How to use our party drink calculator?
Using our drink calculator for parties is as easy as pie! To answer the question of how much alcohol for the party should I get?, you only need to provide some very basic information about the event and your guests.
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Do you know who will drink what?
- Select Yes if you know how many guests will drink beer, wine, or hard liquor, then fill in each count and the party duration.
- Select No for a quick general estimate — just enter the total number of guests and the party duration.
- Non-drinkers — enter the number of guests who abstain from alcohol so the calculator can estimate soft drinks.
- Choose your measurement system (Imperial or Metric) and currency for cost estimates.
- Optionally expand Price Estimates and enter local prices per can, bottle, or liter to get a total budget.
- Click Calculate.
How to calculate drinks for your party?
When you know who drinks what
Beer 🍺 — one beer per drinker per hour:
beers = beer_drinkers × party_duration_hours (rounded up)
Wine 🍷 — standard 750 ml bottles (≈ 5 glasses each):
wine_bottles = ceil( (wine_drinkers ÷ 2.15) ÷ 2 )
Hard Liquor 🥃 — 0.5 L per person (base spirit only, not mixers):
liquor_liters = liquor_drinkers × 0.5
General estimation (when you don't know specifics)
total_drinks = guests × party_duration beers = ceil( total_drinks × 40% ) wine_glasses = ceil( (total_drinks − beers) × 60% ) wine_bottles = ceil( wine_glasses ÷ 5 ) shots = ceil( total_drinks − beers − wine_glasses )
Soft drinks 🥤
soft_drinks = non_drinkers × (party_duration + 1)
One extra drink per non-drinker ensures no one goes thirsty at the end of the party.
Additional notes
- All results are rounded up to the nearest whole unit — you can't buy a fraction of a bottle!
- The liquor calculation covers only the base spirit. It does not include mixers, juices, or sodas for cocktails.
- Wine bottles are standard 750 ml, with 5 glasses (150 ml each) per bottle.
- The calculator uses hours as the only time unit — it's practically impossible to plan a party to the minute.
- Cost estimates use the prices you enter and are approximate. Actual prices vary by region and brand.
Measurement systems
| Drink | Imperial | Metric |
|---|---|---|
| Beer can | 12 fl oz (355 ml) | 330 ml |
| Wine glass | 5 fl oz (150 ml) | 150 ml |
| Wine bottle | 750 ml | 750 ml |
| Shot | 1.5 fl oz (45 ml) | 45 ml |
| Liquor per person | ~17 fl oz (0.5 L) | 0.5 L |
Supported currencies
The cost estimation supports 12 world currencies: USD ($), RUB (₽), EUR (€), GBP (£), CAD (C$), AUD (A$), JPY (¥), CNY (¥), BRL (R$), MXN (MX$), CHF (Fr), INR (₹).
FAQs
- How many beers per person at a party?
- The standard rule is 1 beer per beer drinker per hour. For a 3-hour party, plan 3 beers per person. Always round up.
- How many bottles of wine for 10 people?
- Using the formula: ceil((10 ÷ 2.15) ÷ 2) = ceil(2.33) = 3 bottles — approximately 15 glasses for 10 guests.
- How much vodka / whisky / gin for a party?
- The rule of thumb is 0.5 L per person who drinks spirits. This is the base alcohol only — not the mixers.
- How many soft drinks for non-drinkers?
- Plan one drink per non-drinker per hour plus one extra for everyone. Formula:
non_drinkers × (hours + 1). - Does this calculator account for designated drivers?
- Yes — add designated drivers to the Non-drinkers field and the calculator will include soft drinks for them.