Drink and Cocktail Profit Margin Calculator
This drink profit margin calculator prices cocktails pour by pour: bottle cost, pour size, mixers, ice and garnish. It adds everything into a drink cost, then derives your gross margin, pour cost percentage and the target selling price for your target liquor cost.
Calculated results
Spillage, complimentary drinks and service variations are not included: add them if they are significant.
The ingredient margin is not the bar's net profit: overhead still has to be covered.
Method and limits
How to use this calculator
For each bottle in the recipe, enter the purchase price, the volume and the pour size; switch off the bottles you are not using and add more as needed, up to twenty. Enter the other ingredients per drink — juices, syrups, sodas —, ice and garnish, then any additional direct cost. Finally, enter the sale price excluding tax and your target pour cost: drink cost, margin and target price appear instantly, in the currency of your choice.
The cost per milliliter is C_ml = P_bottle / V_bottle, and the cost per pour C_dose = C_ml × V_pour. The drink cost adds up the pours from every active bottle, other ingredients, ice and direct costs; the margin is M = P_price − C_drink, the pour cost percentage FC = C_drink / P_price × 100, and the target price P_target = C_drink / (target / 100). That margin is not the bar's net profit.
From milliliter to margin
A $30 bottle of 750 ml costs $0.04 per milliliter, so a 45 ml pour (about 1.5 fl oz) runs $1.80 — and the bottle holds a theoretical 16.7 pours. The drink cost adds the pours of every active bottle, other ingredients and ice: with $0.45 of juice and syrup, the cocktail costs $2.50 to build. The margin follows M = P_price − C_drink and the pour cost percentage FC = C_drink / P_price × 100: sold at $10, the cocktail shows a 25% pour cost — what bartenders call liquor cost — and a $7.50 gross margin, the classic bar management benchmark.
Target price, pours and consistency checks
The target selling price follows P_target = C_drink / (target / 100): $2.50 of ingredients with a 20% target calls for $12.50. The theoretical pours per bottle equal bottle volume / pour volume, before spillage and service variations. A pour larger than one bottle triggers an inconsistency warning; a zero sale price leaves the percentage undefined; an ingredient cost above the price flags a loss-making drink. Spillage and complimentary drinks remain yours to factor in.
Worked example
A $30 bottle of gin (750 ml) poured in 45 ml servings, with $0.45 of other ingredients and $0.25 of ice and garnish, sold at $10 excluding tax: cost per milliliter $0.04, cost per pour $1.80, drink cost $2.50 of which alcohol $1.80, gross margin $7.50, pour cost percentage 25% and 16.7 theoretical pours per bottle; with a 20% target pour cost, the target selling price displays $12.50. The currency is a display label only, with no conversion: reproduce these amounts in the tool, in the currency of your choice, and you will get exactly the same results.
Assumptions and limits
Spillage, complimentary drinks and service variations are not included: add them as an additional direct cost if they are significant. The ingredient margin is not the bar's net profit — rent, wages, licenses and glass breakage still have to be covered. Bottle entries are assumed exact: a pour larger than one bottle raises a warning, a zero sale price blocks the percentage, and a cost above the price flags a loss-maker. No business data ever leaves your browser.
Frequently asked questions
Limits of use