Bank of America Report: Alcohol Sales at Bars Trend Upward, While At-Home Drinking Slides

Data from Bank of America credit and debit card spending shows alcohol sales are on the rise at bars while retail purchases continue to dwindle. The outperformance of on-premise sales points to socialization and experience as a key driver in drinking habits.

Since January 2025, alcohol sales at bars have increased by 4 percent year over year. This follows a general downturn in 2024. On-premise purchases remain on their upward trajectory, approaching 5 percent spending growth and nearing pre-2024 levels.

Spending growth at alcohol retailers has generally followed the ebbs and flows of on-premise sales but is consistently in the red. From January 2024 to 2026, expenditures at liquor stores have steadily decreased by roughly 5 percent, including a drastic dip of a 10-percent reduction around the beginning of 2025.

Data from the report suggests that the divergence in sales by site isn’t a result of price differences: On-premise booze costs significantly more than that in stores.

The report reveals another split: As drinkers between 21 and 49 years old pull back, moderate to frequent consumption — which Bank of America qualifies as four to five drinks in one occasion — is hiking among people over 50 years old. Frequent drinkers between 21 to 34 years old dropped by roughly 4 million from 2014 to 2024, according to data from the US Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Across the same period, 2.8 million more people aged 65 and older began drinking regularly.

Gen Zers and Millennials have prioritized fitness expenses, Bank of America’s card data finds. Looped into the fitness category are purchases related to gyms, country clubs, and golf. Year-over-year purchases on fitness activities grew by over 8 percent among Gen Z cardholders and by over 4 percent for Millennials going into 2026. As the report infers, the push toward gyms and country clubs suggests younger consumers’ emphasis on experience and socialization.

In the industry-wide disagreements about younger generations’ drinking habits, Bank of America’s findings underline a middle ground. Gen Z and Millennial aren’t practicing full-blown teetotaling — rather, they’re exhibiting a general sway toward moderation.

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