People make a wide variety of choices about drinking, including whether to drink at all, and how much to consume if they do decide to drink. Here are some general trends in the United States.
How many American adults (ages 18 and over) drank in the past year and how much did they drink? (Source: Wave 2 NESARC, conducted by NIAAA's Laboratory of Epidemiology and Biometry)
MenWomen
Percentage who had at least one drink59.6%71.8%
Percentage who have never drank -- lifetime abstainers22.5%11.6%
Percentage of binge drinkers -- drinkers who consumed 4+/5+ (women/men) drinks within 2 hours at least once28.8%43.1%
How many drinks did drinkers usually consume on a drinking day?
1 drink48.2%28.7%
2 drinks29.9%29.0%
3 or more drinks21.9%42.3%

How frequently did American adults (ages 18 and over) drink in the past year? (Source: Wave 2 NESARC, conducted by NIAAA's Laboratory of Epidemiology and Biometry)
Percentage who drank:WomenMen
Daily2.45%5.78%
Nearly every day2.39%4.98%
3-4 times a week5.55%10.00%
2 times a week5.82%10.46%
Once a week6.77%10.33%
2-3 ties a month8.27%9.55%
Once a month7.19%6.72%
7-11 times in the past year4.44%3.51%
3-6 times in the past year9.26%5.67%
1-2 times in the past year8.73%4.91%
Never in the past year (former drinker or lifetime abstainer)39.13%28.09%