Quantity
How much alcohol do Australians usually drink?
Among Australians who drink alcohol, most (52%) usually have 2 or less standard drinks on a day they consume alcohol.
Source: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). 2022-23 National Drug Strategy Household Survey (NCETA secondary analysis, 2024).
Standard Drink: A drink that contains 10 grams (or 12.5 millilitres) of alcohol.
Please note: Percentages may not tally to 100% due to rounding.
Do men or women in Australia drink more alcohol?
Australian men typically drink more alcohol than women. Men are significantly more likely than women to consume three or more standard drinks on a day they drink alcohol, while women are more likely than men to consume two or less drinks.
Source: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). 2022-23 National Drug Strategy Household Survey (NCETA secondary analysis, 2024).
Please note: Percentages may not tally to 100% due to rounding. Significance is established as p<0.05. Australians who identify as non-binary or a different gender identity were not able to be included in the current analyses due to small numbers.
Standard Drink: A drink that contains 10 grams (or 12.5 millilitres) of alcohol.
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Do younger or older Australians drink more alcohol?
Among Australians who drink alcohol, younger people tend to drink more than older people. Australians aged 18-24 years are generally more likely to consume five or more standard drinks on a single occasion than older age groups. Those aged 60+ years are more likely than younger age groups to have 2 or less drinks per occasion.
Source: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). 2022-23 National Drug Strategy Household Survey (NCETA secondary analysis, 2024).
* Estimate has a relative standard error of 25% to 50% and should be used with caution.
** Estimate has a relative standard error greater than 50% and is considered too unreliable for general use.
Please note: Percentages may not tally to 100% due to rounding. Significance is established as p<0.05.
Standard Drink: A drink that contains 10 grams (or 12.5 millilitres) of alcohol.
Do levels of alcohol in wastewater in Australia vary by geographic location?
The amount of alcohol found in Australian wastewater varies across jurisdictions†.
The Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission reported that the Northern Territory and Hobart had higher mean alcohol consumption. In general, average use of alcohol was higher in regional areas than in capital cities.
Source: Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (2024). National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program: Report 23. Canberra: ACIC.
† This FAQ uses data from the National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program.
Estimated alcohol consumption for April 2024 in litres consumed per day (left axis) and standard drinks per day (right axis) per thousand people^
^ The number of collection days varied from 5-7 days
Source: Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (2024). National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program: Report 23. Canberra: ACIC.
Source: Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (2024). National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program: Report 23. Canberra: ACIC.
† This FAQ uses data from the National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program.