Brits spent £27.4bn on alcohol last year
The UK population spent £27.4 billion (US$36.45bn) on alcohol in the off-trade in 2024, according to the latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) consumer trends report.
Of this figure, £7.78bn (US$10.36bn) was spent on spirits.
The total spend was up by 0.8% compared with 2023, while spirits sales fell by 1.1%.
The total alcohol spend nearly matched Covid-19 lockdown levels in 2020, when alcohol sales reached a record-breaking £27.51bn (US$36.63bn).
Spirits sales, however, were up on 2020 levels by 0.4%. 2023 was a record-breaking year for spirits, when off-trade sales totalled £7.86bn (US$10.47bn).
The report also included data for the first two quarters of 2025. For the first quarter (Q1) of the year, total alcohol sales were £12.79bn (US$17.03bn), up 0.7% on the previous quarter. This fell by 0.2% to £12.77bn (US$17bn) in the second quarter.
Spirits seem to be on course for a more positive year, rising by 0.4% in Q1 to £7bn, and again by 0.4% in Q2 to £7.03bn (US$9.36bn).
Despite these near-record spends, the UK spirits industry is calling on the government to scrap alcohol tax rises, which they claim would increase inflation.
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