Spirits consumption per person in United States

United States: Spirits consumption per person was 4.01 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year in 2022. ▼ Falling

Latest (2022)
4.01 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year
Change on year
up 5.0%
World rank
17th
of 187 countries
All-time high
4.28 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year
in 1969
All-time low
2.35 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year
in 1997
Years of data
63
1960–2022

Spirits consumption per person in United States, 1960–2022

01234196019912022

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

United States recorded 4.01 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year for spirits consumption per person in 2022.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 5.0% on the previous year and up 35.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, spirits consumption per person in United States peaked at 4.28 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year in 1969 and was at its lowest, 2.35 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year, in 1997.

United States ranks 17th of 187 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 3.7 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 3.26 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 4.28 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 10
1970s 4.14 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 4.01 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 4.24 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 10
1980s 3.43 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 2.91 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 3.94 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 10
1990s 2.52 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 2.35 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 2.91 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 10
2000s 2.6 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 2.42 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 2.76 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 10
2010s 3.07 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 2.8 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 3.37 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 10
2020s 3.82 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 3.63 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 4.01 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year 3

Countries ranked near United States

  1. 14 Hungary 4.21 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year compare
  2. 15 Mauritius 4.18 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year compare
  3. 16 Poland 4.12 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year compare
  4. 18 Seychelles 3.86 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year compare
  5. 19 Philippines 3.81 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year compare
  6. 20 Laos 3.77 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year compare

See the full ranking of 187 places →

More economy & growth data for United States

All data for United States →

Frequently asked questions

What is spirits consumption per person in United States?
Spirits consumption per person in United States was 4.01 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 spirits consumption per person recorded in United States?
The highest recorded value was 4.28 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year in 1969.
What is the lowest spirits consumption per person recorded in United States?
The lowest recorded value was 2.35 Litres of pure alcohol per person per year in 1997.
How does United States rank for spirits consumption per person?
United States ranks 17th out of 187 countries with data for 2022.
Is spirits consumption per person rising or falling in United States?
Over the last ten years it is up 35.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this United States 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 Spirits consumption per person. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Spirits consumption per person
Unit
Litres of pure alcohol per person per year
Source
World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
187 places, 10,599 data points, 1960–2022
Last refreshed

Spirit consumption per person, measured in liters of pure alcohol per year. Spirits are distilled alcoholic drinks and include gin, rum, whisky, tequila and vodka.