A night out used to come with a simple deal. You drank what your friends drank, you pretended the next day was optional, and you called the hangover “worth it” because it was just part of the ritual.
Millennials and Gen Z still go out, still want the dumb stories, and still want the feeling of being around people instead of a screen. But they’re also starting to treat alcohol like one option in the lineup, not the whole event.
Talker Research, working on behalf of Josh Cellars, surveyed 1,000 millennials and 1,000 Gen Z adults over 21 about how their nights out work now. Nearly half (48 percent) start the night with at least one decision in mind, including whether they plan to drink alcohol. Then reality kicks in. Forty-seven percent said that their decision can change mid-evening depending on where the night goes.
That “we’ll see” approach plays out in what people order. Respondents reported about three alcoholic drinks and two non-alcoholic drinks per outing. You can look at that as moderation, or you can see it as strategy. Nobody wants to feel like a haunted Victorian child the next morning because they got carried away at 11 p.m.
The drink preferences are familiar, but the mix is newer. Wine stayed popular for both generations, picked by 56 percent of Gen Z and 54 percent of millennials. Mocktails were a big pick for Gen Z at 55 percent. Beer stayed strong for millennials at 61 percent. Saturdays leaned toward alcohol, Fridays leaned toward non-alcoholic choices.
Why the swap-outs? Gen Z’s top reason for choosing a non-alcoholic drink was avoiding alcohol side effects, while still enjoying having a drink at 33 percent. Millennials were more likely to feel ready for work the next morning (29 percent), especially on weekdays. That makes sense with the growing “I like drinking, I hate what it does to me” era.
Zooming out, the broader numbers keep pointing in the same direction. Gallup reported U.S. drinking rates hitting a low, and young adults have become more likely to say alcohol is bad for health. Public health data also exists on the opposite end, with NIAAA reporting that 26.7 percent of young adults ages 18–25 reported binge drinking in the past month in the 2024 NSDUH.
Even the sponsored research gets one thing right. A Josh Cellars representative said, “The core of what people want from a fun night out hasn’t changed.” People still want connection and memorable moments. The new part is that plenty of them want those moments without sacrificing the next day to headaches, regret, and a greasy breakfast sandwich eaten over the sink.
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