane Metro, hospital upgrades and new Olympic infrastructure. Sydney is the next most expensive city with average building costs of $4866 per square metre, followed by Perth ($4497), Melbourne ($4242) and Adelaide ($4133).

Master Builders Australia says building costs have increased by 40% in Australia in the past five years. Breaking down the cost of construction to different property types, Master Builders says the average cost of construction in Brisbane for a house is about $2500 per square metre and that the average time to build a home has blown out to almost 12 months from 10.3 months. ABS data shows the average build cost of a new house in Australia has risen by almost $100,000 in the past two years.