Non-alcoholic beers are on track to become the second most popular type of beer this year, beverage alcohol data firm IWSR said Thursday.

Lager is the world’s favorite kind of beer, commanding 92% of market share by volume. Non-alcoholic beer, by comparison, has a 2% market share, according to CNBC.

Sales of non-alcoholic beer worldwide increased 9% by volume in 2024, IWSR said, and the firm forecasts that beers without alcohol will surpass ale to become the second-biggest type of beer sold by the end of the year.

That trend is expected to continue. IWSR projects that the amount of non-alcoholic beer sold will grow by 8% a year through 2029, while ale sales will drop by 2% yearly in that same period, according to CNBC.

The volume sold of all alcoholic drinks dropped by 1% in 2024, but their value rose by 1%, according to IWSR.

Beer sales also slipped, though certain types of beer did well in 2024. In the U.S., the volume of “super premium” beers sold climbed by 2%, and the stout beer sales rose by 5%.

• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.