How much alcohol South Carolina buys
In the most recent year of federal sales data, alcohol sales in South Carolina amounted to 1.92 gallons of pure ethanol per resident aged 14 and older, against a national figure of 2.42 gallons (index 0.79, rank 45 of 51). That is roughly 410 standard drinks per person for the year. Over the past five years per-person purchases have changed by -10.3%.
| Beverage | South Carolina | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Beer | 0.88 | 0.95 |
| Wine | 0.22 | 0.39 |
| Spirits | 0.83 | 1.07 |
| All beverages | 1.92 | 2.42 |
Gallons of ethanol per person aged 14+, most recent year. Source: NIAAA Surveillance Report #124 (apparent consumption from sales and shipments; includes sales to visitors).
Per-person alcohol consumption, South Carolina vs US
Gallons of ethanol per person aged 14+, last 12 years of federal data
Source: NIAAA Surveillance Report #124, Table 4.
Who drinks in South Carolina
| Age group | Drank in past month | Binge drank in past month | Alcohol use disorder (past year) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ages 12-17 Gen Z | 7.4% (US 6.8%) | 4.0% (US 3.7%) | 3.1% (US 3.0%) |
| Ages 18-25 Gen Z | 52.0% (US 48.5%) | 31.5% (US 27.7%) | 14.6% (US 14.7%) |
| Ages 26+ Millennials and older | 53.1% (US 51.5%) | 24.9% (US 21.8%) | 10.6% (US 10.0%) |
| Underage 12-20 Gen Z | 15.1% (US 14.0%) | 9.2% (US 8.1%) | 6.0% (US 5.4%) |
| All ages 12+ | 48.9% (US 47.1%) | 23.8% (US 20.9%) | 10.3% (US 9.9%) |
Source: SAMHSA National Survey on Drug Use and Health, state estimates, two-year annual averages, most recent available. Binge drinking is 5+ drinks (men) or 4+ (women) on one occasion. State estimates pool two survey years, so the US figures here differ slightly from the single-year national report quoted on the homepage.
Adult binge drinking by age, South Carolina
Share of adults reporting binge drinking in the past 30 days (BRFSS, most recent year)
Source: CDC Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, most recent year. Young-adult cells are small in some states; intervals shown on hover.
Teens and young adults
7.4% of South Carolina teens aged 12 to 17 (Gen Z) drank alcohol in the past month, compared with 6.8% nationally (rank 18 of 51). Among everyone under the legal drinking age (12 to 20), 15.1% drank in the past month and 9.2% binge drank (US: 14.0% and 8.1%). Young adults aged 18 to 25 (Gen Z) remain the heaviest-drinking group: 31.5% binge drank in the past month (US 27.7%) and 14.6% met criteria for alcohol use disorder (US 14.7%).
National context: teen drinking is at record lows nationally. The most recent Monitoring the Future survey reports 41% of 12th graders drank in the past year, and Gallup finds 50% of adults aged 18 to 34 drink at all, down from 72% two decades ago. Those surveys are national only.
Alcohol-related deaths
The provisional age-adjusted death rate from chronic liver disease and cirrhosis in South Carolina was 14.8 per 100,000 in the most recent 12 months of provisional data, against 12.7 nationally (index 1.17, rank 19 of 51). A year earlier it was 15.2. Cirrhosis deaths are the most alcohol-sensitive cause of death that NCHS publishes quarterly; they include some non-alcoholic liver disease and exclude alcohol poisonings and crashes.
Source: CDC National Center for Health Statistics, Vital Statistics Rapid Release, quarterly provisional estimates. Provisional counts for the most recent quarters are incomplete and revised each release.
Drunk driving
In the most recent year of federal crash data, 417 people died in South Carolina crashes involving a driver with a blood alcohol concentration of .08 or higher, 40% of the state's 1,038 traffic deaths (US: 30%). 28% of all traffic deaths involved a driver at .15 or higher. Per resident, that is 7.66 alcohol-impaired crash deaths per 100,000 (US 3.51).
| A decade earlier | Most recent year | |
|---|---|---|
| All traffic deaths | 979 | 1,038 |
| Deaths with an alcohol-impaired driver (BAC .08+) | 306 | 417 |
| Share of traffic deaths | 31% | 40% |
Source: NHTSA, State Alcohol-Impaired-Driving Estimates: 2024 Data (DOT HS 813 813). NHTSA imputes blood alcohol levels where tests are missing; alcohol-impaired figures are alcohol-specific and exclude drug impairment.
DUI arrests
Police in South Carolina made 14,190 arrests for driving under the influence in the 12 months ending September 2026, 211 per 100,000 residents (US 272), rank 40 of 51. Liquor-law violations accounted for 4,017 arrests.
Source: FBI Crime Data Explorer, arrests reported by participating agencies covering 100% of the state's population; the rate per 100,000 uses the covered population. Counts are preliminary and revised monthly. The FBI's DUI category covers impairment by alcohol or drugs; drunkenness and liquor-law arrests are alcohol-specific. Some states report zero for offense categories they do not track.
South Carolina compared with the states it borders
| State | Alcohol per person (gal) | Binge drinking (12+) | Alcohol use disorder | Liver disease deaths /100k | Drunk-driving share | Teen drinking |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Carolina | 1.92 | 23.8% | 10.3% | 14.8 | 40% | 7.4% |
| Georgia | 1.92 | 20.7% | 9.4% | 11.7 | 23% | 6.3% |
| North Carolina | 2.21 | 19.4% | 9.7% | 12.6 | 28% | 5.9% |
| United States | 2.42 | 20.9% | 9.9% | 12.7 | 30% | 6.8% |
Methodology and sources
Figures are taken as published from the federal sources below and are not adjusted. "Index" divides the state figure by the national figure. Ranks cover the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Quotable sentences compare South Carolina within the United States, South, South Atlantic, large states by population, license states, and the states it borders; a rank is claimed on survey measures only when the state's confidence interval does not overlap that of the first state outside the claim. Per-capita consumption counts alcohol sold in the state, including to visitors, and NIAAA notes this inflates figures for states such as New Hampshire, Nevada, Delaware, and DC.
- CDC BRFSS prevalence data, binge drinking (_RFBING6), 2024 · data year 2024 · annual (August) · pulled 2026-10-18
- Census Bureau population estimates by state, age, and sex (Vintage 2024) · data year 2024 · annual (June) · pulled 2026-10-18
- FBI Crime Data Explorer arrests by state (DUI, drunkenness, liquor laws) · data year 12 months to 09-2026 · monthly · pulled 2026-10-19
- NHTSA State Alcohol-Impaired-Driving Estimates: 2024 Data (DOT HS 813 813) · data year 2024 · annual (July) · pulled 2026-10-18
- NIAAA Surveillance Report #124, apparent per capita alcohol consumption by state, 2024 · data year 2024 · annual (April) · pulled 2026-10-18
- SAMHSA NSDUH state prevalence estimates, 2023-2024 · data year 2023-2024 · annual (winter) · pulled 2026-10-18
- NCHS Vital Statistics Rapid Release, quarterly provisional estimates (chronic liver disease and cirrhosis) · data year 2025 Q3 · quarterly · pulled 2026-10-18
Download: South Carolina data (CSV) · all states (CSV)