Beer consumption per person in Zambia
Zambia: Beer consumption per person was 1.19 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year in 2022. ▼ Falling
Latest (2022)
1.19 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year
Change on year
down 7.8%
World rank
107th
of 187 countries
All-time high
1.86 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year
in 1976
All-time low
0.38 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year
in 1961
Years of data
62
1961–2022
Beer consumption per person in Zambia, 1961–2022
Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in Litres of pure alcohol per person per year.
Analysis
Zambia recorded 1.19 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year for beer consumption per person in 2022.
That represents a change of down 7.8% on the previous year and up 45.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, beer consumption per person in Zambia peaked at 1.86 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year in 1976 and was at its lowest, 0.38 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year, in 1961.
Zambia ranks 107th of 187 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 62 years of available data.
Beer consumption per person in Zambia, year by year
| Year | Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 0.38 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | — |
| 1962 | 0.39 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +2.6% |
| 1963 | 0.41 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +5.1% |
| 1964 | 0.41 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 0.52 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +26.8% |
| 1966 | 0.74 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +42.3% |
| 1967 | 0.97 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +31.1% |
| 1968 | 1.2 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +23.7% |
| 1969 | 1.35 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +12.5% |
| 1970 | 1.48 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +9.6% |
| 1971 | 1.6 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +8.1% |
| 1972 | 1.63 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +1.9% |
| 1973 | 1.38 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -15.3% |
| 1974 | 1.14 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -17.4% |
| 1975 | 1.79 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +57.0% |
| 1976 | 1.86 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +3.9% |
| 1977 | 1.37 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -26.3% |
| 1978 | 1.33 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -2.9% |
| 1979 | 1.38 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +3.8% |
| 1980 | 1.36 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -1.4% |
| 1981 | 1.23 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -9.6% |
| 1982 | 1.07 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -13.0% |
| 1983 | 0.93 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -13.1% |
| 1984 | 0.9 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -3.2% |
| 1985 | 0.97 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +7.8% |
| 1986 | 0.97 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 0.86 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -11.3% |
| 1988 | 1.05 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +22.1% |
| 1989 | 1.01 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -3.8% |
| 1990 | 0.74 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -26.7% |
| 1991 | 0.75 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +1.4% |
| 1992 | 0.66 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -12.0% |
| 1993 | 0.89 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +34.8% |
| 1994 | 0.67 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -24.7% |
| 1995 | 0.61 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -9.0% |
| 1996 | 0.64 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +4.9% |
| 1997 | 0.59 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -7.8% |
| 1998 | 0.58 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -1.7% |
| 1999 | 0.69 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +19.0% |
| 2000 | 0.5507 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -20.2% |
| 2001 | 0.5504 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -0.1% |
| 2002 | 0.5134 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -6.7% |
| 2003 | 0.4863 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -5.3% |
| 2004 | 0.4868 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 0.4358 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -10.5% |
| 2006 | 0.4514 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +3.6% |
| 2007 | 0.4419 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -2.1% |
| 2008 | 0.4688 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +6.1% |
| 2009 | 0.4592 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -2.1% |
| 2010 | 0.5891 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +28.3% |
| 2011 | 0.707 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +20.0% |
| 2012 | 0.8175 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +15.6% |
| 2013 | 0.9488 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +16.1% |
| 2014 | 1.08 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +13.6% |
| 2015 | 1.04 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -3.3% |
| 2016 | 1.06 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +2.2% |
| 2017 | 1.14 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +7.3% |
| 2018 | 1.21 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +6.1% |
| 2019 | 1.21 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 1.22 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +1.0% |
| 2021 | 1.29 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | +5.2% |
| 2022 | 1.19 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | -7.8% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 1.19 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.6336 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year, 1.9× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 1.19 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.8569 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year, 1.4× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.7078 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 0.38 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 1.35 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.5 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 1.14 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 1.86 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.03 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 0.86 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 1.36 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.682 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 0.58 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 0.89 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.4845 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 0.4358 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 0.5507 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.9813 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 0.5891 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 1.21 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.23 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 1.19 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 1.29 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year | 3 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
- 104 Israel 1.25 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year compare
- 105 China 1.21 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year compare
- 105 Japan 1.21 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year compare
- 108 Mozambique 1.09 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year compare
- 109 Armenia 1.08 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year compare
- 110 Ethiopia 1.05 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year compare
More economy & growth data for Zambia
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 2.31 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 4.92 Percent per annum (2029)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, annual growth rate 13.19 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.1053 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per capita 138.75 units per person (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, annual growth rate 7.79 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0769 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per capita 101.32 units per person (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, annual growth rate 5.01 % change on previous year (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0464 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is beer consumption per person in Zambia?
- Beer consumption per person in Zambia was 1.19 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year in 2022, according to World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest beer consumption per person recorded in Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 1.86 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year in 1976.
- What is the lowest beer consumption per person recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.38 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year in 1961.
- How does Zambia rank for beer consumption per person?
- Zambia ranks 107th out of 187 countries with data for 2022.
- Is beer consumption per person rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 45.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Zambia data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Beer consumption per person. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Average annual per capita beer consumption, measured in liters of pure alcohol. Beer contains around 5% of pure alcohol per volume so that one liter of beer contains 0.05 liters of pure alcohol. This means that 5 liters of pure alcohol equals 100 liters of beer.