What does "alcohol-free" actually mean?

In the UK, "alcohol-free" is a specific labelling term, not a marketing phrase - it means the drink is 0.05% ABV or below. That is not literally zero for every product, but it is low enough that you would need to drink an unrealistic amount in one sitting for it to have any measurable effect.

It sits alongside two other regulated terms that get used loosely in conversation but mean different things on a label:

• De-alcoholised - up to 0.5% ABV
• Low alcohol - up to 1.2% ABV

So a "de-alcoholised" beer at 0.5% is a genuinely different product from a true 0.0% "alcohol-free" one, even though people use the terms interchangeably. If the exact number matters to you - driving, pregnancy, recovery - check the label rather than the shelf category, and see our full breakdown of the three terms.