Berlin: Alcoholic beverages are cheaper in Germany than many of its European neighbors, figures from the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) released on Monday for “Dry January” show. Consumption remains high despite declining, and health experts say the only safe level of alcohol is none, while higher taxes could reduce use.
According to Deutsche Welle, in October 2025, alcohol prices in Germany were 14% below the average for the EU’s 27 member states. Finland had by far the highest prices from a sample of 10 European countries, with alcoholic drinks costing 110% more than the EU average. Only in Italy are alcoholic drinks even cheaper across other European countries included, with prices 19% below the EU average. In stark contrast, Finland’s consumers had to pay more than twice the EU average, with Denmark and Belgium following at 123% and 113% of the average price, respectively.
The rate of alcohol consumption in Germany remains high, with 11.2 liters (around 3 gallons) of pure alcohol drunk per person aged 15 or more in 2022, according to the World Health Organization. This marks a decline from the 12.1 liters per person consumed a decade earlier, placing Germany in 9th position among the heaviest drinking countries in the EU, alongside France and Portugal. Romania led this list with a per capita annual consumption of 17.1 liters of pure alcohol, followed by Latvia at 14.7 liters and the Czech Republic at 13.7 liters.
Addiction researchers observe a long-term decline in per-capita consumption in Germany, though it remains at a high level. Carolin Kilian from the Center for Interdisciplinary Addiction Research (ZIS) at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf noted that men are drinking less than they used to, although this trend is not necessarily mirrored among women. Alcohol consumption is also declining among younger people aged 12 to 25.
While Germany may be one of the cheapest places in the EU to buy alcoholic drinks, this is not the case for soft drinks, which cost 2% above the EU average. This figure is still relatively low compared to Latvia, where nonalcoholic drinks are priced 46% above the EU average due to a high sugar tax.