Australian men usually drink more than women on a day they have alcohol. Women are more likely than men to drink two or less standard drinks per occasion (63% vs 43%).
Australians aged 18-24 years generally consume more standard drinks on a day they drink than any other age group. Those aged 70+ years are most likely to have 2 or less standard drinks per occasion.
Adult Men Drink More than Women
Almost 58% of adult men report drinking alcohol in the past 30 days compared with 49% of adult women. Men are more likely to binge drink than women. Approximately 21% of men report binge drinking, compared with 13% of women.
Drinking patterns
In all countries, more males than females were current drinkers, with the highest percentages being in Australia. The ratio of female to male drinkers was 1:1.15 in Australia, 1:1.32 in the US and 1:3.84 in Korea.
Daily alcohol use – aged 14 years and older
The percentage of Australians who drink alcohol on a daily basis decreased significantly from 6% in 2016 to 5.4% in 2019. In South Australia in 2019, 5.8% reported drinking alcohol daily; men were 3.5 times more likely to drink daily than South Australian women.
Gnowangerup has been crowned the booziest town in Australia, with one-third of its adult residents necking two or more alcoholic drinks every day.
Alcohol is an intrinsic part of Australian culture and it plays a central role in most people's social lives. Heavy drinking is seen as acceptable in almost all social situations, from weddings to sports matches, and even at funerals or baby showers.
Drinking is arguably a big part of Australian culture. In Australia, it's strongly connected to social situations; you'll struggle to find a party or gathering that doesn't have alcohol in one form or another. It's common to go out for drinks to relax after work, or to celebrate over a toast with friends and family.
Women have less body water than men of similar body weight and achieve a higher concentration of blood alcohol level than men, meaning absorption takes place more quickly with longer lasting effects.
Share of craft beer drinkers Australia 2020, by gender
In a 2020 survey conducted in Australia about the profile of craft beer drinkers, 70 percent of respondents were male. The craft beer drinker profile has remained relatively unchanged over the past few years in terms of gender.
Ukrainian women came in first, with more than four drinks a day. British men, meanwhile, came 62nd in the male category, drinking a similar amount to British women. The findings, published in the Lancet, were part of the most comprehensive global study on alcohol to date.
Epidemiological evidence suggests that nearly 20% of adult males have alcohol abuse or suffer from alcoholism-related complications. On the other hand, only about 5–6% of adult females are alcoholic or abuse alcohol on the regular basis (Devaud et al., 1999).
Looking at the amount of alcohol consumed per person aged 15 years or older, the Seychelles is in first place with around 20.5 litres of alcohol drunk per person per year, according to Our World in Data; studies show that young male peer groups primarily drink high amounts of alcohol in the Seychelles.
The alcohol beverages most commonly consumed by Australians are bottled wine (34%), regular strength beer (19%), and bottled spirits/liqueur (15%).
Espresso martinis are the most popular cocktail in Australia, and for good reason. They are a delicious combination of espresso, vodka, and coffee liqueur that can quickly energise any night out.
The Espresso Martini has come out on top as Australia's most popular cocktail according to new research by soft drink and mixer producer Fentimans.
Who binge drinks? Binge drinking is most common among younger adults aged 18–34. Binge drinking is more common among men than among women.
Excessive drinking could cause an individual to develop more of an "apple" body shape, where a higher level of body fat is distributed in the abdominal region.
A BAC reading can also be affected by a person's body fat percentage. This is because fat holds much less water than muscle, and so it will absorb less alcohol from the blood.
The consumption of alcohol is widespread within Australia and entwined with many social and cultural activities. However, harmful levels of consumption are a major health issue, associated with increased risk of chronic disease, injury and premature death.
Australians have been named the heaviest drinkers in the world in a survey after spending more time drunk in 2020 than any other nation. The international survey found Australians drank to the point of drunkenness an average of 27 times a year, almost double the global average of 15.
Russia and Australia have the highest prevalence of alcoholism dependence overall, with 2.61 per cent and 2.58 per cent, respectively. According to the World Health Organization, US has the lowest rate of alcohol dependence with only 1.93 per cent.
Alcohol use
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are less likely to drink alcohol than other Australians. But those that do drink are more likely than other Australians to: drink at dangerous levels – both over a lifetime and on a single occasion.
Approximately 84 per cent of Australians drink alcohol at least once in a 12-month period, compared to 83.9 per cent in the UK and 68.9 per cent in the US.