Boulder, Colo. — The Brewers Association—the not-for-profit trade association dedicated to small and independent American brewers—today released its annual list of the top 50 producing craft brewing companies and overall brewing companies in the U.S., based on beer sales volume. Of the top 50 overall brewing companies, 40 were small and independent craft brewing companies.¹  

“The COVID-19 pandemic drastically changed where Americans purchased alcohol in 2020. Breweries who had established packaging and distribution capacity were best positioned to take advantage of the boom in off-premise sales and weather market uncertainty,” said Bart Watson, chief economist, Brewers Association. “These businesses also saw variation in performance based on geography and business model, with different parts of the country seeing very different beer trends, and draught-heavy breweries suffering.” 

View and download map of top 50 producing craft brewing companies

A comprehensive State of the Industry report will be presented via online webinar on April 8, 2021. 

The Brewers Association’s full 2020 industry analysis, which shows regional trends and sales by individual breweries, will be published in the May/June issue of The New Brewer®, available in May 2021.

Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies

Top 50 Overall Brewing Companies

¹ Figure based on companies that met the craft brewer definition for all or part of 2020. An American craft brewer is a small and independent brewer. Small: annual production of 6 million barrels of beer or less (approximately 3 percent of U.S. annual sales). Beer production is attributed to the rules of alternating proprietorships. Independent: less than 25 percent of the craft brewery is owned or controlled (or equivalent economic interest) by an alcoholic beverage industry member that is not itself a craft brewer. Brewer: has a TTB brewer’s notice and makes beer. 

View a list of brands included under the companies in the overall brewing category

Contact: Jenelle Scott (on behalf of the Brewers Association) jenelle.scott@backbonemedia.net, 970-963-4873 x224

About the Brewers Association

The Brewers Association (BA) is the not-for-profit trade association dedicated to small and independent American brewers, their beers, and the community of brewing enthusiasts. The BA represents 5,600-plus U.S. breweries. The BA’s independent craft brewer seal is a widely adopted symbol that differentiates beers by small and independent craft brewers. The Brewers Association organizes events, including the World Beer Cup^®, Great American Beer Festival^®, Craft Brewers Conference^® & BrewExpo America^®, National Homebrew Competition, and American Craft Beer Week^®. The BA publishes The New Brewer^® and Zymurgy^® magazines, and Brewers Publications^® is the leading publisher of brewing literature in the U.S. Beer lovers are invited to learn more about the dynamic world of craft beer at CraftBeer.com^® and about homebrewing via the American Homebrewers Association^®. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

The Brewers Association is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital/familial status. The BA complies with provisions of Executive Order 13672 and the rules, regulations, and relevant orders of the Secretary of Labor.