What is the drinking age around the world?

How the drinking age is treated in 192 countries, from sources last checked September 2026. Choose a country for its classification, the source, and how its neighbours compare.

  • No minimum age 5 countries (3%), including Angola, Cambodia, Haiti and Djibouti.
  • 16–17 21 countries (11%), including Germany, Uganda, Zambia and Belgium.
  • 18–20 134 countries (70%), including China, India, Brazil and Nigeria.
  • 21+ 22 countries (11%), including United States, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Ethiopia.
  • Alcohol prohibited 10 countries (5%), including Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia.

No minimum age 5

16–17 21

18–20 134

21+ 22

Alcohol prohibited 10

About this data

Compiled from Wikipedia: Legal drinking age; sources last checked 17 September 2026. The full dataset is available as JSON.

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A visual reference compiled from Wikipedia’s law-by-country articles, not legal advice. Laws change and summaries simplify — check a primary source before relying on anything here.