About 18% of U.S. adults drank alcohol alternatives in the past six months, a survey found

Roughly one in five U.S. adults age 21 and older drank an alcohol alternative in the past six months, according to a new report released Tuesday by Dry Atlas, a market intelligence firm that tracks the category.

The report said 18% of adults 21+ consumed non-alcoholic beer, wine, spirits, ready-to-drink cocktails or THC-infused beverages during that period. Dry Atlas said the finding comes from a national YouGov survey of 1,149 U.S. adults fielded Oct. 14-15. The company also used an online survey of 1,003 alcohol-alternative buyers conducted by Prodege Insights from Oct. 8-16, along with its own product database. Dry Atlas said the YouGov results were weighted to reflect the U.S. adult population 21+, while the Prodege buyer survey was unweighted and describes shoppers in the category rather than the whole population.

The findings point to a market that appears to be growing through overlap with traditional alcohol rather than through replacement alone. Dry Atlas said 93% of buyers of alcohol alternatives also drank alcohol in the same six-month period. Among those buyers, 49% said they use alternatives alongside alcohol, compared with 41% who said they use them instead of alcohol. Another 46% said they have no goal to reduce their drinking.

That matters for the broader beverage business because it suggests non-alcoholic and related products may be expanding the range of occasions for consumers rather than simply taking volume from beer, wine or spirits. For producers, retailers and bars, that could influence how they build portfolios, set prices and decide what to stock on shelves and menus, especially during social occasions when drinkers want more than one option.

The report also found that taste was the main reason buyers gave for choosing the products. Dry Atlas said 35% cited taste first, followed by 31% who said they wanted to avoid hangovers. Physical health ranked lower, at 26%. The result challenges a common assumption that the category is driven mainly by wellness goals. Nearly two-thirds of buyers still described alcohol alternatives as mostly for people who do not want to drink alcohol, even though the survey data showed most customers in the segment also drink regular alcohol.

Participation was much higher among younger adults and city residents. Dry Atlas said 33% of adults ages 21-34 had consumed an alcohol alternative in the past six months, compared with 8% of adults age 55 and older. The share was 28% among people living in cities and 9% among those in rural areas. The company also said parents stood out, with 30% of adults who have a child under 18 at home reporting that they had consumed one of the products, compared with 18% of all adults 21+.

The report suggested there is still room for the category to reach new consumers, but also clear resistance. Dry Atlas said half of U.S. adults 21+ have either already consumed an alcohol alternative or say they are open to trying one. At the same time, about one-third said they would not consider the category. Among adults who know about alcohol alternatives but have not bought them, 33% said they see no point in them and 38% said they would rather have water or a soft drink.

Price emerged as a major issue among existing buyers. In the Prodege survey, 46% said price was the main reason they did not drink alcohol alternatives more often. That finding may be important for beverage companies trying to move the category beyond early adopters, especially if consumers continue to treat these products as an extra purchase rather than a direct substitute for alcohol.

Dry Atlas also pointed to a mismatch between what is on the shelf and what buyers appear to favor. According to the company’s product database, non-alcoholic wine accounted for 28% of products on the market as of Sept. 30, making it the largest subsegment by product count. But in the buyer survey it ranked last across engagement measures among the five subsegments. Non-alcoholic spirits represented 18% of products and led the alcohol-mimicking categories in expected consumption, taste and spending.

Brand awareness in the category appeared to favor large established beverage groups. Dry Atlas said buyers who were asked to name brands without prompts mentioned Heineken about twice as often as any other brand. Athletic Brewing was the only independent company with similar visibility, according to the report. Diageo’s Ritual was named by 4% of buyers and Ghia by 3%.

The report arrives as beverage companies prepare for the year-end holiday season and the annual Dry January period. Dry Atlas said 53% of buyers expect to bring or serve alcohol alternatives at a holiday gathering before the end of the year. It also found that 19% of U.S. adults 21+ plan to avoid alcohol in January 2027, and 41% of those people expect to drink alcohol alternatives during the month.