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What does 0.5% ABV actually mean?

By Alex Stewart

Updated 1 November 2026. Every figure links to its source below. How these pages are made.

Quick answer0.5% ABV means half a percent of the drink is alcohol. A 440ml can at 0.5% holds 2.2ml of alcohol, which is 0.22 UK units. A pint of 4.4% lager holds about 2.5 units, so you would need roughly eleven 0.5% cans to match one pint.

The UK labels, in plain English

Label	Maximum ABV
Alcohol free	0.05%
De-alcoholised	0.5%
Low alcohol	1.2%

These come from the Department of Health and Social Care's guidance for England:

Alcohol free – this should only be applied to a drink from which the alcohol has been extracted if it contains no more than 0.05% abv

The guidance is voluntary. Drinkaware explains what that means on the shelf:

Because the guidance is voluntary, in practice you might see alcohol-free labelled drinks that are up to 0.5% ABV for sale.

Ratings compared

Checked 5 Nov 2026

1	IMPOSSIBREW	4.4	1,036 reviews
2	Lucky Saint	4.3	3,734 reviews
3	BrewDog	4.0	2,600 reviews
Not ranked: fewer than 1,000 reviews
	Nirvana Brewery	4.8	232 reviews
	Collider	4.2	132 reviews
	Peroni	3.1	4 reviews
	Guinness	2.4	9 reviews
	Heineken	2.0	102 reviews
	Corona	1.9	13 reviews
	Budweiser	1.4	491 reviews
On Trustpilot, no reviews yet: Big Drop, Bero

Brands with 1,000+ Trustpilot reviews are ranked. TrustScores and review counts from each brand's Trustpilot page, checked 5 Nov 2026.

So is 0.5% beer legally alcohol?

Not under licensing law. The Licensing Act 2003 (England and Wales) and the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 both exclude drinks at 0.5% or less from their definition of alcohol, so a 0.5% beer can be sold without an alcohol licence.

How 0.5% compares with everyday food

A government evidence review notes that alcohol occurs naturally in food, citing research that found about 1.2g of alcohol per 100g of bread and up to 0.77g per litre of fruit juice. The same review points out those foods have nutritional benefits that alcohol-free drinks do not.

Units at a glance

Drink	Units
440ml can at 0.5%	0.22
330ml can at 0.5%	0.17
Pint (568ml) at 0.5%	0.28
Pint (568ml) at 4.4%	2.5
440ml can at 0.05%	0.02

Units = volume in ml × ABV ÷ 1,000. One UK unit is 10ml of pure alcohol (NHS).

Who should pick 0.0% instead

Drinkaware says alcohol-free drinks at up to 0.5% are not suitable if you need to avoid alcohol completely, if you are pregnant, or for under-18s. Days, Heineken 0.0, Guinness 0.0, Peroni 0.0, Corona Cero and Budweiser Zero are all sold as 0.0%. IMPOSSIBREW, Lucky Saint, Bero, Big Drop, Collider and Nirvana are 0.5% or just under.

See IMPOSSIBREW Enhanced Lager (0.5%) →

FAQs

Can you get drunk on 0.5% beer?

A 440ml can at 0.5% holds 0.22 units, so it would take roughly eleven cans to match the alcohol in one pint of 4.4% lager. Bodies differ, so this is arithmetic rather than a guarantee.

Is 0.5% classed as alcohol-free in the UK?

England's government guidance reserves 'alcohol free' for 0.05% or less and calls 0.5% 'de-alcoholised'. The guidance is voluntary, so many 0.5% beers are sold as alcohol-free.

How many units are in a 0.5% beer?

0.22 units in a 440ml can, 0.17 in a 330ml can.

Do you need a licence to sell 0.5% beer?

No. UK licensing law does not count drinks at 0.5% or less as alcohol.

Sources

All read 1 November 2026 unless stated.