The states where 40 oz beers are illegal to sell in standard retail packaging are Alabama and Florida. Both cap the size of pre-packaged individual beer containers below 40 ounces, which keeps the format off store shelves. Every other state allows 40-ounce beers under state law, though local ordinances, dry counties, alcohol-by-volume caps, and limited distribution can still take them off the shelf in specific places.
Alabama Caps Containers at 25.4 Ounces
Alabama holds one of the strictest container-size limits in the country. Until 2012, state law barred the sale of beer in individual containers larger than 16 ounces. The “Gourmet Bottle Law” raised the ceiling to 25.4 ounces, which matches a standard 750-milliliter wine bottle. That change let craft beer bombers onto Alabama shelves but left the 40-ounce format out.
Draft beer is a separate matter. Refillable growlers up to 128 ounces are allowed, but they have to be filled at the point of sale, so they do not substitute for a pre-packaged 40 off a cooler shelf.1Alabama Administrative Code. Alabama Code 20-X-6-.18 – Draft Beer For Off-Premises Consumption The practical result is simple: you cannot walk into an Alabama store and buy a 40.
Florida Caps Pre-Packaged Beer at 32 Ounces
Florida law limits pre-packaged individual malt beverage containers to 32 ounces. The exceptions are kegs, barrels, and containers of one gallon (128 ounces) or more. A 40-ounce bottle falls in the gap between 32 ounces and a gallon, so it is not legal for retail sale in its standard pre-packaged form.2The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 563.06 – Malt Beverages; Imprint on Individual Container; Size of Containers; Exemptions
Florida also allows growlers filled at the point of sale in 32-, 64-, or 128-ounce sizes. The 64-ounce size was added in 2015, ending what craft beer advocates called the “growler war.” Growlers are a taproom product, though, not a packaged malt liquor, so the exception doesn’t bring the classic 40 back to convenience store coolers.2The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 563.06 – Malt Beverages; Imprint on Individual Container; Size of Containers; Exemptions
Local Ordinances and Dry Counties
Even where state law permits a 40-ounce beer, cities and counties can block it. Some municipalities have passed ordinances targeting single-serve large containers, banning individual beers above a certain size in specific neighborhoods or commercial zones. These rules tend to be driven by public nuisance concerns and apply to narrow areas rather than whole cities.
Dry counties remove the question entirely. Hundreds of dry or partially dry counties exist across the United States, concentrated in the South and parts of the Midwest. In a dry county, no alcohol is sold at retail, 40-ounce or otherwise.
Local alcohol ordinances are not always easy to look up. Some states keep searchable databases; many do not. If you are traveling and want to know whether 40s are sold in a particular place, the local clerk’s office or the state’s alcohol beverage control agency is the most reliable source.
ABV Caps Can Push 40s Off the Shelf
A handful of states cap the alcohol by volume of beer sold in certain retail channels. Those caps typically run from around 4% to 14%. Most mass-market 40-ounce malt liquors sit between 5.9% and 8.1% ABV, which puts them above the limit in states that cap beer in grocery and convenience stores at the low end of that range. In those states, higher-strength 40s may only be available at dedicated liquor stores, or not at all if they exceed the state cap.
Control States and Distribution Gaps
Seventeen states and some local jurisdictions use a “control” model, where the government handles wholesale distribution and sometimes retail sales of certain alcoholic beverages.3National Alcohol Beverage Control Association. Control State Directory and Info Most control states focus on spirits rather than beer, so living in one does not automatically mean 40s are restricted. But a state-run distribution system can decline to carry less-common container sizes even when no statute bans them, and if the state store doesn’t stock a product, it is effectively unavailable.
The Short Version
- Alabama caps pre-packaged beer containers at 25.4 ounces, so a 40 cannot be sold.
- Florida caps pre-packaged individual malt beverage containers at 32 ounces, with exceptions only for growlers and gallon-plus containers, so a standard retail 40 cannot be sold.2The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 563.06 – Malt Beverages; Imprint on Individual Container; Size of Containers; Exemptions
- Every other state allows 40-ounce beers under state law, though local ordinances, dry counties, ABV caps, and distribution choices in control states can still make them unavailable in specific places.
Rules can shift at the county or city level with little public notice. If you need to know what applies where you live or where you are heading, your state’s alcohol beverage control agency is the place to check.