NZ Drug Trends Survey: MDMA prices crash, ketamine goes mainstream and digital drug deals grow

The annual survey provides a snapshot of drug trends in Aotearoa New Zealand via an anonymous online questionnaire, completed by more than 8,800 people nationwide. The survey asks respondents about drug use patterns, market prices, views on drug policy, support services, barriers to seeking help and harm reduction initiatives.

The second release of the 2025 NZDTS findings on ketamine, MDMA/ecstasy, LSD/psychedelics and digital drug markets, show increasing digital drug buying via social media and the darknet, highlighting the growing popularity of these channels for drug supply. Social media purchasing of methamphetamine and cocaine has continued to increase since 2020.

Dr Robin van der Sanden of the NZ Drug Research Team at Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa Massey University’s SHORE & Whariki Research Centre, says these trends likely reflect growing supply.

“We’ve seen large-scale increases in meth consumption and availability in New Zealand over the last year, with cocaine also increasingly available across the country. These changes are paralleled by an increasing diversification of retail market channels consumers can use to access these drugs, including digital markets, like social media.”

Dr van der Sanden says it’s important to understand darknet markets and social media represent different parts of the drug supply chain, with social media being largely used for smaller, retail transactions, while darknet markets often involved larger, wholesale volumes.

The NZDTS also reports decreases in the price of MDMA powder/crystal. After adjusting for inflation, the price has declined from $301 per gram in 2017/18 to $159 per gram in 2025, representing a 47 per cent drop.

These price falls likely reflect recovery in global MDMA manufacture and supply following the disruption of the pandemic and the establishment of new manufacture locations and supply channels like digital drug markets, which have played a role in facilitating the price declines for MDMA and LSD tabs since reporting began in 2017/18.

Dr van der Sanden says the availability of MDMA/ecstasy has looked increasingly stable in recent years in New Zealand.

“Nearly three quarters of 2024 and 2025 respondents who used MDMA/ecstasy reported it’s ‘easy’ or ‘very easy’ to obtain in their region, compared to just over a quarter reporting the opposite. Similarly, the proportion of respondents reporting LSD/psychedelics are ‘very easy’ to get has been trending upwards since 2020.”

While MDMA availability remains high, MDMA use and purchasing is infrequent compared to methamphetamine, suggesting lower levels of dependency and harm. Dr van der Sanden says MDMA/ecstasy is one of a growing range of ‘party drugs’ available in Aotearoa.

“The ‘party drug’ scene has undergone a great deal of change in the last few years, with alternatives like cocaine and ketamine becoming more available across the country, meaning that people increasingly have access to a wider range of drug types, and are able to pick and choose the one’s they prefer.”

This NZDTS release also provides the first insight into recreational use of ketamine, highlighting its increasingly availability in the local ‘party drug’ scene. Dr van der Sanden says ketamine – a dissociative drug with legitimate medical uses as an anaesthetic – is increasing in availability. 2025 price data indicates it’s one of the more affordable ‘party drugs’, sitting at a national average of $200 per gram.

“Ketamine has emerged globally in recent years, and seems to be carving out a niche for itself alongside other ‘mainstream’ illegal drugs like MDMA, cocaine and methamphetamine, which suggests it’s becoming an established drug in its own right.”

The 2025 findings show that ketamine use varied substantially by region, with higher use in Otago and Wellington.

“International evidence suggests recreational ketamine use tends to be concentrated among younger age groups. Respondents who use ketamine also reported a younger median age compared to users of other drug types, and a higher proportion reported they were a student, which helps to explain why ketamine use might be higher in regions with high student populations.”

The NZDTS is conducted by the NZ Drugs Research Team at Massey’s SHORE & Whariki Research Centre. The Team consists of Professor Chris Wilkins, Associate Professor Marta Rychert, Dr Robin van der Sanden, Dr Jose Romeo and Thomas Graydon-Guy.

The 2025 NZDTS was completed by 8,883 New Zealanders, with surveys conducted between 9 May and 6 Oct 2025.

The research bulletins are available on the NZDTS website.