Main Points
In 2025, there were 1,152 alcohol-specific deaths registered in Scotland, a decrease of 3% (33 deaths) compared with 2024.
This is the lowest number of alcohol-specific deaths registered in any year from 2020 onwards.
After adjusting for age, there were 20.2 alcohol-specific deaths per 100,000 people in Scotland in 2025.
The rate of male alcohol-specific deaths was more than two times the rate for females in 2025. The latest decrease was driven by a decrease in male deaths (by 5% or 43 deaths) while female deaths increased (by 3% or 10 deaths).
The age profile of alcohol-specific deaths has become older over time, with the average age increasing in the last decade. Age groups 45 to 64 and 65 to 74 continue to have the highest rates of alcohol-specific deaths.
Over the latest year, the number of alcohol-specific deaths decreased in half of the council areas (16 areas) across Scotland, increased in 11 areas and was unchanged in five areas.
The rate of alcohol-specific deaths was higher than the Scotland average in Glasgow City, Inverclyde, North Lanarkshire, West Dunbartonshire, Dundee City and Renfrewshire (measured over the five-year period 2021 to 2025).
In 2025, the rate of alcohol-specific deaths in the most deprived areas of Scotland was 4.8 times as high as in the least deprived areas. In contrast, the rate is around two times as high for all causes of death.
In 2024, Scotland and Northern Ireland continued to have the highest rates of alcohol-specific deaths across the UK (20.9 and 21.4 deaths per 100,000 people, respectively). Data for 2024 is the latest year that is available across the UK.
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Alcohol-specific deaths in Scotland
There were 1,152 alcohol-specific deaths registered in Scotland in 2025. This is a decrease of 3% (33 deaths) compared with 2024 (Figure 1).
This is the second year of consecutive decreases in the number of alcohol-specific deaths following increases in each of the four years 2020 to 2023. The latest figure is the lowest number of alcohol-specific deaths registered in any year from 2020 onwards, with 1,020 deaths registered in 2019.
Figure 1: Alcohol-specific deaths decreased in 2025
Number of alcohol-specific deaths, registered in 1994 to 2025
There were 20.2 alcohol-specific deaths for every 100,000 people in Scotland in 2025, after adjusting for age (Figure 2). This is at a similar level to 2024.
While the rate was 20.9 deaths per 100,000 people in 2024, this is not a statistically significant decrease in the rate due to the uncertainty around the annual estimates as represented by the 95% confidence intervals (19.7 to 22.1 in 2024, 19.0 to 21.3 in 2025).
The rate of alcohol-specific deaths increased over the decade between 2012 and 2022 from 18.4 to 22.6 deaths per 100,000 people. The rate has since fallen and is now lower than in 2022. The decrease in rates between 2022 and 2025 is statistically significant (as the confidence intervals do not overlap).
Figure 2: The latest rate of alcohol-specific deaths is lower than 2022
Age-standardised mortality rate of alcohol-specific deaths, deaths registered in 1994 to 2025
Age-standardised mortality rates are a better measure of mortality than numbers of deaths as they account for changes in population size and age structure. They provide more reliable comparisons between different areas, sexes and over time.
In this report, age-standardised mortality rates are presented per 100,000 people and are standardised to the 2013 European Standard Population.
More information on the calculation of age-standardised mortality rates is available on our website.
Alcohol-specific deaths by sex
The latest decrease in alcohol-specific deaths was only seen in male deaths. In 2025, there were 758 male alcohol-specific deaths, a decrease of 5% (43 deaths) from 2024. There were 394 female alcohol-specific deaths in 2025, an increase of 3% (10 deaths) from the previous year.
The rate of alcohol-specific deaths for males remained more than twice as high as for females (Figure 3). There were 27.8 deaths per 100,000 males and 13.3 deaths per 100,000 females.
Figure 3: Rate of male alcohol-specific deaths is double the female rate
Age-standardised mortality rate of alcohol-specific deaths by sex, deaths registered in 1994 to 2025
Alcohol-specific deaths by age
The age profile of alcohol-specific deaths has become older in recent years. For most of the series, the average age of alcohol-specific deaths fluctuated between 54 to 56 years. Since 2013, the average age has increased from 56 to 60 years.
The rate of alcohol-specific deaths is highest in age groups 45 to 64 and 65 to 74. These have been the highest since the data was first available (Figure 4).
The rate of deaths in those aged 75 and over has increased in the last decade, but it remains about half of the rate of both of the two highest age groups. For age 25 to 44, the rate of mortality has generally fallen since the highest point in 2006.
Figure 4: Rate of alcohol-specific deaths highest in ages 45-64 and 65-74
Rate of alcohol-specific deaths by broad age group, deaths registered in 1994 to 2025
Alcohol-specific deaths across Scotland
The rate of alcohol-specific deaths varies across Scotland. Rates for council areas are calculated over a five-year period to provide more reliable rates, particularly for smaller areas. Council areas are usually based on where the deceased lived, rather than the place of death.
In the five-year period 2021 to 2025, the following council areas had a higher rate of alcohol-specific deaths than the Scottish average: Glasgow City, Inverclyde, North Lanarkshire, West Dunbartonshire, Dundee City and Renfrewshire (Figure 5). There is a statistically significant difference between the rates for these areas and Scotland, as the confidence intervals do not overlap.
Some of the lowest rates were in Aberdeenshire and East Renfrewshire.
There may be large confidence intervals around rates for areas with smaller populations or numbers of deaths.
Figure 5: The rate of alcohol-specific deaths varies across Scotland
Age-standardised mortality rate of alcohol-specific deaths by council areas, deaths registered in five-year period 2021 to 2025
Error bars represent the likely range (95% confidence intervals).
Council areas are usually based on where the deceased lived rather than where the death took place. If the deceased was resident outwith Scotland, the death will be assigned to where the death took place.
While mortality rates are the most appropriate figures to use when making comparisons across area in Scotland, these give equal weight to deaths in each of the five years so may not express more recent changes. Figures below provide the change in number of deaths over the last year across Scotland.
The latest decrease in the number of alcohol-specific deaths was not seen across all areas of Scotland (Figure 6). The number of alcohol-specific deaths decreased in 16 council areas, increased in 11 areas and was unchanged in five areas.
The largest decreases in alcohol-specific deaths between 2024 and 2025 were in Fife (-21 deaths) followed by Falkirk, Angus and Aberdeen City (-9 deaths each). Note that this measure does not take into account the size of an area’s population.
Figure 6: Alcohol-specific deaths fell in half of Scotland’s council areas
Number and change in alcohol-specific deaths by council areas, registered in 2024 and 2025
Council areas are usually based on where the deceased lived rather than where the death took place. If the deceased was resident outwith Scotland, the death will be assigned to where the death took place.
This measure does not consider the size of an area’s population.
Similar data by health board area can be found in main tables 3a and 3b available at the links below.
Alcohol-specific deaths by deprivation
The rate of alcohol-specific deaths in the most deprived areas of Scotland was 4.8 times as high as in the least deprived areas in 2025, after adjusting for age. For all causes, people in the most deprived areas are around twice as likely to die as those in the least deprived areas.
The gap between the most and least deprived quintiles has reduced since the series began in 2001 (Figure 7). In 2002, the rate was 8.7 times as high in the most deprived as the least deprived areas, the highest in the series.
Figure 7: Rate of alcohol-specific deaths 4.8 times as high in the most deprived areas compared to least
Age-standardised mortality rates of alcohol-specific deaths by SIMD quintile, deaths registered in 2001 to 2025
Note: Deprivation quintiles are based on the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation
Alcohol-specific deaths by urban rural
In urban and rural areas, the pattern has been less clear over time and there is less of a relationship between levels of rurality and the rate of alcohol-specific deaths (Figure 8). The rates in large urban areas, other urban areas, and remote small towns have been consistently higher than other areas.
In 2025, the highest alcohol-specific mortality rate was in large urban areas at 23.9 deaths per 100,000 population. The lowest rate was in accessible rural areas at 12.7 per 100,000 people.
Figure 8: Rate of alcohol-specific deaths highest in large and other urban areas, as well as remote small towns
Age-standardised mortality rate of alcohol-specific deaths by urban-rural classification, deaths registered in 2011 to 2025
Note: Based on the Scottish Government Urban Rural 6-fold Classification
Comparisons within the UK
In 2024, the latest year for which comparable data exists across the UK, Northern Ireland and Scotland had the highest alcohol-specific death rates with 21.4 and 20.9 deaths per 100,000, respectively. England and Wales continued to have lower rates of alcohol-specific deaths, with 13.8 and 16.8 deaths per 100,000, respectively.
Further data and analysis can be found in the Alcohol-specific deaths in the UK release by the Office for National Statistics.
Figure 9: Scotland had the second highest rate of alcohol-specific deaths in the UK in 2024
Age-standardised mortality rate of alcohol-specific deaths, UK constituent countries, deaths registered in 2001 to 2024
Source: National Records of Scotland, Office for National Statistics, Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency
Links to related statistics
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