How the U.S. Drinking Age Compares to the World

We're all aware of the bandwagon fallacy. Everyone knows the old adage "If all your friends jumped off a cliff, would you do it?" It's perfectly true that popular opinion is not always the right opinion, and that majorities alone are insufficient factors for making decisions or judging policies. However, by comparing the policies of various countries, inferences may be drawn which help to reveal the quality of a given result. Suppose you are in a math class. The class does a problem, and the students come up with a variety of answers. You may trust your math, but does it not make you worry if all the smart kids in your class come up with answers significantly different from your own? This seems to be the case with America's legal minimum drinking age.

In the United States, it is illegal to buy alcohol before age 21. It is also illegal to consume alcohol under age 21 unless accompanied by a parent or guardian. This is a high minimum. In fact, it is one of the highest in the world. Of the ~200 countries in the world, 147 (or about 75%) have a drinking age more lenient than ours. This includes close allies like Canada, the United Kingdom, and Germany. Twenty-one countries have no legal minimum at all, and the average drinking age worldwide is roughly 18. Now, there are some confounding factors here. Some countries have one legal age for beer and a separate, higher age for spirits. A common combination is 16 for beer and 18 for spirits. Still others leave it up to the discretion of sub-national jurisdictions like states or provinces, and, in some countries, exceptions are made on religious bases. By and large, however, almost every country conforms to the basic model of a minimum legal drinking age like what we have in the U.S.

It could be argued that the U.S. should lower its legal drinking age for a number of reasons. It could be pointed out that underage drinking is rampant and the law can do little to prevent it. It could be pointed out that adults, having attained the age of 18, should be able to make their own choices. It could be pointed out how ludicrous it is that you can die fighting for your country before you are allowed to buy a beer, that you can die for freedom that is at the same time being denied to you. However, I am not going to make those arguments here. I merely want to point out that, with very few exceptions, the only other countries in the world with an alcohol regime as stringent as ours are countries with Muslim majorities whose governments are heavily influenced by Islam. Some of these countries have oppressive governments that deny basic human rights. Generally, it seems that most Americans would not want their government's laws to mirror those of these countries.

Below is a table showing each country organized by minimum legal drinking age. I have highlighted the United States in yellow to make it easy to find. The countries highlighted in green have Islamic-dominated governments or have populations the majority of which is Muslim.

*It should be noted that this article is not meant to denigrate Muslims or the Islamic faith.