About the Party Drink Calculator
This party drink calculator turns your guest list into a shopping list. Enter how many people are coming, how long the party lasts, what share of guests drink alcohol and your preferred mix of beer, wine and spirits, and it estimates the cases of beer, bottles of wine, bottles of liquor, soft drinks, mixers and ice you need.
It works for house parties, birthdays, holiday gatherings, office events and weddings. Hosts use it to avoid running dry halfway through the night, and to avoid over-buying expensive bottles that sit in the cupboard afterwards.
The estimate uses the common hosting rule of two drinks per guest in the first hour and one drink per guest for every hour after that. One drink is a 12 oz beer, a 5 oz glass of wine or a 1.5 oz shot of spirits — the standard drink sizes used by US health agencies. Bottle counts are rounded up so you are never short.
With the default inputs, the alcoholic drinks needed is 200. Change any value above to recalculate instantly.
How to use the party drink calculator
- 1Enter the number of guests and how long the party will run.
- 2Set the share of guests who drink alcohol.
- 3Adjust the beer, wine and liquor mix to suit your crowd.
- 4Read the cases, bottles, soft drinks, mixers and ice to buy.
- 5Round up a little more for hot weather, long dinners or late-night crowds.
Formula and method
Each drinking guest is assumed to have two drinks in the first hour and one per hour afterwards. The total is split by your beer, wine and liquor shares (normalised to 100%). Beer is counted in 12 oz servings and bought in 24-can cases, wine yields five 5 oz glasses per 750 ml bottle, and a 750 ml bottle of spirits gives about 16 shots of 1.5 oz after allowing for spillage.
Non-drinking guests get the same number of soft-drink servings. Mixers assume 4 oz per cocktail, and ice is estimated at 1 lb per guest. Every purchase quantity is rounded up.
- Guests
- Total number of guests
- Drinkers%
- Share of guests who drink alcohol
- Hours
- Length of the party
- Share
- Beer, wine or liquor share of all drinks
Worked examples
50-guest, 4-hour house party
Forty guests drink (80% of 50), each having 2 + 3 = 5 drinks, for 200 drinks. At 40/35/25 that is 80 beers (4 cases), 70 glasses of wine (14 bottles) and 50 shots (4 bottles). The 10 non-drinkers need 50 soft-drink servings and 50 lb of ice covers everyone.
120-guest, 5-hour wedding reception, wine-heavy
90 drinking guests at 6 drinks each need 540 drinks. Half is wine — 270 glasses or 54 bottles — plus 162 beers (7 cases) and 108 shots (7 bottles of spirits). The 30 non-drinkers need about 180 soft drinks.
20 friends, 3-hour game night, beer-first
All 20 guests drink 4 drinks each for 80 drinks. Sixty percent beer is 48 cans — exactly 2 cases — while 16 glasses of wine need 4 bottles and 16 shots fit in a single 750 ml bottle.
Frequently asked questions
How many drinks per person should I plan for a party?+
A widely used rule is two drinks per guest in the first hour and one per hour after that. A four-hour party therefore needs about five drinks for each guest who drinks.
How many glasses of wine are in a bottle?+
A standard 750 ml bottle holds about 25 fl oz, which is five 5 oz glasses — the standard drink size for wine. Larger pours at dinner can bring that down to four glasses.
How many shots are in a 750 ml bottle of liquor?+
A 750 ml bottle holds about 25.4 fl oz, or roughly 16.9 shots of 1.5 oz. This calculator plans on 16 per bottle to allow for spills and generous pours.
How much ice do I need for a party?+
Plan about 1 lb of ice per guest for drinks. If you also need to chill cans and bottles in coolers, buy roughly double that amount, especially in warm weather.
How much alcohol for a wedding of 100 guests?+
For a 5-hour reception where about 75% of guests drink, expect around 450 drinks: for a wine-heavy mix that is roughly 45 bottles of wine, 6 cases of beer and 6 bottles of spirits. Enter your own numbers above for a precise list.