Buying alcohol in Texas works on three separate clocks. Beer and wine are sold at grocery stores, gas stations, and convenience stores starting at 7 a.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. on Sundays. Liquor is sold only at licensed package stores, and only Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Bars and restaurants run on their own schedule. You must be 21 to buy any of it.
Who Can Buy
The legal age to buy alcohol in Texas is 21, and it applies to beer, wine, and spirits equally. Retailers face their own penalties for selling to anyone underage, so expect an ID check, especially if you look under 30.1Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. Underage Drinking A minor cannot purchase alcohol under any circumstances, even with a parent standing next to them.
Where Each Type of Alcohol Is Sold
Texas draws a hard line between beer and wine on one side and distilled spirits on the other. Where you shop determines what you can walk out with.
Grocery and Convenience Stores
Grocery stores, gas stations, and convenience stores can sell beer and wine to go, but they’re capped at products containing no more than 17% alcohol by volume.2Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. FAQs – Section: Hours of Sale and Consumption That covers standard beer, hard seltzers, and most table wines. It does not cover fortified wines or any liquor. You will never find a bottle of whiskey at an H-E-B.
Package Stores
Spirits are sold only at licensed package stores, which is what Texas calls liquor stores.3State of Texas. Alcoholic Beverage Code Chapter 22 – Package Store Permit They also sell beer and wine, but everything is for off-premise consumption. You can’t open a bottle there.
Bars and Restaurants
A bar or restaurant with a Mixed Beverage Permit can serve every kind of alcohol on-site, including cocktails made with spirits.4Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. Mixed Beverage Permit (MB) Guide Some restaurants hold only a beer and wine permit, so no liquor-based drinks are available. The TABC permit is usually posted near the entrance if you want to check.
Breweries and Wineries
Texas breweries and wineries can sell their own products to visitors for both on-site drinking and carry-out. Wineries holding a Winery Permit can also ship wine directly to Texas consumers through an authorized carrier.5Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. Alcohol Delivery and Pickup
Hours of Sale
Three different schedules govern when alcohol can be sold. They rarely match, and Sunday is where most people get tripped up.
Beer and Wine to Go
- Monday through Friday: 7 a.m. to midnight
- Saturday: 7 a.m. to 1 a.m. Sunday
- Sunday: 10 a.m. to midnight
The Saturday cutoff at 1 a.m. means you can technically buy beer or wine in the first hour of Sunday morning, but then the register locks out until 10 a.m.2Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. FAQs – Section: Hours of Sale and Consumption
Package Stores
- Monday through Saturday: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.
- Sunday: Closed
- New Year’s Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas: Closed
When Christmas or New Year’s Day falls on a Sunday, the closure extends to Monday.6State of Texas. Alcoholic Beverage Code Chapter 105 – Hours of Sale Plan ahead before any holiday weekend. The package store window is the narrowest in Texas retail.
Bars and Restaurants
- Monday through Friday: 7 a.m. to midnight
- Saturday: 7 a.m. to 1 a.m. Sunday
- Sunday: noon to midnight, or 10 a.m. when alcohol is served with food
The Sunday brunch rule catches people off guard. Order a mimosa alongside eggs at 10:30 a.m. and the restaurant can serve it. Walk into a bar at 11 a.m. wanting just a beer and you’re waiting until noon.2Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. FAQs – Section: Hours of Sale and Consumption
Bars That Stay Open Until 2 a.m.
Some bars and restaurants can keep serving until 2 a.m. every night. Two things have to be true. The establishment must hold a Retailer Late Hours Certificate from the TABC, and the local city or county must authorize extended hours. In cities and counties with populations above 800,000, the extension is automatic for any permit holder with the certificate. In smaller jurisdictions, the city council or commissioners court has to pass an ordinance or order first.7State of Texas. Alcoholic Beverage Code 105.05 – Hours of Sale Malt Beverages Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, and Austin all allow 2 a.m. service.
Delivery to Your Door
Alcohol delivery is legal in Texas, and the rules depend on who is delivering what. Most deliveries move through a third-party service holding a Consumer Delivery Permit from the TABC, though some retailers can self-deliver.
Package stores can deliver beer, wine, and spirits in their original sealed containers, either directly or through a permitted third-party service, but only within two miles of the store’s city or county limits. Restaurants and bars with a Mixed Beverage Permit and a Food and Beverage Certificate can deliver any type of alcohol, including cocktails, when it accompanies a food order. Grocery stores and beer-and-wine retailers can deliver anything at or below 17% ABV through a permitted third-party service.5Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. Alcohol Delivery and Pickup
The same sale-hour rules apply to delivery. A driver can’t drop off a bottle of wine at 2 a.m. because you ordered it at 11 p.m. The handoff has to happen during legal sale hours, and whoever answers the door must be 21 or older with valid ID.
Wet, Dry, and Everything in Between
Texas doesn’t apply a single alcohol-sale rulebook across the whole state. Counties, cities, and even justice-of-the-peace precincts hold “local option elections” to decide whether alcohol sales are allowed and, if so, which kinds.8Justia Law. Texas Election Code Title 17 Chapter 501 – Local Option Elections on Sale of Alcoholic Beverages
A fully wet area allows every type of alcohol sale. A fully dry area bans them. Most places sit somewhere in between: beer and wine but no liquor, or on-premise sales at restaurants but no package stores. You can drive ten minutes and go from a town with a fully stocked liquor store into one where nothing stronger than sweet tea is on the shelf. Before a trip or a move, check the TABC’s local option status records for the specific city or county.