Skip to content
  • Wedding planning tools, free to start
  • No adverts, ever
  • Made by Britten, a family business in Bath since 2007

Wedding drinks calculator

Put in your day and evening guests. We work out the fizz, wine, beer and spirits for each part of the day, and what a bar tab buys.

Your guests

Everyone at the ceremony and the wedding breakfast.

Under 18. Enter 16- and 17-year-olds here too.

They join for the evening reception.

100 guests at the evening, with your day guests.

One number for this part of the day. We never ask who.

Other events

Welcome drinks the night before, or a barbecue the day after: guests × hours × your crowd.

What to buy

Drinks reception

  • Fizz (Prosecco, Champagne or Cava)6 cases of 6 and 4 bottles

    40bottles

    Why this number?
    1. 80 adults × 2.5 glasses (2 in the first hour, then 1 an hour, for 1.5 hours) = 200 glasses.
    2. Plus 20% spare, because fizz runs out first: 240.
    3. 6 glasses (125 ml) to a 75 cl bottle: 40 bottles.

    Sources

    Rock My Wedding; La Lista; Laithwaites; Couples' forum threads (The Knot, Mumsnet, Pricescope).

    Type your own number. It stays put when your guests change.

    bottles

Wedding breakfast

  • Wine22 red · 22 white3 cases of 12 and 8 bottles

    44bottles

    Why this number?
    1. 80 adults × half a bottle each = 40 bottles.
    2. Plus 10% spare: 44.
    3. Red and white 50/50.

    Sources

    Waitrose; Vintage Roots.

    Type your own number. It stays put when your guests change.

    bottles

Speeches and toast

  • Fizz for the toast2 cases of 6 and 4 bottles

    16bottles

    Why this number?
    1. One glass for each of 80 adults drinking.
    2. Plus 20% spare, because fizz runs out first: 96.
    3. 6 glasses to a bottle: 16 bottles.

    Sources

    Laithwaites; Couples' forum threads (The Knot, Mumsnet, Pricescope).

    Type your own number. It stays put when your guests change.

    bottles

Evening reception

  • Wine28 red · 27 white4 cases of 12 and 7 bottlesNot on your listA pay bar: guests buy their own.

    55bottles

    Why this number?
    1. 100 adults × 5 hours × 1 drink an hour = 500 drinks.
    2. Plus 10% spare: 550.
    3. 40% is wine: 220 glasses.
    4. 4 glasses (175 ml) to a 75 cl bottle: 55 bottles.
    5. Red and white 50/50.

    Sources

    Rock My Wedding; PartyCalcs and WedCalc.

    Type your own number. It stays put when your guests change.

    bottles
  • Beer8 cases of 24 and 1 beerOr 1 × 50-litre keg (88 pints each) and 42 bottles.Not on your listA pay bar: guests buy their own.

    193beers

    Why this number?
    1. 100 adults × 5 hours × 1 drink an hour = 500 drinks.
    2. Plus 10% spare: 550.
    3. 35% is beer: 193 (330 ml bottles or 440 ml cans).

    Sources

    Rock My Wedding; PartyCalcs and WedCalc.

    Type your own number. It stays put when your guests change.

    beers
  • Spirits2 gin · 1 vodka · 1 rum · 1 whiskyNot on your listA pay bar: guests buy their own.

    5bottles (70 cl)

    Why this number?
    1. 100 adults × 5 hours × 1 drink an hour = 500 drinks.
    2. Plus 10% spare: 550.
    3. A quarter is spirits: 138 singles (25 ml).
    4. 28 singles to a 70 cl bottle: 5 bottles.
    5. Split evenly across the spirits you picked.

    Sources

    Rock My Wedding; PartyCalcs and WedCalc; NHS alcohol units, 2024.

    Type your own number. It stays put when your guests change.

    bottles (70 cl)
  • Mixers (tonic, soda, cola, juice)Not on your listA pay bar: guests buy their own.

    18litres

    Why this number?
    1. 138 singles, about 1 litre of mixer for every 8: 18 litres.

    Sources

    Merriwell's own rule of thumb: there's no published standard.

    Type your own number. It stays put when your guests change.

    litres

Also on the list

  • Ice

    35bags of ice (2 kg)

    Why this number?
    1. 100 guests × 0.7 kg = 70 kg.
    2. In 2 kg bags: 35.

    Sources

    Reddy Ice.

    Type your own number. It stays put when your guests change.

    bags of ice (2 kg)
  • Water

    100litres

    Why this number?
    1. 100 guests × about 1 litre = 100 litres.

    Sources

    Merriwell's own rule of thumb: there's no published standard.

    Type your own number. It stays put when your guests change.

    litres

Don't forget

  • Glass hire: many merchants lend glasses free with an order
  • Ice buckets or tubs
  • Corkscrews and bottle openers
  • Lemons and limes
  • Ask your merchant about sale or return

Guests must be 18 to buy alcohol. In England and Wales, 16- and 17-year-olds may have wine, beer or cider with a meal if an adult is with them.

Your day

hours
What's served?
How much wine with the meal?
The toast
The evening bar
hours
Sale or return?

Many merchants, such as Majestic, take back unopened bottles. Ask yours.

Red 50%, white 50%

Prices

Your shopping list

Saved in this browser.

Save it with your wedding: your guest list keeps it up to date.

The rule: half a bottle with the meal, two glasses of fizz to start

Allow two glasses of fizz in the first hour of the drinks reception and one an hour after (Rock My Wedding), half a bottle of wine each with the wedding breakfast (Waitrose), a glass of fizz for the toast, and about one drink an hour in the evening. A 75 cl bottle pours six 125 ml glasses of fizz, or four 175 ml glasses of wine at the bar.

How much for 50, 100, 150 and 200 guests

Adults at the day and the evening: a 1.5-hour fizz reception, half a bottle with the meal, a fizz toast, your own evening bar for 5 hours and a 10% spare (20% on fizz).
GuestsReception fizzMeal wineToast fizzEvening wineBeerSpirits (70 cl)
5025281028973
100505520551935
150758330832898
2001001104011038510

How to buy it

  • Sale or return. Many merchants, such as Majestic, take back unopened bottles and unopened cases of beer. Ask before you order.
  • Glass hire. Merchants often lend glasses free with a wine order.
  • Cases. Wine in cases of 6 or 12, beer in cases of 24. A 50-litre keg is 88 pints.
  • Corkage. If your venue charges to open wine you bring, it's often £10 to £20 a bottle (Bridebook, 2026).
  • Ice and water. About 0.7 kg of ice and a litre of water a guest, more on a hot day.

How to work out the drinks for your wedding

  1. Put in your day and evening guests. Enter your day guests, how many are children, and how many join just for the evening. If some adults won't drink, enter how many: one number, never who.

  2. Choose the parts of your day. Switch on the drinks reception, wine with the wedding breakfast and the toast, and say how long each lasts. Each part has its own rule.

  3. Choose your evening bar. A pay bar, a bar tab, a free bar or your own drinks. With a tab, type the amount and see how far it goes.

  4. Check the sums. Tap "Why this number?" on any line to see the sum and where each figure comes from. Type your own number on any line and it stays put.

  5. Take the list to your merchant. Print it, copy it or share a link. Everything comes in bottles and cases, with ice, water, mixers and soft drinks on the same list. Ask about sale or return.

Frequently asked questions

How much wine per person at a wedding?
Half a bottle each with the wedding breakfast (Waitrose), up to three-quarters for a generous meal (Laithwaites). For 100 adults that's about 55 bottles with a 10% spare. In the evening, allow about one drink an hour, of which around 40% is wine.
How much Prosecco for the drinks reception?
About two glasses in the first hour, then one an hour (Rock My Wedding), six glasses to a bottle. For 100 adults over an hour and a half that's 250 glasses, and we add a spare because fizz runs out first: 50 bottles.
How many bottles of fizz for the toast?
One glass each, six to a bottle. For 100 guests, 20 bottles with the spare. If you're toasting with the wine already on the table, you don't need extra fizz.
How much should we put behind the bar?
Guests × hours × about one drink an hour × the price a drink. For 100 guests over five hours at £6.50 a drink, about £3,250. Or type the amount you'd like to spend and we'll say roughly how long it lasts.
Is a pay bar rude?
No. Many UK weddings have a pay bar in the evening, often after a drinks reception, wine with the meal and a toast. Some couples put money behind the bar first, then it becomes a pay bar.
What is sale or return?
Your merchant takes back the bottles (and unopened cases of beer) you don't open and refunds them. Merchants such as Majestic offer it; check the terms first. With sale or return we add a 20% spare, as a spare costs nothing.
What is corkage?
A charge some venues make for each bottle of wine or fizz you bring. It's often £10 to £20 a bottle (Bridebook, 2026). Add it in Prices and we work out the total.
Can 16- and 17-year-olds have wine with the meal?
In England and Wales, 16- and 17-year-olds may drink wine, beer or cider with a meal if an adult is with them, but they can't buy it. Anyone under 18 can't buy alcohol. Enter them as children and they'll get soft drinks and an alcohol-free toast.
How much ice and water do we need?
About 0.7 kg of ice and a litre of water a guest, more on a hot day. Water is the thing couples most often forget, so it's on your list.
Is the calculator free?
Yes. No account, no email and no adverts. A free account saves your list with your wedding and reads your guest list, so the numbers keep up as people reply.

Related tools