Liquor license lookup by state.

The authority in every state

The table lists the alcohol beverage authority the TTB directory names for each state and the District of Columbia, read on November 11, 2026, with the wording lightly shortened. Where the directory lists two bodies, both are shown. The last column links to our guide where we have read that state’s lookup ourselves; for the others, open the TTB directory linked in the sources and follow its link to the agency, because this page does not reproduce or vouch for agency web addresses it has not checked.

How the lookups differ

Four patterns cover the TTB list. Most states name a stand-alone alcoholic beverage control agency or liquor control commission (California’s Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission, the Michigan Liquor Control Commission, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board). In a second group the authority is a revenue or taxation department or a division inside one (Georgia, Kansas, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Wisconsin), so the licence records sit with the tax agency rather than a separate board. Washington is the clearest case of the third pattern: the Liquor and Cannabis Board licence is an endorsement on the Department of Revenue business licence, so you look the business up at Revenue and read the endorsement; our Washington guide walks through it. Hawaii is the fourth: there is no state agency, and the TTB lists the Liquor Commission of the City and County of Honolulu and the liquor control departments of Hawaii, Kauai and Maui counties. Maryland likewise lists county boards beside the state Field Enforcement Division.

What a state lookup shows, and what it does not

The state lookups we have written guides for differ in shape. Texas runs a Public Inquiry system with status, filters and violation history; New York’s State Liquor Authority points to its licensing system and to state open data; California’s Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control has its own licence search; Washington reads the licence off the business-licence record. None of them tells you whether a licence can be transferred or sold, whether the premises passes inspection, or anything about federal permits; a TTB basic permit for a producer, importer or wholesaler is separate from every state licence and is not on any of these registers.

Worked example (hypothetical)

You are buying a restaurant in Spokane and want to confirm its liquor licence. The picker shows Washington’s authority as the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board, with the Department of Revenue business licence, and links to our Washington guide. There you learn the licence is an endorsement on the business licence, search the business at Revenue, and read the LCB licence number, type and status under Endorsements. Had the restaurant been in Honolulu, the picker would send you to the county liquor commission instead of a state site.

What this page does not cover

• Searching any register. The page names the agency; the agency’s own site does the lookup.
• Agency web addresses for the 47 states without a guide here; use the TTB directory, which links each one.
• Canada and Puerto Rico, which the TTB directory also lists; our Canadian liquor tools are on the Canadian hub.
• Federal TTB permits, local business licences and health permits.

Method

Agency names were read from the TTB page on November 11, 2026; the lookup descriptions come from our own guides, each of which cites the agency pages read for it. The state picker runs in your browser and sends nothing.

Figures read from the sources below on November 11, 2026. Last updated November 11, 2026.

Sources

• TTB: Alcohol Beverage Authorities in United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico (authority names for all 50 states and DC) (retrieved November 11, 2026)
• Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board: Licensee List (LCB licence as an endorsement on the Department of Revenue business licence) (retrieved November 11, 2026)