Main Points

• In 2024, there were 1,185 alcohol-specific deaths registered in Scotland, a decrease of 7% (92 deaths) compared with 2023. 
• This is the lowest number of alcohol-specific deaths registered in any year since 2019.
• After adjusting for age, there were 20.9 alcohol-specific deaths per 100,000 people in Scotland in 2024, a decrease compared with 2023 (22.5 per 100,000). This was not a statistically significant decrease in rate.
• Male deaths continued to account for around two thirds of alcohol-specific deaths. Both male and female deaths decreased in the past year.
• The age profile of alcohol-specific deaths has become older over time, with the average age increasing in the last decade.
• After adjusting for age, Glasgow City, Inverclyde, North Lanarkshire, West Dunbartonshire and Dundee City had higher alcohol-specific mortality rates than the Scottish average in the period 2020-2024.
• Alcohol-specific mortality rates were 4.5 times as high in the most deprived areas of Scotland compared to the least deprived areas in 2024. In contrast, for all causes of death, people in the most deprived areas are around twice as likely to die as those in the least deprived areas.
• In 2023, Scotland continued to have the highest rate of alcohol-specific deaths of the UK constituent countries, though the difference has narrowed over time. Data for 2023 is the latest year that data is available across the UK.