Keen to woo a new love interest? It'll cost you, with new research finding the average cost of a date in Australia will set you back $125.

And we rank among the 10 most expensive "date night" countries in the world.

A study conducted by dating website Elite Singles ranked the cost of courting in cities across Australia and found Perth topped the list at $138.

Surprisingly, the notoriously costly city of Sydney ranked seventh with $128, while Newcastle was the cheapest of the Aussie cities the study looked at, with an average romantic night out costing $103.

"That means those dating in Newcastle are spending $35 less than those in Perth - that's enough left over for a coffee date the next day," Sophie Watson from Elite Singles said.

A recent report from ING Direct found lovesick Aussies are forking out $12 billion annually on dating.

The booming date industry could be responsible for the hefty amount we pay in the pursuit of happiness, with innovative new services capitalising on the growth.

One recent business to hit the scene is Date Box, a service that mails a swag of date night essentials to subscribers monthly from $28.

And although Australia isn't the most expensive country for passionate outings - that honour went to Norway - it's certainly not the cheapest.

"As well as analysing Australian dating costs, we decided to make a global comparison, and so we examined the average cost of a date night in 25 of the world's most interesting cities," Ms Watson said.

In a ranking of major global cities, Sydney came in 10th on the list - more expensive than a date in Singapore ($117), Rome ($109) or Barcelona ($103).

That's right - a bite to eat, a few drinks, a movie and a cab home in the Harbour City will officially leave you more out of pocket than a beachfront in Spain or a canal-set cuddle and cruise in Italy.

On a global scale, the average cost of a "typical" date - calculated as including a meal, bottle of wine, film and transport - is $115.

Oslo in Norway was crowned most expensive at a hefty $180, followed closely by Tokyo on $170 and New York at $161.

Lovers on a budget will find the cheapest date cities in Bogota, Colombia ($59), Cape Town in South Africa ($62) and Mexico City, Mexico ($68).

AVERAGE COST OF A DATE NIGHT IN 14 AUSTRALIAN CITIES

Perth: $138

Darwin: $137

Dubbo: $132

Melbourne: $130

Cairns: $128

Hobart: $128

Sydney: $128

Toowoomba: $127

Brisbane: $126

Canberra: $126

Geelong: $123

Adelaide: $122

Gold Coast: $107

Newcastle: $103

AVERAGE COST OF A DATE NIGHT IN MAJOR WORLD CITIES

Oslo, Norway: $180

Tokyo, Japan: $170

New York, USA: $161

Stockholm, Sweden: $153

Amsterdam, the Netherlands: $152

London, UK: $148

Hong Kong: $142

Auckland, New Zealand: $137

Paris, France: $133

Sydney, Australia: $128

Toronto, Canada: $124

Singapore: $117

Shanghai, China: $115

Rome, Italy: $109

Berlin, Germany: $105

Barcelona, Spain: $103

Seoul, South Korea: $103

Rio di Janerio, Brazil: $96

Moscow, Russia: $89

Taipei, Taiwan: $89

Nairobi, Kenya: $88

Mumbai, India: $73

Istanbul, Turkey: $72

Mexico City, Mexico: $68

Cape Town, South Africa: $62

Bogota, Colombia: $59