ABOUT THE MATH
Every competing calculator is run by someone selling alcohol. We are not. The numbers here are the working math — every rate on this page drives every number, sentence, share card, and print sheet on the site.
Total drinks: each drinker takes 2 the first hour, then 1 an hour after that.
The crowd preset splits those drinks across beer, wine, and cocktails. Serving style redistributes: beer & wine reallocates the cocktail share at your crowd’s own beer-to-wine ratio; a signature cocktail takes half outright.
Everything rounds up to what a store actually sells — cases, bottles, handles, bags, sleeves. Never down.
| CROWD | BEER | WINE | COCKTAILS | CHAMPAGNE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Backyard BBQ | 60% | 15% | 25% | — |
| Cocktail Party | 20% | 35% | 45% | — |
| Wedding | 25% | 40% | 35% | — |
| Game Day | 70% | 10% | 20% | — |
| New Year's Eve | 25% | 15% | 35% | 25% |
Drinks — 2 per drinker the first hour, 1 an hour after that.
Beer — cases of 24.
Wine — 5 glasses a bottle. A BBQ pours white to red 3:2; every other crowd splits even, tie to white.
Liquor — 1.5 oz pours, 59.2 oz in a 1.75 L handle.
Mixers — 4.5 oz a cocktail, 67.6 oz in a 2 L bottle.
Signature batch — 4 oz pours, 84.5 oz a 2.5 L pitcher, half the party's drinks.
Champagne — 6 flutes a bottle: the crowd share plus one toast pour per drinker. Sparkling cider covers everyone else, same 6 flutes a bottle.
Ice — 2 lbs a guest, 20 lb bags.
Cups — 2.5 a guest, sleeves of 25.
Non-alcoholic — 1.5 cans a guest.
Meat — ¼, ⅓, or ½ lb cooked a person by appetite; shoulder and packer cook down by half. Burgers run 1, 1.5, or 2 quarter-pound patties a person.
Everything rounds up to the purchasable unit. Never down.
PartyByTheNumbers is built and maintained by Kleos, a web design and software studio in Kansas City.