Dry January, without the misery

Dry January is a campaign run by the UK charity Alcohol Change UK. By the charity's own account, it started in 2013 with 4,000 people and had over 200,000 taking part in 2025. It began with one staff member who gave up drinking for a January while training for a half marathon and found that everyone wanted to talk to her about it.

Outside the UK, "Dry January" is mostly used as a general name for a month off at the start of the year, and you don't need to sign up for anything to do it. If you want structure, the charity's free app, Try Dry, tracks your dry days and the money you haven't spent.

People do it to reset their habits after the holidays, to see how they feel without a drink most evenings, to save money after an expensive December, or because friends or a partner are doing it. For a lot of people it's simply a clean break with a clear start and finish, which is easier than vague plans to "drink less."

We're a drinks site, not doctors, so we'll leave questions about your liver, weight and sleep to people qualified to answer them. Alcohol Change UK publishes the research behind the campaign if you want to read it. One practical point: if you drink heavily every day, talk to a doctor before stopping suddenly.

The only real rule is no alcohol for 31 days. The rest you decide before you start:

• When does it start? Most people start on January 1. If New Year's Eve runs late, some start on the 2nd. Either is fine; just pick one.
• Does non-alcoholic beer and wine count? Most people allow it. Many non-alcoholic drinks contain a trace of alcohol, up to 0.5% ABV, and some are 0.0%. If you want none at all, check the label.
• Is Dry January just alcohol? Yes. Some people add other goals, like less sugar or no cannabis, but the challenge itself is only about alcohol.
• What about a slip? Log it, forgive it and carry on the next day. One drink isn't a reason to give up on the other 30 days.

These are the Dry January tips we'd give a friend, in rough order of importance.

1. Stock up before January 1. Buy your replacement drinks in December, so the first evening doesn't start with nothing in the fridge.
2. Replace the drink, not just the alcohol. Match what you used to drink (beer for beer, wine for wine, a stirred drink for a stirred drink). A soda in place of a Negroni feels like a punishment; a Phony Negroni doesn't.
3. Keep the ritual. Same glass, same time, same ice. A lot of the evening drink is the pour itself.
4. Plan the first weekend. It's the hardest stretch. Book something for the Saturday morning so there's a reason not to want a hangover.
5. Order first. At a bar, say what you're drinking before anyone asks. "A non-alcoholic beer, please" is a complete sentence.
6. Bring your own. To any dinner or party, bring a four-pack or a bottle to share. You'll have something good, and so will anyone else not drinking.
7. Do it with someone. A partner, a friend or a group chat makes it much easier to keep going.
8. Track it. An app, a calendar, a jar of the money you'd have spent. Seeing the streak grow helps.
9. Try something new each week. Boredom sends people back to the usual. A new bottle or an alcohol-free bar keeps it interesting.
10. Plan February. Decide before the 31st what comes next, so the month ends with a choice rather than a binge.

What to say when people ask

You'll be asked, especially in the first two weeks. Keep it short and cheerful: "I'm doing Dry January" is the whole answer, and in January most people will nod and tell you they've tried it too. If someone pushes, change the subject or go and get another drink of your own. You don't owe anyone a reason.

January 2027 starts on a Friday and ends on a Sunday.

Days 1–3 (January 1–3): the opening weekend

New Year's Day is usually easy: nobody wants a drink. Saturday and Sunday are harder, because they're the first normal weekend evenings. Have your best bottle ready and plan a proper dinner with a non-alcoholic wine.

Week 2 (January 4–10): back to work

The routine comes back, and so does the after-work drink. This is where a weeknight default matters: something you can pour in under a minute. A bitter aperitif with soda, a non-alcoholic beer or a canned spritz all work.

Week 3 (January 11–17): the first real night out

Someone's birthday, a work drinks, a playoff game. Choose venues with a proper zero-proof list, or eat somewhere that sells non-alcoholic wine by the glass. Have your order ready before you arrive.

Week 4 (January 18–24): the slump

Mid-January is dark, and novelty has worn off. This is the week to make something better at home: a hot toddy, a stirred Old Fashioned, a Negroni with a big cube. Visit an alcohol-free bar if there's one near you.

Week 5 (January 25–31): the finish

Look back at which drinks you actually missed. Many people find they missed the ritual more than the alcohol, and keep a few dry nights a week afterward.

Sort by what you normally drink. Buy one or two from your section, not the whole list.

If you drink beer

Non-alcoholic beer is the most convincing swap in the whole category. Athletic Run Wild is piney, citrusy and properly hoppy. Deschutes Non-Alcoholic Fresh Squeezed IPA keeps the orange and passionfruit of the original. Athletic Upside Dawn is light and crisp, and Guinness 0 is roasted and creamy, remarkably like the real thing.

If you drink white or sparkling wine

Dry whites and sparklers are the strongest non-alcoholic wines. Giesen 0% Sauvignon Blanc is passionfruit and cut grass. Leitz Eins Zwei Zero Riesling is crisp and just off-dry. Bolle Blanc de Blancs is fermented again after the alcohol comes out, so it has natural bubbles and a toasty edge. Giesen 0% Sparkling Brut is the value pick for a weeknight glass of fizz.

If you drink red wine

Red is the hardest wine to make without alcohol, because alcohol carries its body. The best have real tannin. Oddbird GSM is jammy blackberry and dried cherry, dealcoholized after aging. Missing Thorn Red is a Napa Bordeaux blend with cassis, cedar and mocha. NON9 Oaked Blackberry & Plum isn't made from wine at all but is the most red-wine-like of the NON range, with firm tannins.

If you drink gin and tonics

Monday Zero Alcohol Gin is juniper and citrus with a warming tingle that stands in for the burn. Lyre's Dry London Spirit is classic juniper, citrus and coriander. Pair either with Q Tonic Water, which is drier and more bitter than most, so the drink doesn't taste like sweet soda.

If you drink whiskey or bourbon

Spiritless Kentucky 74 is real Kentucky bourbon with the alcohol taken out: caramel, vanilla and oak. The Spiced version adds cinnamon and baking spice, and it's the one for a hot toddy. Lyre's American Malt is built for Old Fashioneds. Add All The Bitter Old Fashioned Aromatic Bitters, a 0.0% stand-in for Angostura.

If you drink cocktails

Start with a bitter aperitif. It's the most versatile bottle you can buy: soda, tonic, spritz or Negroni. Ghia Le Apéritif is gentian, yuzu, fig and rosemary. Lyre's Italian Orange is the Campari slot. Or skip the building and pour St. Agrestis Phony Negroni, which comes in single-serve bottles.

If you want something ready to drink

Canned and bottled cocktails are the easiest Dry January drinks there are. Ghia Le Spritz is bitter and dry. Lyre's G&T is a canned G&T with a crisp quinine finish. Spiritless Old Fashioned is Kentucky 74 with cane sugar, chai spice and orange zest, canned to pour over a big cube.

If you want something warm

January is the month for warm drinks, and a hot mug in the evening does a surprising amount of the work a nightcap used to do. A hot toddy made with Spiritless Kentucky 74 Spiced is the obvious one (recipe below). Three Spirit Nightcap is valerian, lemon balm and spice, and the brand suggests sipping it warm or on ice. For something after dinner that isn't hot, St. Agrestis Amaro Falso is a ready-to-pour amaro of 20 herbs, spices and citrus, led by mint and gentian, that works neat.

Five Dry January mocktail recipes, from a thirty-second weeknight drink to a proper nightcap.

The weeknight default. Two ingredients, lots of ice:

A bright one for blood orange season:

The January nightcap. Warm, spiced and made in three minutes:

For a slow Saturday night, stirred over a big cube:

And the G&T, done properly, with salt for body:

All five get better with a pinch of salt or a couple of drops of saline. It adds the weight that alcohol normally gives a drink.

A month off drinking should save you money, not cost you more in fancy bottles. The cheapest good options in our catalogue are the supermarket ones. Heineken 0.0 and Athletic Upside Dawn are easy six-packs. Fre Cabernet Sauvignon is easy and widely stocked. Martini Vibrante is Martini's alcohol-free bitter and costs less than most zero-proof bottles; top it with soda and an orange slice. Crodino comes in little single-serve bottles that every Italian bar keeps in the fridge.

Our first picks for Dry January, across every style.

February is where the month pays off. Some people go back to how they were; many keep a few alcohol-free nights a week, or drink less when they do. That's sometimes called a "Damp January" approach when it's done from the start: cutting back rather than stopping. Either way, the bottles you've found don't expire on February 1. If you enjoyed it, Sober October is the natural next round.

Alcohol-free bars make the nights out easy: order anything on the menu. A few worth the trip: