Over the last two decades , Americans have more than doubled the amount of money they spend on alcohol every year with some city cashing out far more than others .
An analysis conducted byDelphi Behavioral Health Groupcompared average alcohol expenditures by metropolitan sphere from 2016 to 2017 using information collected yearly by theBureau of Labor Statistics ’ Consumer Expenditure Survey . They found that drinkers in West Coast major metropolitan sphere generally spend more on alcoholic beverage than those in any other region .
top the chart were coastal cities San Diego , California and Seattle , Washington . Those in San Diego spent almost one - third more on intoxicant than they did the previous twelvemonth , an norm of $ 1,112 in 2017 , up from $ 850 in 2016 . Seattleites , on the other hand , spend about $ 986 in 2017 , an increase of 32 pct since 2016 .

slip from its number one expansion slot , San Francisco spent most one - fourth part less in 2017 , place the Golden City at issue three overall . The writer remark this annual step-down of about $ 256 could have been triggered by natural disasters in the country , such as that yr ’s wildfire time of year , which devastated Napa and Sonoma county just northward of the Bay Area , keep metropolis folk music from heading to wine country .
Meanwhile , Atlanta , Georgia and Dallas - Fort Worth , Texas spent a relatively little amount of money on alcoholic drink when compared to other cities but did see an increase in the amount of booze buy from the year before . This is potential due to quickening gentrification occurring in both city .
Another city reeling from the impacts of Mother Nature , Houston , Texas see booze purchases go up in 2017 in the face of – or , perhaps because of – Hurricane Harvey , which score the coastal city that same year . Other southern city whose alcohol outgo was already low see an extra decline , particularly Miami and Phoenix .
Overall , the dataset analyzes American spending habits since 1996 . The authors say the increase in alcohol spending can mostly be attributed to an flourish alcoholic drink - purchasing base , particularly in women and older Americans . What ’s more , the country is seeing a roaring in artisan and craft beverage ( here ’s to you , microbrews ) partly responsible for driving the monetary value of hard drink .
“ That prison term soma witness a remarkable surge in spending in sure categories : ordinary annual education and wellness care expenditure increase more than 150 percent , ” the report said . “ But alongside rising cost pertain to those necessities , drop on frailty lace as well . ”
Tobacco and smoking expenses also increased by 32 pct in part because of increasing taxes . All that being state , alcohol expenditure still accounts for less than 1 pct of average annual household purchases .