Know Your Alcohol Units, Know Your Limits

Helping Our Community Make Safer Choices

Alcohol can affect people differently, but understanding alcohol units is a simple way to help make informed choices. The images highlight an important message for the community: know what one unit of alcohol looks like, keep track of how much you are drinking, and stay within safer limits.

Knowing your units can help reduce harm, support better decision-making, and keep people safe at home, on nights out, and on the roads.

What Does 1 Unit of Alcohol Look Like?

One unit of alcohol is not always the same as one drink. Different drinks have different strengths and serving sizes.

The image shows that 1 unit of alcohol is approximately:

This means that larger glasses, stronger drinks, or repeated top-ups can quickly add up without people realising.

Know Your Units

The second image reminds the community that different drinks contain different numbers of units. For example:

Keeping track of units helps people understand how much alcohol is being consumed and when to slow down or stop.

Know Your Limits

The images highlight guidance around daily limits:

The Drinkaware image also states: “You shouldn’t regularly exceed 14 units per week.”

Spreading alcohol intake across the week and having alcohol-free days can help reduce health risks.

Why This Matters

Drinking too much alcohol can increase the risk of:

Understanding units is not about stopping people from enjoying themselves — it is about helping people make safer and more informed choices.

Look After Each Other

Community safety is everyone’s responsibility. If someone appears to have had too much to drink:

Looking out for friends, family and neighbours can prevent serious harm.