Gen Z is ghosting alcohol and changing what a ‘night out’ looks like

During his college years and early 20s, Ethan Jones Romero said it was not unusual to go out drinking.

But now, at age 27, Jones Romero said he has scaled back his drinking to focus more on his health and workouts.

"The way I feel after drinking isn’t really worth how much fun I had," the actor who lives in the Brooklyn borough of New York told USA TODAY.

His shift away from drinking and toward a healthier lifestyle, including running and working out at the gym, is not unusual for his generation.

A new report from the Bank of America Institute, "Younger generations move from barstools to barbells," finds that Gen Z and millennials are drinking less and working out more.

Gen Z and millennials are drinking less

Institute economists analyzed aggregate credit and debit card spending data from 70 million Bank of America consumer and small-business accounts and found that younger generations are reshaping where and how Americans choose to socialize, said Joe Wadford, an economist at the Bank of America Institute.

"Younger Americans are really driving this movement that we're calling 'The Great Moderation,'" Wadford told USA TODAY.

Bank of America card data suggests that "Dry January" ‒ a month when people stop drinking entirely ‒ is not extending into other months, but holiday splurges are becoming more muted, "so, the long-run trend is more about moderation than abstaining, in our view," the report said.

The report also cited data from the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, showing that while there was an increase in the amount of people over the age of 50 who binge drink (defined as more than four or five drinks in one occasion) in the last 10 years, that number was offset by the almost 3.9 million people ages 21 to 34 who had stopped binge drinking.

Alcohol spending as a share of household budgets is also hovering at near 40-year lows, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics that was cited in the report.

That reduced alcohol spending is not due to price changes, but because consumption is falling, the report said.

"People are simply choosing to drink less, especially at home, as Bank of America card data shows a clear split: spending at liquor, wine and beer stores is sliding, while bar spending is still rising strongly," the report said.

More money spent at bars, but not necessarily on drinks

While the price of alcohol has increased roughly 2% year-over-year, according to the latest inflation data from the BLS, the report said Bank of America card data showed spending at liquor, wine, and beer stores fell 5% year over year in January and spending at bars increased 4% year over year.

"There are possible explanations for this dichotomy, in our view: Some people may be cutting back on drinking at home while they are still seeking the social aspects that bars have to offer," the report said.

Bars have had a lot of success with nonalcoholic options, including mocktails and nonalcoholic beers and have expanded their food and social activities, said Wadford.

"People can go out and they can socialize and they can enjoy that atmosphere, but they can choose not to drink," Wadford said.

It has also become more socially acceptable not to imbibe, Wadford said.

Spending among Gen Z and millennials is up at gyms

Bank of America data is also showing that Gen Z consumers are seeing stronger spending growth in fitness and active hobbies, the report said.

According to Bank of America Global Research, Gen Z – and to a lesser extent millennials – are still favoring experiences. Bank of America data also shows spending growth on fitness activities, such as gyms and golf, is much stronger for millennials, and especially Gen Zers. There is a roughly 9% growth in credit or debit card spending for Gen Zers on fitness categories and a less than 4% growth in spending at bars.

In contrast, Gen X's growth in fitness was roughly 4%. Baby Boomers are slightly higher at 5% and nearly 8% at bars, according to the report.

As consumers are also navigating affordability issues, Wadford said a monthly gym membership is a lot cheaper than going out every single week. Working out also ties into the younger generations' desire to be healthier while still giving them an outlet for social activity at the gym, he said.

"I think this movement has legs and is going to shape this industry," he said.

Shikha Jain, a partner and head of consumer, North America at Simon-Kucher, a commercial strategy consulting firm, agreed, adding that the non-alcoholic beverage industry has also taken off.

"I don't think this is just a fad. I think this is a strong trend," she said.

Workouts are more efficient with less drinking

Jones Romero said fitness has been important to him since college, but he started to notice in the last few months that his "weekend warrior" drinking and hangovers were having an impact on his health and his workouts.

In the last two months, he's only had drinks once when going out with friends. Mostly, he said, that's because he hasn't figured out a way to only have one or two drinks, so he'd rather not drink at all.

Drinking less has made his workouts feel better, he said.

"I’m operating more efficiently. I was on regular gas and now I’m on premium," he said.

His friends are supportive, he said.

"If your friends aren’t cool with you being able to go out sober, I don’t think they’re good friends. My friends have been really supportive of me and don’t pressure me," he said.

Betty Lin-Fisher is a consumer reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] or follow her on X, Facebook, or Instagram @blinfisher and @blinfisher.bsky.social on Bluesky. Sign up for our free The Daily Money newsletter, which breaks down complex consumer and financial news. Subscribe here.