The annual Consumer Satisfaction Index by the Macau University of Science and Technology (MUST) shows a growing preference for eating out in the neighbouring mainland city of Zhuhai.
The survey’s 915 respondents gave Macao eateries an average of 72.3 points out of 100, up 1.1 points on 2024’s index. Zhuhai eateries, meanwhile, earned an average of 78.4 points – an increase of 3, the Macau Post Daily reports.
Value for money was given as the driving factor behind Zhuhai’s rising score. Looser entry-policies between the SAR and Guangdong Province have also stimulated the exodus of Macao diners and shoppers, eager to access Zhuhai’s cheaper priced food and other goods.
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MUST’s index also showed that while Macao and Zhuhai scored the same (73.4 points) for respondents’ satisfaction with clothes shopping, their satisfaction levels with Macao fell by 2 points year-on-year, while satisfaction levels with Zhuhai dropped by just 0.8 points.
The survey was conducted between 17 March and 9 April, and focused on product quality, service quality, value for money, customer complaints and customer loyalty.
Gross domestic product in Macao shrank by 1.3 percent year-on-year in real terms in the first quarter of 2025, a figure the government attributed in part to weakened spending sentiment among visitors. Lawmakers recently voiced concerns for the future of Macao’s small businesses, offering suggestions for ways the government could help them compete with their Zhuhai counterparts – including community consumption schemes.
