How Much Alcohol to Buy for a Wedding, by Guest Count

Plan on one drink per guest who drinks, for every hour the bar is open, then add 10% so you do not run short. For 100 guests and a five-hour bar, that works out to about 55 bottles of wine, 165 beers and 7 bottles of spirits, with sparkling wine for the toast on top.

How much alcohol to buy for a wedding comes down to one number you control: who has actually said yes. Count from your per-event RSVP replies, not from the invitation list, and take out the guests who will not drink. Below is the formula, a quantity table for 50 to 200 guests, and the adjustments that move it up or down.

The formula, in four steps

1. Count the guests who drink. Start with the guests who accepted the event that has the bar. Subtract children, designated drivers, and anyone you know does not drink.
2. Multiply by the hours the bar is open. One drink per guest per hour is the starting rate. That gives your total number of drinks.
3. Split the drinks across wine, beer and spirits. A wine-leaning crowd might split 50% wine, 30% beer and 20% spirits. Change the split to match the people you know.
4. Turn drinks into bottles and add 10%. A 750 ml bottle of wine pours 5 glasses of 5 oz. A 750 ml bottle of spirits pours about 17 drinks of 1.5 oz. Beer is one 12 oz can or bottle per drink. Add 10% as a buffer, then round up.

Written out: guests who drink x bar hours x share for that drink ÷ servings per bottle x 1.1.

How much alcohol for 50, 75, 100, 150 and 200 guests

This is a planning estimate, not a guarantee. It uses the formula above with these inputs: one drink per guest per hour, a five-hour bar, a 50% wine, 30% beer and 20% spirits split, and a 10% buffer. Each figure is rounded up.

How to read it:

• The toast is extra. The last column assumes 6 pours of 4 oz per bottle and one glass for each guest who drinks. If you are happy for guests to raise whatever is already in their glass, skip it.
• Scale for your bar hours. For a three-hour bar, multiply the wine, beer and spirits figures by 3/5. For a six-hour bar, multiply by 6/5.
• Spirits assume a full bar. If you serve one signature cocktail instead, put the whole spirits figure into that one spirit and buy its mixers to match.
• Larger bottles change the count. A 1.75 liter bottle of spirits pours about 39 drinks of 1.5 oz, so you need fewer, larger bottles.

Beer and wine only

Some venues allow beer and wine but no spirits, and some couples prefer it. Split the drinks evenly between the two. For 100 guests who drink and a five-hour bar, that is 500 drinks: 55 bottles of wine and 275 beers (12 cases of 24), with the 10% buffer included. If your crowd prefers wine, move the split toward 60% wine and 40% beer.

Adjust the estimate for your wedding

The table is a starting point. These are the things that move it.

• Bar hours. Count only the hours the bar is actually serving. A cocktail hour, then dinner, then dancing until the venue closes is a longer bar than a lunch that ends mid-afternoon.
• The first hour. The cocktail hour opens the bar to a full room. Some planners add one extra drink per guest for it. Do that if your cocktail hour is long or there is a gap before dinner.
• The meal. Tell your caterer or bartender whether dinner is seated or a standing reception with passed food, and ask how they would adjust the numbers for it.
• The crowd. You know your friends and family better than any table does. If one side drinks beer and the other drinks wine, set the split to match, and plan more conservatively for a crowd you know drinks lightly.
• Heat. On a hot day, keep extra cold soft drinks and water on hand.

Start from replies, not the invitation list

The costly mistake is multiplying the wrong number of guests. An invitation list includes people who will decline. A yes for “two” can be a yes for one. And a guest who comes to the wedding may not come to the evening party.

So build the order from the reply count for the event that has the bar, and do it after your RSVP deadline has passed. If you are still working out when to send invitations and set your RSVP deadline, set the deadline before your drinks order date as well as your caterer’s.

Several events, several bars

For a multi-event wedding, count each event on its own. A mehndi or a religious ceremony may be alcohol-free while the reception has a full bar, and different guests may be invited to each. Only the replies for the events with a bar go into the formula.

Example. You invite 180 guests to the reception. 150 accept. You asked on the RSVP whether guests will drink, and 30 said no. That leaves 120 guests who drink. A five-hour bar is 600 drinks: 66 bottles of wine, 198 beers (9 cases of 24) and 8 bottles of spirits, including the 10% buffer. The mehndi the night before is alcohol-free, so it adds nothing to the order.

Plan for guests who do not drink

Guests who do not drink still need something good in their glass. Put the alcohol-free drinks on the same order, not on a note for later.

• Offer a real alternative. A mocktail version of your signature drink, a good lemonade or iced tea, sparkling water with citrus. One alcohol-free drink that looks like an occasion makes non-drinkers feel catered for.
• Toast with everyone. Keep a sparkling alcohol-free option on hand for the toast, so nobody is left raising water.
• Water at the bar and on the tables. Guests need it whether they drink or not, and more of it in hot weather.
• Food alongside the bar. Serve food through the evening, not only at dinner.
• Getting home. Help guests plan how they will get home: a shuttle, a list of local taxi numbers, or rooms nearby.

If a dry wedding suits you and your families, that is a complete answer too. Plan the alcohol-free drinks with the same care and skip the rest of this guide.

When to order, and what to do with leftovers

Order after the RSVP deadline. Use the same final head count you give your caterer, and order on the same day. Ask your store or distributor how much notice they need, and whether you can add to the order in the week of the wedding.

Check the venue’s rules first. Some venues hold the bar license and do not allow outside alcohol, so the question becomes whether their bar package fits your head count. Others allow you to bring your own but charge a corkage fee per bottle, or require a licensed bartender or bar service. Ask before you buy.

Agree returns before you buy. Some stores will take back unopened bottles or cases within a set time. Find out the conditions, such as unopened cases or intact labels, and whether chilled stock counts. Then give one person the job of packing up and returning what is left.

Glasses, ice and cold storage. Ask your venue or rental company how glasses are supplied and what happens to breakages. Plan where the drinks will be chilled and who will move them.

Count the replies that make the number right

Every figure in this guide comes back to one input: an accurate count of who is coming to each event. That is the part a digital wedding invitation from Link Invitation is built to give you.

• Replies per event. Guests answer separately for the mehndi, the wedding and the reception, so your live RSVP dashboard shows a head count for each.
• Seats you set. Each invitation carries the number of places you gave it, and the guest replies for that many people.
• Your own RSVP question. Add a question such as “Will you be drinking alcohol?” and the answers stay attached to each guest.
• A reply-by date. Choose whether replies close on that date or stay open for late answers, so you decide when your numbers are final before you order.
• A drinks calculator. Built into Link Invitation: work out quantities by guest preference and export the bar plan.

Essential is $29 and you build it yourself, free to build and preview before you pay. Excellence is $99 if you want it designed for you. Both are a one-time payment with unlimited guests and no subscription. See plans and pricing.

Related: How RSVPs and replies work