Pour cost, bar inventory, cocktail and wine pricing and the beverage program: every guide, calculator and template for running the bar.
The bar carries the best margin in the building and loses it the quietest way: a heavy pour, a bottle that walks, a glass price nobody has checked since the distributor raised the cost. This hub collects everything we have on running the bar as a business: how to measure pour cost and read variance, how to count and order, how to build and price a cocktail menu and wine by the glass, how to train bartenders and run the open and close, how to build a beverage program that moves the mix, and how to plan the big nights. Start with pour cost, because every other bar number is built on it.
Start here, in this order.
Long-form guides with the formula, benchmarks by concept, a worked example and a routine.
No signup. Load the sample numbers to see how each one works, then enter your own.
Typical ranges by concept. Use them to orient, then manage to your own weekly trend.
| Metric | Full service | Bar-led | Quick service | Fine dining / club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liquor pour cost | 15 to 20% | 15 to 20% | 15 to 20% | 17 to 22% |
| Draft beer pour cost | 18 to 24% | 18 to 24% | 18 to 24% | 20 to 26% |
| Bottled and canned beer cost | 22 to 28% | 22 to 28% | 22 to 28% | 24 to 30% |
| Wine by the glass cost | 25 to 35% | 25 to 35% | 25 to 35% | 28 to 38% |
| Wine by the bottle cost | 30 to 45% | 30 to 45% | 30 to 45% | 32 to 48% |
| Beverage cost (of beverage sales) | 18 to 24% | 18 to 22% | 18 to 24% | 22 to 28% |
| Bar variance (actual vs theoretical) | Within 1 to 2 pts | Within 1 to 2 pts | Within 1 to 2 pts | Within 1 to 2 pts |
| Bar inventory on hand | 20 to 35 days | 25 to 40 days | 15 to 25 days | 30 to 50 days |
| Beverage share of sales | 20 to 30% | 55 to 75% | 10 to 20% | 30 to 40% |
All forty benchmarks, with what moves each one, are on the benchmarks page. Terms are defined in the glossary.
Excel and Google Sheets tools built from the same methods, one-time purchase.
Blended across liquor, beer and wine, most bars run 18 to 24 percent of beverage sales. By category, liquor usually runs 15 to 20 percent, draft beer 18 to 24, bottled beer 22 to 28 and wine by the glass 25 to 35. A wine-heavy list runs higher, a cocktail-led bar lower.
Weekly, on the same day and at the same time, counted by tenths or by weight. A weekly count turns pour cost from a monthly surprise into a number you can manage, and it is the only way to calculate variance.
The gap between what the bar should have used, based on what the POS says was sold, and what the count says was actually used. Within 1 to 2 points of pour cost is healthy; more than that points to over-pouring, unrung drinks, waste or theft.
Cost every ingredient from the bottle price, add juice, syrup, garnish and ice, then divide by your target pour cost, usually 18 to 24 percent. The cocktail cost calculator does the math and shows the profit per drink.
We spend two to four days in an operation, find where the money is going and install the systems that keep it fixed. Fixed price, on site.
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