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Cocktail pour cost calculator: what should a drink sell for?
Bottle cost divided by pours, plus everything else in the glass, against the price. Pour cost percentage decides.
Skip the reading. The tool does this maths for you, free, as you type.
Cost a drinkA cocktail is a bottle price divided into pours, plus juice, syrup, garnish and the ice that melts. Pour cost is that total as a share of the menu price. Bars that run under 20% on cocktails are the ones that survive a slow January.
The formula
Spirit cost = bottle cost ÷ bottle ounces × pour ounces. Cost per drink = spirit + mixers + garnish. Price at target = cost ÷ target pour cost %.
What a good number looks like
Cocktails and spirits. Where the money is.
Draft beer and wine by the glass live here.
Too much premium spirit for the price, or the pour has crept up.
What to do about it
- Use a jigger. A free-pour drifts 20% without anyone noticing.
- Price the garnish. A dehydrated wheel and a sprig add up across a Saturday.
- Cost the well drink and the call drink separately.
Now do it with your numbers.
Free, no account, saved on your device. The verdict comes back while you type.
Cost a drink