what state drinks the most alcohol
New Hampshire currently drinks the most alcohol per person in the United States, measured by gallons of ethanol (pure alcohol) consumed per capita.
Quick Scoop: Who drinks the most?
When people ask “what state drinks the most alcohol” , they usually mean per capita —how much alcohol the average adult in a state consumes, not just total gallons. By that standard, New Hampshire sits at the top of recent rankings, with per‑capita alcohol use that’s noticeably higher than the national average.
Several familiar “drinking” states also show up near the top of different lists, including Delaware, Nevada, North Dakota, and Montana, all of which report high per‑capita alcohol consumption. At the same time, huge states like California, Texas, and Florida drink the most overall by sheer volume, simply because they have so many people, even though their per‑person numbers are lower than New Hampshire’s.
By the numbers (per capita)
Here’s a snapshot based on recent public data on gallons of ethanol per adult per year:
| Rank (per capita) | State | Approx. gallons of ethanol per person (latest available) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Hampshire | ≈4.7 gallons per person per year, highest in the U.S. | [1]
| 2 | Delaware | ≈3.5 gallons per person per year. | [1]
| 3 | Nevada | ≈3.4 gallons per person per year. | [1]
| 4 | North Dakota | Just over 3 gallons per person per year. | [1]
| 5 | Montana | Just over 3 gallons per person per year. | [1]
Why New Hampshire tops the list
A few factors commonly mentioned in reports and forum discussions help explain why New Hampshire shows up as No. 1 so often:
- No state sales tax on most alcohol, which can make prices lower than in neighboring states and attract cross‑border buyers.
- Proximity to more populous, higher‑tax states like Massachusetts and Vermont, so some of the alcohol “consumed” on paper may actually be bought by visitors who take it home.
- A long‑running pattern in national health and alcohol datasets where New Hampshire consistently lands near the top in per‑capita consumption.
On forums, people sometimes joke about trunk‑loads of booze heading south from New Hampshire, hinting that official consumption stats may overstate how much locals themselves actually drink.
Other “drinking state” angles people talk about
Different metrics can shift which state “drinks the most”:
- Total gallons overall :
- California, Texas, and Florida top the list because of their huge populations, even though they are not No. 1 per capita.
- Beer‑only rankings :
- New Hampshire also leads the country in per‑capita beer alcohol consumption (ethanol from beer alone).
- Spending on alcohol :
- Some newer analyses find that Alaskans spend the most money on alcohol per adult, which is another way to look at “where alcohol is most popular.”
- Binge/excessive drinking :
- Lists of the “drunkest states” based on binge‑drinking rates often feature Midwestern and Northern states like Wisconsin and North Dakota near the top.
So depending on whether you focus on per‑person volume, total gallons, spending, or binge‑drinking, you can get slightly different “winners”—but New Hampshire is the recurring champion for per‑capita alcohol consumption. Bottom note: Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.