32 non-alcoholic cocktail alternatives worth making at home

Non-alcoholic cocktail alternatives are a great way to enjoy your favourite tipple without the buzz

Collection of non-alcoholic cocktail alternatives, including espresso tonic, Shirley Temple, and coconut and mango slushies
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Non-alcoholic cocktail alternatives are a great way to enjoy your favourite tipple without the buzz. From a 0% mojito to an inventive spin on the classic espresso martini, we reveal how to make them all.

No matter the time of year, having a couple of non-alcoholic cocktail alternatives in your back pocket is very useful. Whether you're having a dinner party or looking for something special to see out the week with, these options are great for reaping all the benefits of not drinking alcohol.

We've collated this list of cocktails, ensuring that each one is easy to make with regular household ingredients - or ones that are widely available to buy online, or at your local supermarket.

Non-alcoholic cocktail ideas

Virgin Mary

Bloody Mary cocktail with garnish in glass, surrounded by ingredients

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A Virgin Mary cocktail is one of the classic cocktail alternatives, using similar ingredients to a Bloody Mary - but no vodka.

To make one, combine tomato and lemon juice, fill a glass with ice and pour the juices over the top. Add a dash of Worchester sauce, a teaspoon of celery salt, freshly ground black pepper, and two dashes of hot sauce.

Don't forget the all-important details to truly replicate the classic cocktail though - a celery stick, lime wedge and cherry tomato. It's like a salad in a glass.

Shirley Temple

Shirley Temple cocktail with ice and maraschino cherry sitting in tall glass

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A Shirley Temple is a sweet and refreshing spin on an Old Fashioned, traditionally made without alcohol, and originating from 1930s Hollywood.

Take a tall glass and fill it with ice, pour in ginger ale and lime juice. Grenadine goes in over the top, and you can use a maraschino cherry and an orange slice to garnish.

Ginger and orange juice

Woman's hands cutting up oranges on a chopping board in sunlight

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Ginger and orange juice doesn't just make a good alternative to cocktails, when served in a tall glass with a carrot stick and a slice of ginger on the edge, it's also packed full of nutrients.

As anti-inflammatory foods high in vitamin C, orange and ginger can help maintain a healthy immune system. An extract of ginger can also aid better digestion, so this is a good post-dinner cocktail alternative to have.

Cranberry fizz

Cranberry fizz in three glasses with lime wedges

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A cranberry fizz is another classic cocktail in which the alcohol ingredient is removed for a similar taste. To avoid the gin, combine caster sugar with cranberries at the bottom of a glass. Pour soda water over the top, and add an orange's worth of slices. Before serving, add a couple of ice cubes.

There are two ways you can make this drink - with fresh or frozen cranberries. Frozen cranberries will give the drink a slushie-like texture.

Ice tea

Peach ice tea in glass beakers with straw and mint garnish

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Ice tea is a fresh, easy-to-make and budget-friendly cocktail alternative. It's great on a hot day but just as good in winter, when you want a reminder of warmer climates. It uses traditional teas, combined with sugar or syrups to create a unique flavour, which you can customise as you like.

Peach iced tea is the classic. You can use herbal peach tea to make it or regular tea bags and add the peach flavour. Lemon or verbena are also good bases with which to make iced tea.

Once made, to finish off your cocktail, garnish the drink with peach slices and fresh mint.

Ginger beer

Two glasses of ginger beer with ice and lime wedges on the side

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Ginger beer might seem like it belongs in the non-alcoholic beer alternatives list, but we promise that if you add the right ingredients, it'll taste just like a Moscow Mule.

With your copper beaker in hand, combine ginger beer, lime juice, soda water, and a simple sugar syrup (one part sugar, one part water). The ginger beer offers the kick, while the lime juice brings a tangy aftertaste.

Mulled apple juice

Mulled apple cider in glass with ice and apple slices to garnish

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In this recipe for mulled apple juice, you simply combine apple juice with a few strips of orange peel, a cinnamon stick, and cloves.

Once the apple juice is simmering on the hob, add the strips of orange peel, cinnamon, and cloves. Keep it lightly bubbling for 10 minutes or so to allow all the flavours to infuse. Then, add sugar or honey (for a more natural taste) to sweeten your cocktail alternative as needed. Leave it to cool and add ice, or drink it warm as an alternative to mulled wine.

Mint lemonade

Mint lemonade in glass carafes with glasses on a wooden tray

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Mint lemonade is a spin on the classic recipe. First things first, you'll need a blender. Then you add lemon juice and mint, along with a simple sugar syrup, blitzing the ingredients together until the mint is very small. Then pour your mixture into a glass, adding a couple of ice cubes.

You can also make a frozen version of this drink. To do this, combine your ingredients with ice in a blender and keep blitzing until the ice takes on a classic slushie consistency.

Virgin Piña Colada

non-alcoholic Pina colada cocktail in glass with garnish and straw

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There are so many flavoursome ingredients in a Piña Colada, you can easily go without the alcohol. Combine pineapple juice with coconut milk, fresh or from a can, with lime juice then top with ice in a tall glass. To finish the cocktail off, garnish the top with a pineapple slice and maraschino cherry. Bonus points if you add a cocktail umbrella.

If you find you're missing the rum flavour, you can replace it with a homemade syrup of brown muscovado sugar, pineapple, black peppercorns, cloves, and cinnamon.

Homemade grenadine

Whole pomegranate with skin on

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Grenadine is a popular syrup used in cocktails like Tequila Sunrise but it actually doesn't contain any alcohol itself. So, you can use it as a replacement in many types of mocktails - or combine it with soda or tonic and drink it on its own.

To make this pomegranate-flavoured syrup, combine pomegranate juice with granulated sugar and a squeeze of orange into water on the hob. Simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes after it reaches a boil, before turning the heat off. Once cooled, add to a decanter with a tight lid. Keep it in your fridge for up to three weeks.

Coconut water

Collection of two coconuts, one open and cut in half and one whole

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Coconut water is perhaps one of the easiest cocktail alternatives to have. There's no preparation needed, you just need to pick up some pure coconut water from your local supermarket.

In a glass, pour your coconut water over ice, adding a slice of coconut if you have it to finish the drink off. It's light and refreshing, making for a sugar-free alternative to some of the more sugary coconut drinks you may have otherwise.

Espresso tonic

Espresso tonic in glass with orange slice

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Want to ditch regular cocktails but still need the kick of an espresso martini? Look no further than an espresso and tonic - yes, really.

As the name suggests, this mixture involves combining freshly made espresso (single or double shot, that's up to you) with tonic water. Be sure to leave the espresso to cool first and add plenty of ice to the glass, garnishing your new pick-me-up with a lime or orange wedge when you're ready to drink.

Non-alcoholic Buck's fizz

Bucks fizz with kombucha in flute glass

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If you're looking for an alcohol-free alternative to this classic Prosecco or champagne cocktail, Buck's fizz with kombucha is a winner. Take a flute or coup of kombucha - your choice of flavour - and top it with orange juice.

You'll get the fizz of the sparkling, without the alcohol.

Grapefruit juice with salt rim

Grapefruit juice in glass with salt on the rim and jalapeno as garnish

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A Paloma is a cocktail made with tequila and grapefruit juice. Keep the grapefruit juice, the salted rim, and garnish, and you have a non-alcoholic Paloma cocktail. Plus, without the alcohol, you can reap the benefits of grapefruit juice.

The benefits of grapefruit juice, such as aiding heart health and improving cholesterol levels, come from the fruit's rich antioxidant and beta-carotene content.

Irish cream

Irish cream being poured into glass through aluminium beaker and mixer

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While Irish cream might seem like a drink reserved exclusively for the colder months, this - and the non-alcoholic varieties - are available to buy in many supermarkets year-round.

You can also make it yourself by combining double cream, evaporated milk, espresso, maple syrup, and a pinch of ground cinnamon with vanilla extract. Pour the drink over ice in a heavy-bottomed glass and serve.

Watermelon and lime mocktail

Watermelon and lime cocktail slushie

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A watermelon mocktail is the perfect summer cooler - or reminder of sunnier climates during the colder months. Combine one watermelon with the juice of two limes and add in some runny honey. Over the top of the mixture, add soda water and mint leaves.

In a glass, put a handful of ice cubes and pour your drink over the top. Then garnish your beverage with a slice of watermelon balanced on the edge with a sprig of mint.

Elderflower spritz

Elderflower spritz cocktail with cucumber garnish

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Elderflower cordial and spritzes are some of the more traditional non-alcoholic cocktail alternatives - but they're popular for a reason. Light and refreshing, they have a similar taste to many of the classic Italian cocktails - like the Hugo spritz.

To make this 0% variety, combine elderflower cordial with a non-alcoholic Prosecco of your choice, topping it up with soda water to finish. Add a handful of ice to a wine glass and pour your cocktail over the top, topping it with a slice of lime as a garnish.

Non-alcoholic daiquiri

strawberry daiquiri cocktail

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A non-alcoholic daiquiri cocktail, much like the traditional drink, is based on strawberries. Take two large strawberries and hull them out. Crush them together with white sugar and combine this with chilled lemon soda, a tablespoon of lemon juice, and a couple of ice cubes.

Serve your mocktail in a coup glass with a sugared rim and a strawberry slice on the side.

Cucumber cooler

Cucumber cooler in glass with garnish

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A cucumber cooler is a refreshingly light alternative to a gin cocktail - and a good way to liven up your sparkling water. Combine elderflower cordial with one and a half cucumbers, smashed up until they resemble a smooth paste. Over the top of this, pour soda water, the juice of four limes and a handful of mint.

When you're ready to serve up your cucumber cooler, add plenty of ice to the glass and garnish the top with a cucumber ribbon and a lime wheel.

Non-alcoholic G&T

Non-alcoholic gin and tonic with lime wedge

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A gin and tonic isn't so much a cocktail as a classic spirit and mixer drink - but it's one of the easiest to turn into a non-alcoholic beverage. Combine your choice of tonic - whether that's slimline, Mediterranean, and so on - with a non-alcoholic gin of your choice.

Many of the big distilleries offer 0.0% options nowadays with the boom of no- and low-alcohol varieties in recent years.

Lemonade

Cloudy lemonade sitting on tray with lemon wedges

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Lemonade is the original cocktail alternative, with homemade and store-bought drinks offering a sour kick and plenty of flavour options - including lemon and lime, cherry, and mango.

To mirror the look of a cocktail, go for a cloudy lemonade and serve it over ice with a garnish of whatever base fruit your lemonade is. For example, a slice of lemon for a classic lemonade.

No-alcohol negroni

Negroni with ice in glass

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A no-alcohol negroni might sound impossible, given this classic cocktail is made from a combination of three spirits - but it can be done using zero-alcohol botanical alternatives. For example, non-alcoholic gin and aperitif syrups combined with orange and aromatic bitters, most of which don't have alcohol in them.

Combine these together with ice in a tumbler and shake. Then pour in a short, heavy bottom glass, and top with a slice of orange.

Fruit punch

Fruit punch in glass with straw

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A fruit punch is the perfect cocktail alternative to use up frozen berries and fruit in your freezer. Much like other cocktails on our list, you can add additional flavours to suit the season - or keep the recipe as is.

To make a classic non-alcoholic fruit punch, combine orange juice, pineapple juice, cranberry juice, and lime juice in a blender. Once combined, pour out into glasses and top each one with a fruit garnish of some kind, like an orange slice.

Apple fizz

Apple fizz in glasses with rosemary and apple slices

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Mix apple and lemon juice, add ice to the blend, and top with a dash of sparkling water. Serve in a tall glass with an apple slice and cinnamon stick as a garnish, or lower the quantity and have this cocktail in a flute or coup as an alternative to champagne.

In the summertime, add a little extra lemon for an additional kick of flavour. In the colder months, a sprinkle of nutmeg brings about a more wintery flavour.

Mango lassi

Mango lassi in glass with paper straws

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Mango lassi is a creamy yoghurt-based drink, originating in India. It's made with mango, milk, a small amount of sugar and some cardamom. It's very easy to make as well - just blend all the ingredients until silky smooth and serve up in a glass of your choice with a ground cardamom garnish or sprig of mint.

It's also traditionally made without alcohol, there's no compromise. It also doesn't have any added sugars and is full of protein, probiotics, and other vitamins.

Alcohol-free amaretto sour

Amaretto sour with metal toothpick and garnish

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A traditional amaretto sour features on most cocktail menus around the world, with its unique blend of sweet and sour. The base is almonds, so to make a non-alcoholic version of this classic cocktail, you just need to swap the amaretto with almond extract, along with a few other ingredients.

To the almond extract, add pineapple and lemon juice, egg white, and cherry syrup. When ready to serve, add a couple of ice cubes to the glass and a garnish of a pineapple chunk and a fresh cherry.

Mango cooler with mint

Mango cooler with lime in glass

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While mango brings about thoughts of the summer, this is a drink you can make all year round. It's light and refreshing - plus, it's packed with health benefits given there's no alcohol involved. Mango is rich in folate and vitamin A, and high in fibre, making it very good for your digestive health.

Combine mango puree with fresh mint leaves (at least 10) or mint extract (but make sure it's pure and not sweetened). Add ice, garnish with fresh mint leaves and a slice of mango, and you've got yourself a cooler.

Spicy orange cooler

Spicy orange cooler with orange slices

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With orange juice, half a teaspoon of cinnamon, a quarter teaspoon of nutmeg, and plenty of ice, you can make this refreshing wintery drink whatever the season.

Mix the orange juice together with the spices - you could even use a blender if you like to make sure it's a complete blend of the ingredients. Then add the ice over the top, before straining it out and serving in a martini glass with a star anise to finish off the presentation. Or, keep the ice and serve this cocktail alternative in a tall glass with an orange slice to garnish.

Lime and coconut slushie

Lime and coconut water slushie with lime wedge and straw

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After leaving your coconut milk in the freezer for a day or two, blend it up until it's completely smooth. Serve up the coconut slushie in your choice of glass - then add the lime juice.

If you add the lime juice to the coconut milk in the blender, the acid in the lime can cause the coconut milk to curdle. It's not the end of the world but it's easily avoided.

Non-alcoholic mojito

Non-alcoholic mojitos in glasses with ice and lime wedges with mint

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A non-alcoholic mojito is a classic spin on the traditional rum cocktail. Combine sugar, a bunch of mint, and the juice of three limes with soda water - no alcohol needed to make this tasty alternative.

To make your non-alcoholic mojito even better, add a mint sprig and a lime wedge to the top of your cocktail.

Tomato and basil cooler

Tomato juice with basil garnish in a glass with straws lying next to it

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If you're looking for another Bloody Mary alternative that doesn't have the same kick as the classic cocktail, this cooler could be for you. It uses tomato juice, fresh basil leaves, and plenty of ice.

Muddle the basil leaves together and add the tomato juice on top. Throw in the ice and shake. Then serve in a tall glass with a sprinkle of ginger if you fancy it.

Alcohol-free passion fruit martini

Passionfruit martini in glass with half a passionfruit

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A passionfruit martini doesn't have to contain alcohol - or a shot of Prosecco on the side - to be delicious. To make this non-alcoholic cocktail alternative, combine three passion fruit halves, one juiced lemon, an egg white, sugar syrup, and a handful of ice into a shaker.

To replace the Prosecco shot on the side, try kombucha or sparkling grape juice.

Grace Walsh
Health Channel Editor

Grace Walsh is woman&home's Health Channel Editor, working across the areas of fitness, nutrition, sleep, mental health, relationships, and sex. She is also a qualified fitness instructor. In 2025, she will be taking on her third marathon in Brighton, completing her first ultra marathon, and qualifying as a certified personal trainer and nutrition coach.

A digital journalist with over seven years experience as a writer and editor for UK publications, Grace has covered (almost) everything in the world of health and wellbeing with bylines in Cosmopolitan, Red, The i Paper, GoodtoKnow, and more.