You can buy beer and wine on Sunday in Texas from 10:00 AM to midnight at grocery stores, convenience stores, and other off-premise retailers, but you cannot buy liquor. Package stores are closed the entire day. Buying alcohol on Sunday in Texas comes with a few more wrinkles depending on whether you’re taking a bottle home, sitting at a bar, or visiting a winery, and none of the rules apply at all in the state’s remaining dry areas.1Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. FAQs – Section: Hours of Sale and Consumption
Beer and Wine at Grocery and Convenience Stores
Retailers with an off-premises license can sell beer and wine from 10:00 AM to midnight on Sundays.1Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. FAQs – Section: Hours of Sale and Consumption The 10:00 AM start is relatively new. Before September 2021, off-premise Sunday sales didn’t begin until noon, until House Bill 1518 moved the start time back by two hours during the 87th legislative session.2Texas Legislature Online. 87(R) HB 1518 – Enrolled Version – Bill Text
One quirk catches people out. A wine-only package store that also holds a beer license follows the same 10:00 AM to midnight Sunday window, but it cannot sell any wine over 17 percent alcohol by volume on a Sunday or after 10:00 PM on any day. A wine-only package store without a beer license has to keep the same schedule as a liquor store and stay closed all day Sunday.1Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. FAQs – Section: Hours of Sale and Consumption
Liquor Stores Are Closed All Day Sunday
Package stores cannot sell distilled spirits on Sunday anywhere in Texas. There is no workaround. They’re also closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day, and if Christmas or New Year’s Day falls on a Sunday, they stay closed the following Monday too. On every other day, hours run from 10:00 AM to 9:00 PM.1Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. FAQs – Section: Hours of Sale and Consumption
Drinking at Bars and Restaurants on Sunday
On-premises rules are different from take-home rules. Establishments with an on-premises license can serve any alcoholic beverage, including cocktails and spirits, from noon to midnight on Sunday. Between 10:00 AM and noon, they can serve alcohol only with food.1Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. FAQs – Section: Hours of Sale and Consumption Brunch mimosas at 10:30 AM are fine. Walking into a bar at 11:00 AM for a beer, with no food, is not.
Establishments with a late hours certificate can serve until 2:00 AM, but only where the city or county has authorized extended hours.3Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. Mixed Beverage Permit (MB) – Section: Regular Hours of Sale and Consumption The statute ties late hours to population thresholds and local government action, so not every area allows 2:00 AM service.4State of Texas. Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code 105.05 – Hours of Sale: Malt Beverages
Wineries, Sports Venues, and Festivals
Wineries can sell from 10:00 AM to midnight on Sunday with no food requirement during the early hours.1Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. FAQs – Section: Hours of Sale and Consumption
Sports venues, festivals, fairs, and concerts get a specific carve-out. On top of whatever hours they’re otherwise authorized to sell alcohol, they can also sell between 10:00 AM and noon on Sunday.1Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. FAQs – Section: Hours of Sale and Consumption That matters for early-kickoff football games and morning festival sessions that would otherwise fall inside the food-required window.
The Hotel Guest Exception
Registered hotel guests can consume or possess alcohol in the hotel bar at any time, including the Sunday morning hours when public consumption is otherwise restricted.5State of Texas. Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code 105.06 – Hours of Consumption The exception applies to the hotel bar itself, not to a restaurant that merely happens to be inside a hotel.
Dry Areas Where None of This Applies
Everything above assumes you’re in a wet area. Texas still has dry areas where some or all types of alcohol cannot be sold at all, regardless of the day. An area is dry as to a particular beverage if voters have prohibited that beverage’s sale through a local option election.6State of Texas. Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code Chapter 251 – Local Option Status Some areas are fully dry, some allow beer but not liquor, and some are “moist,” permitting sales at specific establishments such as restaurants. Pockets of dry territory remain, especially in rural counties. Check your area’s status on the TABC website before assuming Sunday sales are possible.7Texas Secretary of State. Local Option Liquor Elections
Penalties for Selling or Buying Outside the Rules
Selling or offering to sell an alcoholic beverage during prohibited hours is a Class A misdemeanor under Section 105.10 of the Alcoholic Beverage Code, carrying up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $4,000. The TABC can also take administrative action against the business’s license, including fines, temporary suspension, or cancellation.8State of Texas. Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code Section 28.17 – Summary Suspension
For consumers, the risk is smaller. Consuming alcohol in a public place during prohibited Sunday morning hours is a Class C misdemeanor, the same level as a traffic ticket, with a fine of up to $500.5State of Texas. Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code 105.06 – Hours of Consumption Selling alcohol in a dry area is a Class B misdemeanor, and a third or subsequent offense becomes a state jail felony.9State of Texas. Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code 101.31 – Alcoholic Beverages in Dry Areas