Beer Gains on Weekdays. Hard Seltzer Retreats to the Weekend.

Beer and hard seltzer are carving out increasingly distinct niches on the weekly calendar, according to new research from Datassential.

While at-home and weekend beer occasions continue to account for the bulk of consumption, weekday occasions showed a notable uptick in Datassential’s SIP 2026: Beer report — up 7% on-premise and up 15% off-premise. At the same time, at-home beer occasions declined 6% — suggesting consumption is shifting out of the house and into bars and restaurants, increasingly on weekdays.

Hard seltzer is moving in the opposite direction. The share of away-from-home hard seltzer occasions falling on weekdays dropped 11% year over year, while weekend occasions rose by the same margin, according to Datassential’s SIP 2026: Hard Seltzer report. That shift deepens a pattern already evident in the prior year’s data, when 71% of on-premise hard seltzer occasions took place on weekends.

The pricing dynamics also differ. Among beer drinkers who went out, 74% paid full price — up 6% year over year — while happy hour usage dropped 9%, the SIP 2026 Beer report found.

For hard seltzer, promotions remain a more significant factor: 43% of those who had hard seltzer at a bar or restaurant on their last occasion took advantage of a happy hour deal or pricing promotion, and happy hour’s share of on-premise hard seltzer occasions rose 7% year over year.

Both categories share the same top venues, with casual bars (38% for beer, 32% for hard seltzer) and casual-dining restaurants (25% for beer, 25% for hard seltzer) leading away-from-home occasions for each. But the days and pricing conditions that bring consumers in are diverging.

The SIP 2026 reports surveyed 787 beer drinkers and 775 hard seltzer drinkers, respectively, among U.S. consumers aged 21+ who typically drink alcohol at least a few times per year.