Free Wedding Drink Calculator
Tell it how many people are coming and how long the party runs, and it works out the drinks — wine, beer, spirits, something sparkling for the toast, and plenty for the guests who are not drinking. You get bottles and cans to buy, not just abstract servings. Then share the date with a living, animated invitation.
Enter your guest count to see a first estimate.
Opens full screen and takes about a minute.
How the estimate is worked out
The figures start from the planning convention every caterer uses: two drinks in the first hour, then one for each hour after. The first hour is heavier because everybody arrives at once and a glass goes straight into their hand. A five-hour reception therefore comes to about six drinks for each guest who drinks, which is where published guidance lands too. That total is then split across wine, beer, spirits and sparkling by whichever mix you pick, and turned into bottles by volume — a 750ml bottle of wine pours five 150ml glasses, a 700ml bottle of spirits gives about seventeen measures, and sparkling pours six shorter flutes. Bottles always round up, because you cannot buy four fifths of a bottle and running dry is far worse than having one spare. Everything here is an estimate from a rule of thumb, not a promise: your crowd, the season and the time of day will move all of it, which is what the drinking share and the lighter and more generous settings are for.
How much alcohol do I need for 100 wedding guests?
For a five-hour reception where about 80 of the 100 drink, plan on roughly 480 drinks plus a glass of something sparkling each for the toast. On a balanced mix that is about 38 bottles of wine, 170 beers and 5 bottles of spirits, with soft drinks and water on top. Enter your own numbers above and the breakdown updates as you type.
How many bottles of wine do I need per guest?
One 750ml bottle pours five standard 150ml glasses, so five wine drinkers get through roughly a bottle an hour between them. The calculator works it out from your guest count, the length of the party and how wine-led your mix is, rather than assuming everyone drinks the same thing.
Is this wedding drink calculator free?
Yes, completely free, with no sign-up and nothing to install. Everything is worked out in your own browser, so your numbers are never sent anywhere. Occavia makes animated digital wedding invitations; this calculator is a free tool and you are not asked for anything to use it.