How Much Alcohol to Buy for a Party: Calculator and Shopping List

With a dry-hire mobile bartender like BigCee Exotic BarLuxe, the bar, mixers, ice, garnishes, and service are covered. The one job left on your list is buying the alcohol. Most hosts either overbuy by half or run out of the one thing everyone wanted. This guide fixes both.

The one-drink-per-hour rule

Plan on one drink per guest per hour, with the first hour closer to two. For a 50-guest, 5-hour party that is roughly 250 to 275 drinks. A 750 ml bottle of liquor pours about 16 drinks, a bottle of wine pours 5 glasses, and beer is one drink per can or bottle.

Split it by what your crowd actually drinks

• Cocktail crowd: 60% liquor, 20% wine, 20% beer
• Mixed crowd: 40% liquor, 30% wine, 30% beer
• Daytime or shower: 30% liquor, 50% wine and bubbly, 20% beer, plus a mocktail option

If BigCee is pouring two or three signature cocktails, tell her which ones before you shop. Each signature drink leans on one or two spirits, so you can buy more of those and less of everything else.

Sample list for 50 guests, 5 hours, cocktail crowd

• Vodka: 4 bottles (750 ml)
• Tequila: 3 bottles
• Rum: 2 bottles
• Whiskey or bourbon: 2 bottles
• Wine: 10 bottles, split white and red, plus 4 bottles of sparkling if you are toasting
• Beer: 48 cans or bottles, two styles

That list runs a few hundred dollars at Total Wine, Costco, or ABC depending on brands. You do not need to buy mixers, juices, sodas, syrups, garnishes, ice, cups, napkins, or straws. Every BigCee package includes them.

What to skip

• Six kinds of liquor. Three or four spirits cover every classic cocktail.
• Pre-made cocktail mixes. Fresh mixers are already included.
• Bags of ice. Also included, and it arrives cold.
• Specialty liqueurs unless a signature cocktail calls for one.

The deadline most hosts miss

BigCee needs all alcohol in hand by 7:30 PM the day before your event so she can prep and set up on time. Have it ready for pickup or delivered by then. A $100 late fee applies if the handoff is missed, and the service clock still starts at your scheduled time. Buy early, hand off the night before, and the day of your party is nothing but hosting.

Leftovers are yours

Anything unopened goes home with you. That is one of the real advantages of dry hire over a catered open bar: you buy at retail, you keep what is left, and there is no markup per pour. Ready to book? Enter your guest count on the booking page and your package and deposit show up instantly.