Dry Atlas
↳ Quarterly Report Β· October 2026 Edition

The State of Alcohol Alternatives

Know how American consumers actually buy alcohol alternatives, and what’s on the shelf to meet them. Built on surveys of 2,000+ American consumers and the Dry Atlas Product Database.

Pre-order the October 2026 EditionGet the executive summary

Out Oct. 27  Β·  45 pages  Β·  40 exhibits  Β·  $2,495, backed by our answer guarantee

Who it’s for

Built for beverage decision makers

Founders and operators at emerging beverage brands deciding what to lead with and how to price it. Retailers and distributors building a non-alc set. Investors underwriting a brand in the category. Strategy and insights teams at large beverage companies who need a consumer baseline.

Six findings

What the October data shows

118% of U.S. adults 21+ drank an alcohol alternative in the past six months, and most of them also drank alcohol. Participation is 33% among adults 21–34 and 8% among those 55 and older. (YouGov, n=1,149, Oct. 14–15, 2026)
2Non-alc wine is 28% of products on the market, the largest sub-segment, and last among the five on every engagement measure among its buyers. Non-alc spirits is 18% of products and leads on expected consumption, taste, and spend. (Dry Atlas Product Database, Sept. 30, 2026; Prodege, n=1,003, Oct. 8–16, 2026)
3Buyers drink alternatives for the taste first (35%), to avoid hangovers second (31%), and for physical health fourth (26%). 46% have no goal to reduce their drinking. 65% still agree the category is β€œmainly for people who don’t want to drink alcohol.” (Prodege)
4Inside the category the barrier is price (46%). Outside it, 38% of aware non-buyers would rather have water or a soft drink and 33% see no point in an alcohol-free version; cost is 16%. (YouGov, base of 769 aware non-participants; Prodege)
5Asked to name a brand unprompted, buyers named Heineken roughly twice as often as any other. Athletic Brewing was the only independent at comparable salience. 26% couldn’t name one. (Prodege)
653% of buyers expect to bring or serve an alcohol alternative at a holiday gathering this year. 19% of U.S. adults 21+ plan a Dry January, and 41% of those planners expect to drink alternatives during it. (Prodege; YouGov)
Pre-order the October 2026 Edition
What’s inside

Three sections

Section 1, CategoryNIQ’s read of category dollar sales and growth, then the category at the product level: 3,812 products on the market at Sept. 30, 2026, cut by sub-segment, production method, ABV class, format, and products per brand. A dated chronology of the quarter.
Section 2, Consumer29 exhibits from two October surveys on the seven questions we track every quarter: who drinks alcohol alternatives, why, when and where, how often, how they buy, what holds them back, and what they expect to drink next. Plus unaided brand recall, price tolerance by sub-segment, holiday plans, and Dry January 2027.
Section 3, OutlookWhere supply and demand diverge by sub-segment. Six dated predictions, each with the figure that resolves it. Ten recommendations by reader: four for brands, three for retailers and distributors, three for investors.
Full table of contents and chart list

Executive summary

Section 1: Category. 1.1 The category by dollar sales, 52 weeks ending Sept. 26, 2026 Β· 1.2 The category by product count, as of Sept. 30, 2026 Β· 1.3 Inside the sub-segments

Section 2: Consumer. 2.1 Who is in the category Β· 2.2 Why they are here Β· 2.3 When and where Β· 2.4 How engaged Β· 2.5 How they buy Β· 2.6 Brands Β· 2.7 What holds them back Β· 2.8 Price tolerance Β· 2.9 Where the category is going Β· 2.10 What’s changing Β· 2.11 The season ahead: holiday gatherings and Dry January 2027

Section 3: Outlook. 3.0 What the category data implies Β· 3.1 Predictions for Q4 2026 and Q1 2027 Β· 3.2 Recommendations by reader

Methodology Β· About Dry Atlas Β· Chronology of the quarter

Charts, selected. Dollar sales and growth by segment (1.1) Β· the category by sub-segment and taxonomy (1.2a, 1.2b) Β· types, measures, and products per brand (1.3a, 1.3c, 1.3d) Β· past-six-month consumption of alcohol and alternatives (2.1a) Β· incidence by age (2.1c) Β· 17 reasons to drink (2.2a) Β· reasons by mindset, age, and tenure (2.2b, 2.2c) Β· occasions (2.3a) Β· instead, alongside, or anyway (2.3b) Β· frequency, recency, overlap, and loyalty by sub-segment (2.4a–2.4d) Β· where buyers shop, discovery reach against influence, and monthly spend (2.5a–2.5c) Β· unaided brand recall, top 20 (2.6a) Β· barriers, taste, and availability by sub-segment (2.7a–2.7e) Β· price tolerance by sub-segment (2.8a) Β· expected consumption and functional-ingredient interest (2.9a, 2.9b) Β· the January 2027 baselines (2.10a) Β· holiday gatherings and Dry January 2027 (2.11a, 2.11b) Β· the predictions scorecard (Table 3.1) Β· recommendations by reader (3.2a).

Who built it

From the experts who understand the category

Most of what exists on alcohol alternatives is either a trend piece or a survey run by generalists. The State of Alcohol Alternatives is the category report from analysts who know the category inside and out, combining our national consumer surveys with proprietary data on 4,100+ products.

Prior to Dry Atlas, its co-founders launched America’s first non-alcoholic bottle shop and operated it for five years before its acquisition.

Methodology

How it was built

The national surveyYouGov, n=1,149 U.S. adults 21+, fielded Oct. 14–15, 2026, weighted to be representative of U.S. adults 21+.
The buyer surveyProdege, n=1,003 U.S. adults 21+ who drank an alcohol alternative in the past six months and make or share household purchase decisions, fielded Oct. 8–16, 2026, unweighted.
The Dry Atlas Product DatabaseA hand-maintained record of 3,812 products on the market from 1,093 brands at Sept. 30, 2026, with the distributor, importer, and investor relationships we’ve confirmed.
Category dollar salesNIQ off-premise scan data, 52 weeks ending Sept. 26, 2026, attributed to NIQ and never combined with database counts.
Two samplesThe two surveys are reported separately and never presented as one sample.
Pricing

$2,495 per edition

No subscription required. Enterprise licensing by agreement.

Pre-order the October 2026 Edition

PDF in your inbox on Oct. 27, backed by our answer guarantee.

Answer guarantee. If the report doesn’t answer the question you bought it for, book an hour with our team within 60 days of purchase and we’ll answer it from our proprietary data and category expertise.

Need help deciding? Ask before you buy β†’

PublishedOct. 27, 2026
EditionOctober 2026 Edition, the inaugural State of Alcohol Alternatives
Category dataDry Atlas Product Database as of Sept. 30, 2026; NIQ scan data, 52 weeks ending Sept. 26, 2026
Consumer dataYouGov, n=1,149 U.S. adults 21+, Oct. 14–15, weighted; Prodege, n=1,003 category buyers, Oct. 8–16
Exhibits40
PredictionsSix, dated; four scored in the January 2027 Edition, two in the April 2027 Edition
RecommendationsTen, by reader type
Length45 pages, PDF
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FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Is it national data or buyer data?

Both, kept separate: a YouGov national sample and a Prodege sample of category buyers, never combined in one finding.

Does it cover my sub-segment?

Every consumer exhibit cuts by the five sub-segments (non-alc beer, wine, spirits, ready-to-drink cocktails, THC beverages), and the product-level section cuts the database by style, format, and production method.

What does it replace?

Unscientific customer surveys and what a buyer said at the last show. If you have NIQ or Circana scan data, it sits beside it: the scan tells you what sold, this tells you who bought it and why.

How long does it take to read?

An afternoon. The six findings are on page one; every exhibit is sourced and built to drop into a deck.

What happens after I buy?

The PDF arrives on purchase. If it doesn’t answer the question you bought it for, book an hour with us within 60 days. The January 2027 Edition scores four of this edition’s six predictions and reports what people actually did in Dry January; editions are sold one at a time.

Can my team use it?

Single purchases are per individual for internal use. Enterprise licensing is by agreement; ask before you buy.

The free executive summary

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Six headline findings and the full methodology, free.

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About Dry Atlas

The intelligence non-alc brands use to scale and beverage giants use to innovate

Dry Atlas is the market intelligence company focused on alcohol alternatives.

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