Soft Drinks Insight Report 2026

What the report covers

The Soft Drinks Insight Report 2026 looks at how often UK university students drink soft and energy drinks, when they drink them, which brands they choose and where they buy. It draws on 4,012 responses across two Dig In student studies run as part of Dig In’s nationwide sampling campaigns, plus a separate survey of 3,019 students for the Coca-Cola case study. These are stated habits and intent, not confirmed sales.

Key findings

• 70% of students have soft drinks a few times a week or more, and 29.8% every day.

• 62.4% drink energy drinks at least weekly.

• Coca-Cola is the go-to soft drink brand for 37.7% of students, followed by Pepsi (16.3%) and Fanta (15.5%).

• Supermarkets lead, but convenience stores (40.1%), university shops (15.3%) and gyms (11.6%) all put drinks close to halls and campus.

• 89.9% of students who received a Coca-Cola Original or Zero sample said they were likely to buy it.

Inside the report

• Habits and frequency

• When students drink

• Go-to brands

• Where students buy

• Case study: Coca-Cola

• The day-one moment

• What it means for drinks brands

• 2027 opportunities

Who it’s for

Brand and shopper marketing teams at soft drink, energy drink and mixer brands, from established leaders to challengers and new launches, and the agencies that plan for them.

How to cite it

Dig In, Soft Drinks Insight Report 2026. Please credit Dig In and link to this page when you quote it.