These statistics form part of the National Health Survey 2022. More information on other topics of interest from the survey are available on the National Health Survey 2022 page.
Alcohol consumption
Latest release
Contains key statistics and information from survey data about alcohol consumption and its prevalence within Australia
Reference period
2022
Released
15/12/2023
Key statistics
- More than one in four (26.8%) adults exceeded the Australian Adult Alcohol Guideline in 2022
- Males were more likely than females to exceed the guideline (35.8% compared to 18.1%)
- More than one in three (36.1%) young adults aged 18–24 years exceeded the guideline
The consumption of alcohol is widespread within Australia and is consumed in a wide range of social and cultural activities. However, harmful levels of consumption are a major public health issue and are associated with an increased risk of developing chronic conditions, injury, and premature death[1].
Definitions
Adults who exceeded the guideline
More than one in four (26.8% or 5.2 million) adults aged 18 years and over exceeded the guideline in 2022. This includes those who either consumed more than 10 drinks in the last week and/or consumed 5 or more drinks on any day at least monthly in the last 12 months (on at least 12 occasions per year).
- Males were more likely to exceed the guideline than females (35.8% compared to 18.1%)
- Young adults aged 18–24 years were more likely than any other age group to exceed the guideline, with over one in three (36.1%) exceeding the guideline in 2022.
How adults exceeded the guideline
Almost one in five (18.5%) adults consumed more than 10 drinks in the last week. Consumption peaked in later years, with one in four (24.6%) people aged 55–64 years and one in five (21.6%) people aged 65–74 years consuming more than 10 standard drinks in the last week.
One in five (20.5%) adults consumed 5 or more standard drinks on any day in the last year at least monthly. One in three (33.7%) young adults aged 18–24 years consumed 5 or more standard drinks on any day in the last year at least monthly, more than any other age group.
- At least monthly consumption has been interpreted as consuming 5 or more drinks at least 12 times in the last 12 months. For more information see Methodology.
Characteristics of adults who exceeded the guideline
In 2022, adults:
- Born in Australia were more likely to exceed the guideline than those born overseas (33.0% compared to 16.0%)
- Who spoke English as the main language at home were more likely to exceed the guideline than those who spoke any other language (31.2% compared to 5.5%)
- Living in Outer Regional and Remote Australia were more likely to exceed the guideline than those in Major Cities (30.9% compared to 25.6%)
- Living in group households exceeded the guideline, more than those living in any other household type (38.6%)
- Who were employed were more likely to exceed the guideline than either those who were unemployed (30.4% compared to 19.9%) or those who were not in the labour force (30.4% compared to 19.5%)
- Living in areas of least disadvantage were more likely to exceed the guideline than those in areas of most disadvantage (30.6% compared to 21.8%).
- A lower Index of Disadvantage quintile (e.g. the first quintile) indicates relatively greater disadvantage and a lack of advantage in general. A higher Index of Disadvantage (e.g. the fifth quintile) indicates a relative lack of disadvantage and greater advantage in general. See Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA), Australia, 2016 (abs.gov.au).
Average number of drinks consumed when exceeding the guideline
Almost one in five (18.5%) adults consumed more than 10 standard drinks in the last week. Of those who exceeded the guideline:
- Seven in ten (70.6%) adults consumed more than 14 standard drinks in the last week
- Males were more likely than females to consume more than 14 standard drinks (72.1% compared to 66.8%).
One in five (20.5%) adults consumed 5 or more standard drinks on a single day in the last year at least monthly (on 12 occasions in the last year). Of those who exceeded the guideline:
- Two in five (41.8%) adults consumed 5 to less than 7 standard drinks in the last month
- The proportion of males who consumed 11 or more standard drinks in the last month was almost double that of females (29.7% compared to 15.6%).
Self-reported alcohol consumption compared to 12 months ago
In 2022, respondents aged 18 years and over were asked whether the amount of alcohol they usually drink had changed or stayed about the same compared to 12 months ago. Of those adults who consumed alcohol in the last 12 months and exceeded the guideline:
- Six in ten (61.9%) reported that their consumption had stayed about the same
- Over one in four (25.8%) reported decreased consumption
- One in eight (12.4%) reported increased consumption.
- The proportion for Increased compared to 12 months ago has a high margin of error and should be used with caution.
Additional survey notes
This analysis refers to the Australian Adult Alcohol Guideline which is based on guideline 1 of the Australian Guidelines to Reduce Health Risks from Drinking Alcohol. Additional data has been provided in Table 1 of the Data Cubes to assess against the previous 2009 guidelines. See the Methodology for more information.
Data downloads
See the National Health Survey 2022 data downloads for the full suite of available data. Data relating to Alcohol consumption can be found in tables:
- TABLE 1 Summary health characteristics, 2001 to 2022
- TABLE 2 Summary health characteristics, by states and territories
- TABLE 5 Selected long-term health conditions, by health risk factors and health status
- TABLE 6 Health risk factors, by population characteristics
- TABLE 7 Alcohol consumption – Australian Adult Alcohol Guideline 2020, by age and sex.
Footnotes
- Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, ‘Alcohol: overview’, https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports-data/behaviours-risk-factors/alcohol/overview; accessed 15/11/2023.
- National Health and Medical Research Council, ‘Australian guidelines to reduce health risks from drinking alcohol’, https://www.nhmrc.gov.au/about-us/publications/australian-guidelines-reduce-health-risks-drinking-alcohol; accessed 15/11/2023.
Media release
See National Health Survey 2022 media release for more information.
Methodology
Scope
Includes:
- all usual residents in Australia aged 0+ years living in private dwellings.
- urban and rural areas in all states and territories, excluding very remote parts of Australia and discrete Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities.
Geography
The data available includes estimates for:
- Australia
- States and territories
Source
The National Health Survey conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Medications data from the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.
Collection method
Face-to-face interview with an Australian Bureau of Statistics Interviewer.
Linkage to the Person Level Integrated Data Asset.
Concepts, sources and methods
Health conditions are presented using a classification which is based on the 10th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10).