Signals

US – Consumers are turning their backs on diet drinks, with zero sugar emerging as the preferred signifier of healthier indulgence. While both diet and zero sugar sodas rely on artificial sweeteners, diet is increasingly viewed by younger consumers as outdated and morally loaded, according to Bloomberg. Zero sugar, by contrast, offers a perceived health halo without invoking diet culture.

The shift is translating into sales momentum. In 2025, zero sugar accounted for 52% of US soft drinks sales growth, as full sugar and diet variants declined, according to Circana.

Brands are responding fast: Pepsi’s 2025 Pepsi Challenge tour – its first in 50 years – pitted Pepsi Zero Sugar against Coke Zero Sugar, with the no-calorie line now commanding most of PepsiCo’s marketing spending, including its 2026 Super Bowl slot (source: Bloomberg). Keurig Dr Pepper has followed suit, expanding from offering no zero sugar offerings in 2020 to more than 40 today, with flavoured variants leading adoption.

The shift reflects a broader re-ordering of health priorities, as consumers move away from overt diet messaging towards functional benefits, with no sugar, high fibre and high protein increasingly driving sales. Our Functional Feasting macrotrend report unpacks how this recalibration of wellness is influencing what ends up on plates, menus and in fridges.