Dry January Drinks: A Practical Plan for January 2027
What to stock, what to order, and how to get through the month, plus an honest look at what the research on a month off does and does not show.
Dry January 2027 starts on a Friday, which is a gift: the first weekend of the month is the hardest, and you can plan it. This guide is a practical plan. It covers what to stock before January 1, how to handle each week, which drinks to reach for, and what the research on a month off actually found, including its limits.
Dry January 2027 runs Friday, January 1 to Sunday, January 31. Stock non-alcoholic beer or sparkling wine, soda water with alcohol-free bitters, tea and a few mocktail ingredients by December 28. Plan the first weekend, read labels since "non-alcoholic" can still mean less than 0.5% alcohol by volume [5], and treat the research as encouraging but limited [2][3].
What is Dry January and where did it come from?
Dry January is a campaign to go a month without alcohol. Alcohol Change UK, the UK charity that runs it, says it began in 2013 with about 4,000 people, after Emily Robinson gave up alcohol in January 2011 to train for a half marathon. The charity reports about 200,000 participants globally in 2025 [1].
In the US, the idea has spread without a single organizer, and interest runs alongside a wider drop in drinking. Gallup's July 2026 survey found 54% of US adults say they drink, tied with 2025 for the lowest reading since 1939, and 51% say one or two drinks a day is bad for your health [4]. That is one survey, so treat it as a signal.
There are no rules beyond "no alcohol." Some people go dry for the whole month, some use it as a reset and drink less after, and some sign up and slip. All of that is normal.
What does the research on a month off show?
People who take a month off tend to report drinking less afterward and some measured health markers shift, but the studies are mostly observational and rely on self-reports, so they cannot prove a month off causes the changes.
Three pieces of evidence are worth knowing:
- A UK clinical study. Mehta and colleagues followed 94 people who planned a month without alcohol and 47 who kept drinking, all moderate-to-heavy drinkers without known liver disease or dependence. In the abstinence group, they reported reductions in insulin resistance (a median 25.9%), blood pressure, weight (a median 1.5%) and two cancer-related growth factors. The control group did not change significantly. It was a prospective observational study, not a randomized trial, and people chose which group to join [2].
- Dry January surveys. In a University of Sussex study of 857 British adults, participation was associated with reduced drinking and higher "drink refusal self-efficacy" (confidence in saying no) six months later, with little evidence of a rebound afterward. There was no randomized control group [3].
- Self-reported benefits. In a 2019 evaluation summarized by Alcohol Change UK, most participants said they saved money and felt more in control, and 70% said they slept better. These are surveys of people who signed up, written up by the charity that runs the campaign, so read them as self-reports [6].
The bigger context: the CDC says drinking less is better for your health than drinking more, and that some cancer risk rises with any amount [8]. A month off fits that advice. It is not a medical treatment, and it does not erase the effects of long-term heavy drinking.
A safety note. If you drink heavily every day, stopping suddenly can be risky. Talk to a doctor before January 1. SAMHSA's National Helpline (1-800-662-4357) is free, confidential and open 24/7 [7].
What should you stock before January 1?
Do this in the last week of December, while you still feel optimistic. Having drinks you like on hand matters more than willpower in week one.
- Two or three non-alcoholic beers or a non-alcoholic sparkling wine. Choose 0.0% if you want none at all; the label "non-alcoholic" in the US can mean less than 0.5% alcohol by volume [5].
- Soda water, alcohol-free bitters and citrus. The cheapest drink that feels like a drink.
- Teas and a kettle. Warm drinks help in the evening. See drinks to relax without alcohol.
- Two mocktail recipes you can make in under two minutes.
- One functional drink to try, if you are curious. Read the caution notes in the drinks section below first.
Move the alcohol out of sight, or out of the house, for the month.
What does a week-by-week plan look like?
| Week | Likely challenge | Plan |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 (Jan 1 to 7) | The first Friday and Saturday; New Year's Day leftovers | Plan both weekend evenings. Have your drink ready at your usual drinking hour. |
| Week 2 (Jan 8 to 14) | Routine drinks after work | Swap the ritual: same glass, same time, different drink. Try tea or a mocktail. |
| Week 3 (Jan 15 to 21) | Boredom, social invitations | Suggest non-bar plans. Order first at restaurants so you aren't swayed. See sober curious drinks. |
| Week 4 (Jan 22 to 28) | "I've done most of it" slippage | Keep the streak visible. A slip is data; start again the next day. |
| Last days (Jan 29 to 31) | Deciding what comes next | Decide your February rules now, not on February 1. |
Which drinks work best for Dry January?
The best choice is whatever you will actually drink in the moment you would have had alcohol. Our comparison of every category is in the best alcohol alternatives; here is the short version for a month.
- Non-alcoholic beer and wine: closest in taste. A 1999 case report found one patient with end-stage liver disease reached a blood alcohol of 57 mg/dL after non-alcoholic beer [9]. That is an unusual case, but anyone who must avoid alcohol entirely should ask a doctor and choose 0.0%.
- Mocktails and sodas with alcohol-free bitters: cheap, flexible, and low in sugar if you make them.
- Tea and warm drinks: best for the evening. NCCIH calls chamomile likely safe at tea amounts but says there is very little evidence on insomnia [10].
- Kava drinks: a traditional drink with a documented rare liver-injury concern; NCCIH advises against combining kava with alcohol or sedating substances [11]. If you are doing Dry January partly for your liver, think twice. See kanna vs kava.
- Kanna drinks: non-alcoholic, with a small research base of trials in healthy adults [12]. WebMD lists interaction concerns with SSRIs, SNRIs, MAOIs, tricyclics, triptans and St. John's wort, and there are no pregnancy or breastfeeding data [13]. See is kanna safe. They are not a treatment for anything, and they should not be mixed with alcohol; we found no published human studies of the combination (see can you mix kanna and alcohol). Our ranking compares kanna drinks, including Silly from Psilly Goose, which publishes this site.
What happens on February 1?
That is up to you, and deciding ahead helps. Some people go back to drinking as before, some drink on weekends only, and some keep going. The University of Sussex study found few participants reported drinking more afterward [3], but that does not mean you won't, so set a rule: a number of drinks per week, a no-weekday-drinking rule, or an extra dry month.
If you noticed that a dry month was harder than you expected, that is useful information. Consider talking to a doctor or calling the SAMHSA helpline [7]. If you enjoyed it, there is no rule against making it a longer stretch.
This page is general information, not medical advice. These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. None of the drinks discussed is intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease or health condition. Talk to a doctor before stopping alcohol if you drink heavily. SAMHSA's National Helpline: 1-800-662-4357.
References
- Alcohol Change UK. The Dry January story. alcoholchange.org.uk
- Mehta G, et al. Short-term abstinence from alcohol and changes in cardiovascular risk factors, liver function tests and cancer-related growth factors: a prospective observational study. BMJ Open 2018;8(5):e020673. PubMed
- de Visser RO, Robinson E, Bond R. Voluntary temporary abstinence from alcohol during "Dry January" and subsequent alcohol use. Health Psychol 2016;35(3):281-9. (Summarized via the author-hosted record and Alcohol Change UK; full text not opened.) Alcohol Change UK evidence summary
- Gallup. Americans' drinking remains at record low (July 2026 Consumption Habits survey; published Aug 20, 2026). news.gallup.com
- Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. Beyond Traditional Beers: Low/No Alcohol Beer, Hard Seltzers, and Hard Kombuchas (presentation, May 2023; cites 27 CFR 7.65(e)). ttb.gov
- Piper R. Dry January: the evidence. Alcohol Change UK, December 2019 (author is the charity's chief executive). alcoholchange.org.uk
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. National Helpline. samhsa.gov
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Alcohol Use and Your Health. cdc.gov
- DiMartini A, Rao KN. Elevated blood ethanol levels caused by "non-alcoholic" beer. J Clin Forensic Med 1999;6(2):106-8. PubMed
- National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Chamomile. nccih.nih.gov
- National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Kava. nccih.nih.gov
- Nell H, et al. A randomized, double-blind, parallel-group, placebo-controlled trial of Extract Sceletium tortuosum (Zembrin) in healthy adults. J Altern Complement Med 2013;19(11):898-904. PubMed
- WebMD. Sceletium: Uses, side effects, interactions. webmd.com
Frequently asked questions
When is Dry January 2027?
Dry January runs through the month of January. In 2027, January 1 is a Friday and January 31 is a Sunday, so a full month off runs from the Friday of New Year's Day to the last Sunday of the month.
Who started Dry January?
Alcohol Change UK says the campaign began in 2013 with about 4,000 participants, growing out of Emily Robinson's 2011 decision to give up alcohol in January to train for a half marathon [1].
What should I drink during Dry January?
Stock a few options before January 1: non-alcoholic beer or sparkling wine if you want familiar flavors, soda water with alcohol-free bitters, tea, and a mocktail recipe or two. Check labels, since 'non-alcoholic' in the US can mean less than 0.5% alcohol by volume [5].
Does Dry January actually work?
Studies of people who take a month off found drinking was lower afterward, but most were not randomized and relied on self-report [2][3]. It is a reasonable experiment, not a guarantee.
What if I find a dry month hard?
Call SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-4357 (free, confidential, 24/7) [7], or talk to a doctor. Some people who drink heavily should not stop suddenly without medical advice.