In the MA Beer Report 2026, which is being launched today, statistics from NIQ show the nearest competitor at the bar to world lager (30.3%) is core lager at 20.6%, stout at 13.1% and premium lager at 7.7% when it comes to volume sales in the 12 months up to March 2026.
When it comes to money, value sales are shared similarly but world lager’s 34.9% is followed by core lager at 16.2%, stout at 13.6% and premium lager at 8.0%.
These are just a couple of the findings in the MA Beer Report 2026 and included is exclusive data from The MA’s Pint Price survey that shows the average price of pint has risen 3.3% in the past year.
30 different beer brands
The Pint Price data that shows the differences in pint prices from June in 2025 to now has discovered prices have risen across the board in close to 30 different beer brands but operators in certain regions of England, Wales and Scotland have seen falls in prices of Stella Artois, Coors Light, Camden Hells plus in cask favourites Green King IPA, Wainwright and Pedigree.
Our Pint Price survey data shows Asahi is the biggest riser in terms of payment per pint after leaping an eye-watering 78p – food for thought for licensees bidding to up sales in an extremely tough trading climate while the price for an Estrella Damm, Peroni and Heineken have risen significantly in the ‘premium lager’ category, according to our operators’ responses. There is a one notable beer that has actually decreased in price (not listed above) – just check out the MA Beer Report 2026 for details.
For cask fans, Timothy Taylor’s Landlord leads the line when it comes to the highest priced cask beer and that figure has gone up in the past 12 months; unsurprisingly Guinness procures the highest amount in the stout category and has witnessed a 26p uptick in cost over the past year.
Loads more
There are so many more insights – not just on pint prices – within the MA Beer Report 2026. We have NIQ data as shown above plus loads more and insight from account director Charlie Booth; opinion from The MA senior reporter Rebecca Weller on innovation with beer; detailed analysis of volume and value sales across sectors such as low & no, three ale sections, four lager categories and craft beer.
We round off the report with the latest trends being seen at Blind Jack’s, which won Best Beer Pub in the Great British Pub Awards last year.
Just click here, fill in a few details and access to the report will be yours.