- Craft spirits volume decreased by 6.1%. 12.7 million 9L cases were sold at retail in 2024, down from 13.5 million in 2023.
- Craft spirits value decreased by 3.3%, totaling $7.58 billion in sales for the year.
- U.S. craft spirits are losing overall spirits market share to large producers as consumers trade down to lower-priced products.
- While craft spirits market share by value remained steady at 7.5% in 2024, market share fell 4.5% by volume.
The American Craft Spirits Association (ACSA) and Park Street in the Craft Spirits Data Project (CSDP) said that in 2024, the U.S. craft spirits category performed in line with the larger spirits market, experiencing its second decline since the creation of the report in 2016. The craft spirits category represented 12.7 million cases (versus 13.5 million in 2023) and $7.58 billion in sales for the year, representing a volume decrease of 6.1% and value decrease of 3.3%.
As a whole, craft spirits sales remained nearly evenly split between the home state (48.5%) and other states (51.5%) in 2024. Since 2021, craft spirits sales in the home state increased share of total craft spirit sales (+1.1pp) while sales outside the home state decreased as a percentage of total craft sales (-1.2pp).
Large craft producers shifted resources to focus on sales in their respective home states as well as exports. Medium-sized craft producers do the majority of business in the home state, ACSA said and added that small craft producers focused primarily on increasing home state sales, with this channel gaining share of sales accordingly.
Despite economic headwinds, craft producers continue to reinvest in their businesses, though at a slower rate in 2024. The average amount invested by a craft producer declined from $324,700 in 2022 to $288,900 in 2024. The total investment by all craft producers decreased for the first time, reaching $811 million in 2024.
The report presented highlights from the 2025 CSDP at its Annual Craft Spirits Economic Briefing. Jordan Cotton, President of ACSA and Co-Founder & CEO, Cotton & Reed and Emily Pennington, Chief Operating Officer, ACSA shared key sales data and insights from the 2024 calendar year, while Margie A.S. Lehrman (CEO, ACSA) highlighted the urgent market access improvements needed to provide a lifeline to distilleries, who are in decline for the second consecutive year.
The Craft Spirits Data Project, introduced in 2016, is a first-of-its-kind research initiative that aims to provide a solid and reliable fact base for evaluating performance and trends in the U.S. craft spirits industry. The CSDP, which seeks to quantify the number, size, and impact of craft spirits producers in the U.S., is an effort led by ACSA and Park Street.