PourPlan · free drinks calculator
How much alcohol for 180 guests? These figures assume
180 guests · a function after the working day (4 hrs) · tab, then cash · mild · average crowd
Who pays
Tab, then cash Open bar Cash bar
The crowd
Lighter Average Heavy
The day
Mild Hot Scorching Cold
Plan on roughly 810 drinks — about 4.5 a guest across the whole day, with an honest range of 648 to 972, because every crowd is different.
The forecast · rounded to real packs
Beers311 × 330/440ml incl. 8% safety 288 · 13 cases of 24
Cidersincl. safety margin 89 · 5 cases of 24
White & rosé wine5 × 150ml pour per bottle 134 · 29 bottles
Red wine5 × 150ml pour per bottle 109 · 24 bottles
Bubblytoast for every guest (6-glass pour) + extra — buffer built in 54 · 9 bottles
Spirits (with mixers)28 × 25ml tot per bottle 138 · 6 bottles (750ml)
Mixerscans, one per spirit drink — a double shares the same mixer 117 · 6 cases of 24
Soft drinksbeyond mixers 53 · 3 cases of 24
Bottled water360 × 500ml · 2 per guest — never skimp on water 360 · 15 cases of 24
Ice18 × 5kg bags 90 kg
Bar staff1 head barman + 3 · 26 crew-hours incl. setup 4
Suggested bar spendR 209/guest R 37 626
Tune it properly in the calculator Free, no signup. Change the hours, the region, or your own drinks-per-guest.
When they actually drink it Not evenly. The ceremony is nearly dry, canapés are steady, supper quietens the bar, and the dance floor carries the night.
Arrival0.31 hrs 0.39 per guest
Ceremony0.46 hrs 0.11 per guest
Canapés1.38 hrs 1.96 per guest
Supper & speeches1.85 hrs 2.04 per guest
What will move this number Nobody can give you an exact figure, and anyone who does is guessing. These are the things that actually shift it:
The DJ A full dance floor drinks; an empty one does not. The single biggest swing, and nothing predicts it.
When dinner lands Served late, guests drink through a longer canapé stretch. Served early, the bar quietens sooner.
What is being served A house wine and an estate Sauvignon pour the same volume and cost wildly different money.
The weather on the day Heat moves water and the white/red split more than it moves the total.
Who is in the room A wedding of a hundred university friends is not a wedding of a hundred cousins.
How these numbers are worked out Other guest counts Same 180 guests, different event Run a mobile bar? This calculator is one screen of PourPlan — the rest turns forecasts into branded quotes, van load sheets, a running tab on the night and a reconciliation the morning after. See what's coming →