The Legal Drinking Age in Each Country [MAP]

For many, being able to buy a legal drink is a sign of maturity and freedom — and perhaps a harbinger of questionable decisions and good times to come.

While 21 years old is the standard for most of the United States (looking at you, Wisconsin), many consumers across the world have earlier introductions to alcohol. In fact, 64 percent of the world’s nations have legal drinking ages of 18.

The youngest legal drinking age in the world is 15, with both Mali and the Central African Republic allowing folks to drink at that time. Seven countries do not have a government-mandated drinking age, while 11 countries ban the consumption of booze entirely.

In Canada, India, and the United Arab Emirates, different regions have varying legal drinking ages.

Want to know more about legal drinking ages around the world? Check out the map below to discover the legal minimum drinking ages of countries around the world!

*Drinking age is 18 in Alberta, Manitoba, and Quebec. In all remaining provinces and territories, the legal drinking age is 19.

** In Abu Dhabi, the legal drinking age is 18. In all other territories besides Sharjah, the age limit is 21 years. The sale, supply and consumption of alcohol are prohibited in Sharjah.

*** The minimum age for purchasing alcohol in India is 18 in Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Sikkim, and Puducherry. The drinking age is 21 in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Orissa, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Haryana, Meghalaya, Punjab, Delhi. Alcohol is prohibited in Bihar, Gujarat, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Lakshadweep.