In Texas, gas stations stop selling alcohol at midnight Sunday through Friday and at 1:00 AM after Saturday night. Sales start back up at 7:00 AM on weekdays and Saturdays, and at 10:00 AM on Sundays. Those hours apply to beer and wine, which is all a Texas gas station is allowed to sell.
The Daily Cutoff Times
Monday through Friday, the register has to stop ringing up beer and wine at midnight. The transaction needs to be complete before the clock turns. There is no grace period written into the law.1State of Texas. Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code Section 105-05
Saturday night is the one exception. Sales can continue until 1:00 AM Sunday morning. That extra hour belongs to Saturday only. A six-pack sold at 12:15 AM on a Sunday (coming off Saturday) is legal; the same sale at 12:15 AM on a Tuesday is not.
Sunday night follows the standard midnight cutoff. People sometimes assume the 1:00 AM window carries over, but it doesn’t. At 12:05 AM Monday, you are already past the deadline.
When Sales Start Again
Weekdays and Saturday both open at 7:00 AM. Sunday opens at 10:00 AM. The Sunday start used to be noon, until HB 1518 took effect in September 2021 and moved it up by two hours for off-premise retailers like gas stations and grocery stores.1State of Texas. Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code Section 105-05
Quick Reference
- Monday through Friday: 7:00 AM to midnight
- Saturday: 7:00 AM to 1:00 AM Sunday morning
- Sunday: 10:00 AM to midnight
No Liquor at Any Hour
Gas stations and convenience stores in Texas carry a Wine and Malt Beverage Retailer’s Off-Premise Permit, known as a BQ permit. It covers beer and wine for off-premise consumption and nothing else.2Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. TABC License and Permit Types Vodka, whiskey, tequila, and other distilled spirits are only sold at package stores. The time of day doesn’t change that.
Holidays
Liquor stores in Texas are required to close on New Year’s Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and every Sunday, with the closure rolling to Monday when Christmas or New Year’s lands on a Sunday.3Justia. Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code Title 4, Chapter 105 Gas stations are not. A BQ permit holder keeps its normal daily hours on every holiday, so you can buy wine at a gas station on Christmas Day. The usual start times still apply: no sales before 7:00 AM, or before 10:00 AM if the holiday falls on a Sunday.
Dry and Partially Dry Areas
Statewide hours only matter where sales are allowed in the first place. Through local option elections, Texas counties, cities, and justice-of-the-peace precincts decide what alcohol can be sold within their boundaries.4Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. Local Option Elections Three categories result:
- Wet areas allow all types of alcohol, and the standard state hours apply.
- Dry areas allow no alcohol sales at all. A gas station in a dry area cannot sell beer or wine at any time. As of early 2025, three Texas counties remain completely dry.4Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. Local Option Elections
- Partially dry areas allow some types of alcohol but not others. One precinct might allow beer and wine but prohibit liquor, or permit on-premise consumption while banning off-premise sales.
Classifications can change within a single county, so a ten-minute drive can take you from a wet precinct into a dry one. The TABC keeps a searchable database of local option statuses on its website.
Drinking in Public During Prohibited Hours
The cutoff times affect buyers too. Consuming alcohol in a public place during prohibited hours is a Class C misdemeanor under Section 105.06 of the Alcoholic Beverage Code.1State of Texas. Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code Section 105-05 In standard-hours areas, that means an open container in public between 12:15 AM and 7:00 AM on weekdays, or between 1:15 AM Sunday morning and 10:00 AM Sunday.