While the Sunflower State has seen its fair share of benefits from Kansas’ ever-expanding micro brewing and distilling industry, there’s no denying that there are downsides when it comes to the rate of problem drinking in the region.
That issue appears to be more widespread in certain parts of Kansas versus others, with places like Riley, Douglas, and Johnson counties having higher rates of excessive drinkers than the rest of the state.
Using CountyHealthRankings.org, BetKansas.com took a quick break from Kansas sports betting news and utilized the 2024 annual data by county of Kansas that includes the percentage of adults who reported as either binge or heavy drinking.
The CDC defined binge drinking as 4 or more drinks in one occasion for females, while it is 5 or more in one occasion for males. Heavy drinking is defined as 8 or more drinks per week for females and 15 or more drinks per week for males.
Top 10 Booziest Counties In Kansas
| Overall Rank | County | % of Excessive Drinkers |
| 1 | Riley County | 24.53% |
| 2 | Douglas County | 21.92% |
| 3 | Johnson County | 20.25% |
| 4 | Leavenworth County | 19.84% |
| 5 | Grant County | 19.82% |
| 6 | Pottawatomie County | 19.78% |
| 7 | Ellis County | 19.74% |
| 8 | Atchison County | 19.23% |
| 9 | Ellsworth County | 19.22% |
| 10 | Crawford County | 19.05% |
Which KS Counties Have Highest Excessive Drinker Rates?
The top KS counties when it comes to excessive drinker rates are Riley County, at 24.53%, followed by Douglas County (21.92%) and Johnson County (20.25%), with no other county in the Sunflower State having rates above 20%.
The next closest would be Leavenworth County, which comes in at 19.84%, while Grant County (19.82%), Pottawatomie County (19.78%), Ellis County (19.74%), Atchison County (19.23%), Ellsworth County (19.22%) and Crawford County (19.05%) round out the Kansas top 10 when it comes to excessive drinking rate.
While it might be of little surprise to many that the counties with the highest excessive drinking rates are home to a military base or state university (or in Riley County’s case, all of the above), there’s still reason for concern about the rates of excessive drinking in certain parts of the state.
Christopher Boan – betkansas.com
Christopher Boan is a lead writer at BetKansas.com specializing in covering state issues. He covered sports and sports betting in Arizona for more than seven years.
