Alcohol consumption in Great Britain has risen per head of the adult population during the post-war years, more than doubling between the mid-1950s and late 1990s, when it hit double figures for the first time. It has fallen slightly from a peak of 11.6 litres in 2004; periods of slow economic activity in recent years may have contributed to this relative decline (click on the link to download a spreadsheet of consumption trends since 1980 [UK total consumption of alcohol since 1980]). Men consume on average more than twice as much alcohol – mainly beer – on a weekly basis as women, although in terms of amounts drunk, women now purchase more units of wine than men in total. According to research company Nielsen, roughly seven in every ten wine bottles sold in Britain’s supermarkets are bought by women.
This fact is also representative of a long-term increase in the proportion of alcohol purchased from off-licenced outlets and consumed at home rather than in pubs and bars; British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) figures estimate that twice as much alcohol is now bought from off-licenced premises as from pubs and other on-licenced premises. This is thought to be due to the increased affordability of alcoholic beverages from off-licence vendors, relative to the cost of purchasing drinks in pubs and bars.
Resources available on this page:
- Frequently Asked Questions about 'Consumption', with infographics presenting the most up-to-date statistics on the subject
- Factsheets providing an in depth perspective on the subject of 'Consumption'
- Publications, Blogs, and News tagged 'Consumption' for further reading
Frequently Asked Questions
Publications (View all)

Alcohol consumption during the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK – Second IAS briefing
October 2020

Minimum Unit Pricing in Scotland: What we know so far about its effects on consumption and health harms
May 2020
Blogs (View all)
What has 2020 done to the UK’s alcohol consumption?
2nd December 2020 | Colin Angus
Alcohol stats expert Colin Angus trawls through a lot of data to work out Brits’ drinking habits in this exceptional year Read more »
On the strengths and limitations of ‘NoLo’ drinks
9th October 2020 | Lucy Holmes
Lucy Holmes writes about the findings of Alcohol Change UK sponsored research into a growing drinks market Read more »
COVID-19 and alcohol – consumption data strengthens case for ambitious alcohol policy
9th July 2020 | Kalle Dramstad
COVID-19 has put health resilience and preparedness at the forefront of every political debate – How ready were we and our health systems to deal with a public health crisis of this scale? Read more »
News (View all)
Alcohol labelling is failing consumers – AHA UK
New AHA and Alcohol Change UK report has found that a self-regulatory, voluntary system is not working Read more »
UK alcohol stats: Lots of data, little change
Three national datasets paint picture of alcohol-related harms in the UK today Read more »
In Europe, people continue to consume more alcohol than in any other place in the world
A recent WHO report shows that rates of harmful alcohol consumption in Europe have not dropped as expected, even though all countries have signed the European Action Plan to Reduce the Harmful Use of Alcohol 2012–2020 Read more »