# What wedding alcohol do I need?

Estimates the beer, wine and liquor to buy for a wedding or party from the guest count, the hours of the bar and a drinks-per-hour rate, in cans, cases and 750 mL bottles.

- Page: https://www.acalculator.org/food/wedding-alcohol-calculator
- JSON spec: https://www.acalculator.org/food/wedding-alcohol-calculator.json
- Version: 4735d449ecd1

## Default answer

Example with the default inputs (Guests who drink 100, Hours of the bar 5, Drinks per guest per hour 1, Beer 50%, Wine 30%): Buy about 30 × 750 mL wine, 250 × 12 oz beer and 6 × 750 mL liquor.

## Inputs

| Key | Label | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| g | Guests who drink | The number of adult guests who will drink alcohol. |
| h | Hours of the bar | How long the bar is open, in hours. |
| r | Drinks per guest per hour | The planning rate; 1 drink per guest per hour is a common rule. |
| b | Beer | The share of drinks served as beer. |
| w | Wine | The share of drinks served as wine. |

## Outputs

| Key | Label | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| drinks | Total drinks | Guests × hours × drinks per hour. |
| wineBottles | Wine (750 mL bottles) | Wine drinks × 5 fl oz ÷ 750 mL, rounded up. |
| beerCans | Beer (12 oz cans or bottles) | One can per beer drink, rounded up. |
| beerCases | Beer (cases of 24) | Cans ÷ 24, rounded up. |
| liquorBottles | Liquor (750 mL bottles) | Liquor drinks × 1.5 fl oz ÷ 750 mL, rounded up. |
| liquorShare | Liquor share (%) | The drinks left for liquor: 100% − beer − wine. |
| glassesPerBottle | Glasses of wine per bottle | 750 mL ÷ 5 fl oz. |

## Method

Drinks = guests × hours × drinks per guest per hour. Beer cans = beer share of drinks (12 fl oz each); wine bottles = wine drinks × 5 fl oz ÷ 750 mL; liquor bottles = liquor drinks × 1.5 fl oz ÷ 750 mL; each rounded up. 1 fl oz = 29.5735295625 mL.

## Assumptions

- One drink is one US standard drink (NIAAA): a 12 fl oz beer, a 5 fl oz glass of wine or a 1.5 fl oz shot of spirits.
- The drinks-per-hour rate is a planning rule, not a measured average; raise it for a lively crowd and count only guests who drink.

## Worked examples

1. g = 100, h = 5, r = 1, b = 50%, w = 30% gives drinks = 500, wineBottles = 30, beerCans = 250, beerCases = 11, liquorBottles = 6, liquorShare = 20. Source: NIAAA, What Is A Standard Drink? (12 fl oz of 5% beer, 5 fl oz of 12% wine, 1.5 fl oz of 40% spirits), https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohols-effects-health/what-standard-drink (retrieved 2026-10-03).
2. g = 60, h = 4, r = 1.5, b = 0%, w = 100% gives drinks = 360, wineBottles = 71, beerCans = 0, liquorBottles = 0, glassesPerBottle = 5.072103. Source: NIAAA, What Is A Standard Drink? (12 fl oz of 5% beer, 5 fl oz of 12% wine, 1.5 fl oz of 40% spirits), https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohols-effects-health/what-standard-drink (retrieved 2026-10-03).

## FAQ

### How much alcohol do I need for a wedding?

A common planning rule is one drink per guest per hour. 100 guests for 5 hours is about 500 drinks; split 50% beer, 30% wine and 20% liquor, that is 250 beers, 30 bottles of wine and 6 bottles of liquor.

### How many glasses of wine are in a bottle?

A 750 mL bottle holds about 5 standard 5 fl oz glasses: 750 ÷ (5 × 29.57) = 5.07. Generous pours give fewer glasses.

### How many shots are in a bottle of liquor?

A 750 mL bottle holds about 17 standard 1.5 fl oz shots (750 ÷ 44.36 = 16.9). Mixed drinks with one shot each count the same.

### What is a standard drink?

In the US, one standard drink holds about 14 g of pure alcohol: a 12 fl oz beer at 5%, a 5 fl oz glass of wine at 12%, or a 1.5 fl oz shot of 40% spirits (NIAAA).

### Should I count every guest?

Count adults who will drink. Leave out children and guests who do not drink, or lower the drinks-per-hour rate to cover them.

### What drink mix should I choose?

It depends on your crowd. Type the beer and wine shares; liquor gets the rest. A beer-and-wine bar makes the two add up to 100%, leaving 0% for liquor. The page rounds each count up to whole cans and bottles.

## Sources

- NIAAA (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism), What Is A Standard Drink?: 12 fl oz of regular beer at 5%, 5 fl oz of wine at 12%, 1.5 fl oz of distilled spirits at 40%; about 14 g of pure alcohol each. Retrieved 2026-10-03. https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohols-effects-health/what-standard-drink
- NIST Special Publication 811, Appendix B.8: 1 US fluid ounce = 2.957353 × 10⁻⁵ m³ (1/128 of a gallon of 3.785411784 L). Retrieved 2026-10-03. https://www.nist.gov/pml/special-publication-811/nist-guide-si-appendix-b-conversion-factors/nist-guide-si-appendix-b8