Booze from home: Survey links WFH to increased drinking

Drinking alone appears to be on the rise, and remote work may partly be to blame, a survey finds.

Over one in four (27%) of British adults say that they or their loved ones have started drinking more on their own, a survey by the mental health and addiction provider The Priory shared with Cybernews found.

One in six (18%respondents suspect that a loved one started drinking more since they began working from home regularly.

The trend is especially pronounced in major cities like London, Manchester, and Sheffield, where nearly one in three report increased drinking at home.

The new study indicates that higher earners who work remotely are significantly more likely to report higher alcohol consumption, as having no clear end to the working day may lead people to start drinking earlier in the evening.

Nearly half (43%) of those earning more than £100,000 ($134,000) a year and working from home said their alcohol consumption increased. In contrast, only 22% of households earning under £50,000 ($67,000) say they are drinking more.

“With less expectation of being present ‘in person’, employees have the freedom to manage their day, work calls, and virtual meetings around their schedule – and, as we’re seeing in our addiction therapy programmes, that can also be around their drinking,” Debbie Longsdale, Private Clinical Pathways Director at Priory, said in a press release.

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The findings align with earlier studies suggesting that remote work, which has become highly common during the COVID-19 pandemic, may contribute to increased drinking.

A 2025 study that examined the Norwegian workforce found that remote employees reported 28% more drinking episodes and 26% more heavy episodic drinking than other employees.

However, those who started working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic didn’t report higher alcohol consumption compared to pre-pandemic remote workers.

While lockdowns may feel like a relic of the past, working from home remains common in the United Kingdom, with 14% of employees working remotely full-time and 35% at least some of the time.

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