Background: Excess alcohol consumption increases the risk of physical and mental illness, personal injury, and premature death. Too much alcohol also poses risks to community safety and wellbeing. For this reason, states like Iowa monitor the sale of alcohol to understand where high levels of alcohol consumption pose risks to communities, families, and individuals.

Map: The map to the right was designed to help the Alcoholic Beverages Division, communities, and public health agencies identify the locations of excessive liquor sales owing to the risk to community health and safety. The green circles show the location of liquor sales, and the size of the circles indicates the volume of sales: the larger the circle, the higher to total sales. The map also includes county-level estimates of population size.

Interactivity: Click on the map layer feature in the top right corner of the map to see a list of map elements. These include population estimates and annual sales in gallons, by liquor sales establishment. Check the circles to see sales volumes for different years or to turn on/off county-level shading of population size (darker purple indicates higher population). Use the buttons on the top left of the map to zoom in or out. Click on any of the green circles to see detailed sales and location information.

Definitions: Alcohol sales are reported in total annual gallon sold per 10,000 people. Population estimates are for the adult population (21+) and are reported as five-year averages.

Sources:
Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division, Iowa Liquor Sales, 2010-2020
United States Census Bureau American Community Survey Demographic and Housing Estimates, Table DP05, 5 -year Population Estimates 2015-2019
United States Census Bureau American Community Survey Demographic and Housing Estimates, Table DP05, 5 -year Population Estimates 2010-2015