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Twelve beers that score highest in our directory and that you can actually buy, from a crisp lager to a smoked stout, with the price per can at each shop.
By Rich, founder of Unhopped · Updated 3 November 2026 · Prices checked 1 November 2026
For Dry January 2027, stock up on Lucky Saint Unfiltered Lager if you drink lager, Athletic Brewing Run Wild IPA if you like hops and Big Drop Galactic Milk Stout for the dark evenings. Each is the top scorer in its style in our directory among beers that The Alcohol Free Co, Dry Drinker and Wise Bartender all had in stock on 1 November 2026. If you want 0.0%, Guinness 0.0 is the joint best-scoring 0.0% beer all three sell.
Alcohol Change UK, the charity behind the Dry January® challenge, says drinks at 0.5% or 0.05% are “perfectly acceptable to drink” during the month, “but it’s up to you to make your own rules” (Alcohol Change UK).
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January is the month the alcohol-free shelf earns its keep. Alcohol Change UK’s polling for 2026 found that 17.5 million people in the UK, almost one in three, planned to take a month off alcohol in January (Censuswide for Alcohol Change UK, November 2025). If you’re one of them, the trick is having beer in the fridge you actually look forward to.
So here are twelve that score highest in our directory and that you can buy, from a crisp lager to a smoked stout, with the price per can at each shop. Every price comes from the shops’ own product data on 1 November 2026; prices move, so check before you order.
| Beer | Style | ABV | Score | From, per can | Cheapest at |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lucky Saint Unfiltered Lager | Lager | 0.5% | 8.7 | £2.93 | Dry Drinker |
| Athletic Brewing Run Wild IPA | IPA | <0.5% | 8.8 | £2.52 | The Alcohol Free Co |
| Athletic Brewing Free Wave Hazy IPA | Hazy IPA | <0.5% | 8.7 | £2.51 | The Alcohol Free Co |
| Big Drop Galactic Milk Stout | Stout | 0.5% | 8.6 | £2.54 | The Alcohol Free Co |
| Big Drop Pine Trail Pale Ale | Pale ale | 0.5% | 8.5 | £2.54 | The Alcohol Free Co |
| Heaps Normal Quiet XPA | Pale ale | <0.5% | 8.5 | £2.06 | The Alcohol Free Co |
| Brulo Lust for Life DDH IPA | IPA | 0.5% | 8.6 | £3.26 | The Alcohol Free Co |
| Lucky Saint Hazy IPA | Hazy IPA | 0.5% | 8.6 | £2.37 | Dry Drinker |
| Beavertown Lazer Crush | IPA | 0.3% | 8.5 | £2.74 | Dry Drinker |
| Drop Bear Bonfire Stout | Stout | 0.5% | 8.3 | £2.19 | Dry Drinker |
| Jump Ship Yardarm Lager | Lager | <0.5% | 8.1 | £2.88 | Dry Drinker |
| Rothaus Hefe Weizen | Wheat beer | <0.5% | 8.1 | £2.72 | The Alcohol Free Co |
Lager · 0.5% ABV · scores 8.7
From £2.93 a can or bottle at Dry Drinker (case of 24 bottles, £70.24)
A proper lager with real depth. Unfiltered for a naturally hazy pour, with toasty pilsner malts, a fresh bread aroma and a dry, refreshing finish with a citrus hop note, as Lucky Saint describes it.
The top-scoring lager in our directory, and Alcohol Change UK’s official beer for Dry January 2026. It has 16 kcal per 100ml.
IPA · <0.5% ABV · scores 8.8
From £2.52 a can or bottle at The Alcohol Free Co (case of 24 cans, £60.36)
Athletic’s flagship IPA. The brewery describes it as “the ultimate sessionable IPA for craft beer lovers”, brewed with a blend of five Northwest hops, with an approachable bitterness to balance the malt body.
Our highest-scoring IPA, in stock at all three shops. It has 17 kcal per 100ml.
Hazy IPA · <0.5% ABV · scores 8.7
From £2.51 a can or bottle at The Alcohol Free Co (case of 24 cans, £60.34)
Athletic’s hazy IPA. The brewery describes “a hugely hoppy hazy IPA with a juicy body and velvety pour”, with Amarillo, Citra and Mosaic hops giving tangerine and grapefruit aromas.
The best-scoring hazy IPA that all three shops had in stock. It has 19 kcal per 100ml.
Stout · 0.5% ABV · scores 8.6
From £2.54 a can or bottle at The Alcohol Free Co (pack of 24 cans, £61.02)
Big Drop’s milk stout, which it tells you to “think of” as “honeycomb covered in chocolate”. It’s brewed with lactose, so it isn’t vegan, and it’s labelled gluten-free. It won gold at the World Alcohol-Free Awards in 2023, and we score it 8.6 out of 10.
The best-scoring stout you can buy at all three shops. It has 31 kcal per 100ml.
Pale ale · 0.5% ABV · scores 8.5
From £2.54 a can or bottle at The Alcohol Free Co (pack of 24 cans, £61.02)
Big Drop’s pale ale, with what it calls “rosy floral aromas”, “a light and limey citrus bite” and “a balanced but obvious bitterness”. The version in the shops contains lactose, so it isn’t vegan, though Big Drop’s website shows a newer, vegan recipe. We score it 8.5 out of 10.
Joint top-scoring pale ale, and in stock at all three shops. It has 18.5 kcal per 100ml.
Pale ale · <0.5% ABV · scores 8.5
From £2.06 a can or bottle at The Alcohol Free Co (24 x 375ml cans, £49.40)
Heaps Normal’s flagship, the beer it launched with in 2020: a non-alcoholic XPA with what it calls a “tropical and citrus aroma” and “balanced bitterness”. It has 17 kcal per 100ml, it’s vegan, and in 2022 it was named the World’s Best No & Low Alcohol Pale at the World Beer Awards.
Also 8.5, and the cheapest of our picks per can by the case. It has 17 kcal per 100ml.
IPA · 0.5% ABV · scores 8.6
From £3.26 a can or bottle at The Alcohol Free Co (case of 12 cans, £39.07)
Brulo’s flagship: a 0.5% double dry-hopped IPA with Simcoe, Citra and Mosaic, which won two stars at the Great Taste Awards 2026. Brulo promises “a ripe, juicy character of mango, peach and pine”. It’s vegan, and we score it 8.6 out of 10.
A double dry-hopped IPA that scores 8.6. It has 23 kcal per 100ml.
Hazy IPA · 0.5% ABV · scores 8.6
From £2.37 a can or bottle at Dry Drinker (case of 24 cans, £56.99)
From the team behind Lucky Saint Unfiltered Lager — a hazy IPA that Lucky Saint describes as juicy, with notes of tropical and stone fruits and hop flavours of tropical fruit, zesty citrus and fresh pine.
Lucky Saint’s hazy IPA scores 8.6. It has 18 kcal per 100ml.
IPA · 0.3% ABV · scores 8.5
From £2.74 a can or bottle at Dry Drinker (case of 24 cans, £65.75)
Beavertown’s alcohol-free IPA: 0.3%, brewed with a Pichia yeast that makes very little alcohol, and hopped with Azacca, Amarillo and Citra. Beavertown promises “sweet peach iced tea with light grapefruit bitterness”. We score it 8.5 out of 10, and Tesco, Asda, Morrisons and Ocado all sell it.
It scores 8.5, and it’s one you can also pick up in a supermarket. It has 27 kcal per 100ml.
Stout · 0.5% ABV · scores 8.3
From £2.19 a can or bottle at Dry Drinker (case of 24 cans, £52.63)
Drop Bear’s stout, brewed with smoked malt. Drop Bear promises “notes of espresso, smoke, and dark chocolate”, and sums it up as “Smokey, roasted, smooth.” It has 17 kcal per 100ml, and it’s vegan, with no lactose, and labelled gluten-free.
A smoked stout that scores 8.3. It has 17 kcal per 100ml.
Lager · <0.5% ABV · scores 8.1
From £2.88 a can or bottle at Dry Drinker (case of 24 cans, £69.03)
Jump Ship's flagship lager and the beer that launched the brewery in 2019. Jump Ship describes it as clean and crisp with notes of citrus, subtle malt sweetness and a gentle hop bitterness.
Jump Ship’s flagship lager scores 8.1. It has 22 kcal per 100ml.
Wheat beer · <0.5% ABV · scores 8.1
From £2.72 a can or bottle at The Alcohol Free Co (case of 24 bottles, £65.21)
An alcohol-free hefeweizen from the Black Forest. Hazy golden with banana and clove, The Alcohol Free Co and Dry Drinker say; Rothaus describes a strong copper colour with a heavy haze, ripe banana, honey and cereal.
A hefeweizen that scores 8.1, in stock at all three shops. It has 22 kcal per 100ml.
Every beer above is 0.5% or under, which UK shops sell as alcohol-free and Alcohol Change UK counts as fine for the month. If you’d rather stick to 0.0%, these are the best-scoring 0.0% beers you could buy on 1 November 2026.
| 0.0% beer | Style | Score | From, per can | Cheapest at |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guinness 0.0 | Stout | 8.1 | £2.06 | The Alcohol Free Co |
| Paulaner Weissbier Cans | Wheat Beer | 8.0 | £2.20 | Dry Drinker |
| Theakston Nowt Peculier | Stout | 8.0 | £3.50 | Wise Bartender |
| Days Pale Ale | Pale Ale | 7.9 | £2.72 | Dry Drinker |
| La Chouffe 0.0 | Wheat Beer | 8.1 | £2.95 | The Alcohol Free Co |
La Chouffe 0.0 went from 0.4% to 0.0% in 2026, and some UK shops still sell the 0.4% bottles, so check the label. Our score for it is for the 0.4% version.
If you’d rather not pick twelve beers yourself, these are the mixed cases and boxes the three shops were selling when we checked. A mixed case is also the cheapest way to find out which styles you like before you buy a whole case of one.
Three shops, three sizes
From £2.50 a can Dry Drinker, 12 cans £29.99
Dry Drinker’s 12-can case features Run Wild IPA, Upside Dawn Golden Ale, Free Wave Hazy IPA “and seasonal favourites”, it says. The Alcohol Free Co sells a six for £16.24 (about £2.71 a can), and Wise Bartender an eight with two each of Free Wave, Run Wild, Upside Dawn and Athletic Lager for £24 (£3 a can).
Run Wild (8.8) and Free Wave (8.7) are two of the best-scoring beers on this page.
Price and stock from the shop’s own product data, 3 November 2026.
The cheapest per can
£26.38 for 12 cans £13.91 for six
Quiet XPA, Another Lager and Half Day Hazy, the shops list. Wise Bartender’s six has two of each. At £2.20 a can in the 12-can case, it’s the cheapest mixed case here, and Quiet XPA scores 8.5.
Price and stock from the shop’s own product data, 3 November 2026.
The official beer, two ways
£33 for 10 Wise Bartender
Five Unfiltered Lager and five Hazy IPA, with a half-pint glass and a lanyard that Wise Bartender says are free. Both beers score 8.6 or more in our directory.
Price and stock from the shop’s own product data, 3 November 2026.
For the dark evenings
£29.99 for 12 cans Dry Drinker
Two each of Õllenaut Porter, Super Bock Stout, Nirvana Nitro Stout, Drop Bear Bonfire Stout, Guinness 0.0 and Nittenauer Lola Coffee Porter, Dry Drinker says.
Price and stock from the shop’s own product data, 3 November 2026.
For hop lovers
£29.99 for 12 cans Dry Drinker
Dry Drinker names Beavertown Lazer Crush, St Austell Proper Job, Athletic Free Wave and Nirvana West Coast IPA among the twelve.
Price and stock from the shop’s own product data, 3 November 2026.
Beer is one part of it. Our guide to doing Dry January covers the fridge rule and the pub plan, the Dry January kit adds mixed cases and snacks, and the Dry January planner builds a month around what you like to drink in four questions. And if you’re wondering what a month off actually does, we’ve read the research: the benefits of Dry January, what happens week by week and whether it’s good for you.
Yes, says Alcohol Change UK, the charity that runs the Dry January® challenge. Of drinks that “contain 0.5% or 0.05% alcohol”, it says “we think these are perfectly acceptable to drink during the Dry January® challenge or any other dry month”, adding “but it’s up to you to make your own rules” (Alcohol Change UK, January 2026). If you’d rather keep the month to 0.0%, the beers in the 0.0% table above are all labelled 0.0%. There’s more in our guide: can you drink alcohol-free beer during Dry January?
Guinness 0.0, which scores 8.1 in our directory and was in stock at all three shops we link to on 1 November 2026. Paulaner Weissbier Cans (8.0) is the 0.0% wheat beer, and Theakston Nowt Peculier (8.0) the 0.0% dark ale. La Chouffe 0.0 also scores 8.1, but our score is for its earlier 0.4% version.
For Dry January 2026, Alcohol Change UK named Lucky Saint the “Official Beer of the Dry January® challenge” (December 2025). Wise Bartender was one of its official brands and The Alcohol Free Co one of its official supporters. The charity hadn’t published its 2027 partners when we checked on 3 November 2026.
By the case. Of the beers on this page, Heaps Normal Quiet XPA worked out cheapest on 1 November 2026: £2.06 a can in a 24 x 375ml cans at The Alcohol Free Co (£49.40). Single cans of the same beers cost more. We compare more ways to save in the cheapest way to drink alcohol-free beer.
Every beer on this page is sold by at least one of three UK alcohol-free specialists: The Alcohol Free Co, Dry Drinker and Wise Bartender. Supermarkets carry a smaller range; our supermarket guide covers what each one sells.
We took the highest scores in our directory, style by style, and kept only beers that were in stock on 1 November 2026 at The Alcohol Free Co, Dry Drinker or Wise Bartender. Scores come from tastings in the Unhopped app community. Every price comes from the shop’s own product data on that day, so check the shop before you buy.
Start with Lucky Saint Unfiltered Lager: it scores 8.7, it’s in stock at all three shops, and it was the charity’s own official beer for Dry January 2026. Add Athletic Brewing Run Wild IPA for something hoppier and Big Drop Galactic Milk Stout for something darker, and you’ve covered most of what a January fridge needs.
More round-ups: the best alcohol-free beer in the UK, the best 0.0% beers, lagers, IPAs and stouts.
Lucky Saint Unfiltered Lager scores 8.7 · From £2.93 a can or bottle at Dry Drinker (case of 24 bottles, £70.24)
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