Bar Pour Cost & GP Calculator
Gross profit on a measure — pours per bottle, cost per pour, GP on the ex-VAT price and the shelf price a target GP implies.
Pours per bottle is the bottle size ÷ the measure; cost per pour is the bottle cost ÷ that.
How the bar pour cost calculator works
Pours per bottle is the bottle size ÷ the measure; cost per pour is the bottle cost ÷ that. Shelf prices include VAT, so GP is worked on the ex-VAT price (÷ 1.2): GP% is (price ex-VAT − cost per pour) ÷ price ex-VAT, and pour cost % is 100 − GP%. The suggested price is the cost per pour ÷ (1 − target GP), with VAT added back.
Formula: GP % = (Price ÷ 1.2 − Cost per pour) ÷ (Price ÷ 1.2) × 100
How drink GP is worked out
Four small sums
GP falls out of four steps. First, measures per bottle = bottle size ÷ measure size — a 700 ml spirit bottle at the 25 ml house measure gives 28 measures. Second, cost per measure = bottle cost ÷ measures — a £16 trade bottle over 28 measures is about £0.57. Third, strip the VAT: a £4.20 shelf price is £3.50 ex-VAT, so GP% = (3.50 − 0.57) ÷ 3.50 = 83.7%, which is a pour cost of 16.3%. To work backwards to a price, shelf price = cost ÷ (1 − target GP) × 1.2 — at £0.57 and a 78% target that is £3.11. The gap between the ex-VAT price and the cost per measure is your cash GP per drink.
UK legal measures
The defaults follow licensing law, not custom. Spirits — gin, rum, vodka and whisky — must be served in 25 ml or 35 ml measures or multiples, and a venue must pick one house size and display it. A 700 ml bottle therefore yields 28 measures at 25 ml or 20 at 35 ml, a 40% swing in cost per drink from the measure alone. Wine by the glass is 125 ml, 175 ml or 250 ml — 6, 4 or 3 glasses from a 750 ml bottle — and the 125 ml must always be offered. Fortified wine is 50 ml. Set the fields to your house measure exactly.
Worked example. A £16 trade bottle of house gin at 25 ml gives 28 measures at about £0.57. Sell at £4.20 (£3.50 ex-VAT) and GP is 83.7%, leaving £2.93 cash GP per drink. Move to a 35 ml house measure and the same bottle gives only 20 measures at £0.80; at the same price GP falls to 77.1%. GP is a liquor-cost measure, not profit — wages, rent, duty and wastage still come out of it.
GP benchmarksWhat is a good GP by drink type
There is no single "right" GP — it varies by category, venue and wet-led versus food-led trade. As a rough guide to where most UK pubs and bars aim:
- Spirits — ~75–80% GP (20–25% pour cost). The strongest category: a legally fixed small measure against a solid shelf price. An optic or stamped thimble is what protects it.
- Wine by the glass — ~75–80% GP (20–25% pour cost). Strong on paper, but a 175 ml pour gives only four glasses from a 750 ml bottle and an opened bottle has a short life. The 125 ml you must legally offer is the most profitable pour on the list.
- Draught beer — ~58–65% GP (35–42% pour cost). Structurally thinner than spirits: beer duty rose 3.66% in 2026, and line cleaning, foam and the first pull off a fresh keg come out of the yield before a pint is sold.
A blended wet GP in the low 70s is a reasonable target for a mixed venue. If a category drifts well below its range it is usually over-pouring, discounting or wastage rather than a pricing decision.
Pricing & cost controlPricing to a target GP and keeping it there
Price to a target GP
Menu pricing is GP in reverse. Decide the GP you want for the category, then ex-VAT price = cost per measure ÷ (1 − target GP), and multiply by 1.2 for the shelf price. A £0.57 measure at a 78% target wants £2.59 ex-VAT, so £3.11 on the board. Set the target to the benchmark, read the floor price, then let the local market set the ceiling.
Why GP drifts
25 ml or 35 ml instead of measuring is the main leak. A 25 ml measure poured by eye is often 30–40 ml — a 20–60% over-pour landing straight on cost. Add spillage, comps, staff drinks, breakages and the odd un-rung sale, and a spirit costed at 80% GP can be running nearer 70%. Optics or stamped thimbles on every spirit, plus a stocktake comparing theoretical to actual usage, is the single most effective fix.
Cost the measure, not the bottle
Always cost the measure. Two bottles at the same trade price have very different economics if one pours at 25 ml and the other at 35 ml, or if one is 700 ml and the other a litre. Enter the real measure and bottle size for each line so the percentage reflects what actually goes in the glass.
Frequently asked
Where these figures come from
GP is a standard hospitality cost-of-goods measure, not a regulated figure — but UK measure sizes are set in law. The formulas here are the mainstream trade method; the benchmark ranges are typical UK conventions you can replace with your own venue's numbers.
- Legal measures — spirits 25 ml or 35 ml (one house size, not both), wine by the glass 125/175/250 ml with 125 ml always offered, fortified wine 50 ml: The Weights and Measures (Intoxicating Liquor) Order 1988.
- VAT — the standard rate of 20% applies to alcoholic drinks; GP is worked on the ex-VAT price: GOV.UK — VAT rates.
- Alcohol duty — rates by strength and category: GOV.UK — Alcohol Duty rates.
- GP formula — GP% = (ex-VAT price − cost per measure) ÷ ex-VAT price; pour cost % = 100 − GP%.
- Benchmark ranges — spirits and wine by the glass ~75–80% GP, draught beer ~58–65%; typical trade targets, not fixed rules.
Last checked: August 2026. This is a pricing and cost-control estimate, not financial advice. Costs are ex-VAT trade figures; actual yields fall short of theoretical measures because of spillage and over-pouring, so measure every pour and stocktake regularly.
The headline number is the pour cost percentage for this drink — the wholesale cost of one pour as a share of what you charge for it. The breakdown shows pours per bottle, the cost per pour, the gross profit per drink and the price you'd need to hit your target pour cost.
What to do with itCompare the pour cost to the benchmark for that drink type. If it's above the band, either lift the price to the suggested figure or tighten the pour — a smaller measure or a controlled pourer brings the percentage straight back down.
What it is notIt's not your profit. Pour cost only counts the wholesale liquor — wages, rent, VAT, wastage and card fees all come out of the gross margin on top. A 15% pour cost does not mean an 85% profit.
Cost the pour, not the bottleTwo bottles at the same price can have very different pour costs if the measures differ. Enter the real pour and bottle sizes so the percentage reflects what actually goes in the glass.
Four things move pour cost the most: the wholesale bottle cost, the pour size, the bottle size and the price you charge.
Pour & bottle sizeThese set how many pours you get. A 25 ml measure from a 700 ml bottle is ≈23 pours; drop to 15 ml and you double it, halving the cost per pour and the pour cost.
Cost vs pricePour cost is cost per pour ÷ price, so raising the price or buying the bottle cheaper both pull the percentage down. It's the ratio that matters, not either figure alone.
Drink type & wastageSpirits, beer and wine sit in different benchmark bands, and real yield always falls short of the theoretical pours because of spillage, foam and over-pouring — so the actual pour cost runs a little above the calculated one.
A few habits keep the pour cost you calculate close to the one you actually run.
Measure every pourUse a jigger or controlled pourer — free-pouring a 25 ml measure often lands at 35–45 ml, a 20–50% over-pour straight onto your cost. This is the single biggest lever.
Stocktake regularlyCompare theoretical usage to actual. A gap between the two is wastage, un-rung sales or over-pouring — find it before it becomes a habit.
Price to a targetSet the target pour cost per category and use the suggested price as your floor. Revisit it whenever a supplier price rises so margins don't quietly erode.
Pour cost is one line in the venue's numbers. Model the wider margin, VAT and running costs of the business.
Margin on the menuTurn cost and price into a gross margin across the whole list.
Profit margin calculator → VAT on the tillAdd or back out the 10% VAT on your prices.
VAT calculator → Covering fixed costsSee how many drinks cover rent, wages and overheads.
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What is GP% on a drink? Cash GP ÷ ex-VAT price
GP% is a drink's gross profit as a percentage of its ex-VAT price — the number UK pubs run on. Work out the cost of one measure, strip VAT from the shelf price, then divide the cash profit by that ex-VAT figure. A £16 bottle of house gin at the 25 ml measure gives 28 measures at about £0.57; sold at £4.20 (£3.50 ex-VAT) that is 83.7% GP. Pour cost is the same sum inverted: 100 − GP%.
| Formula | cash GP ÷ ex-VAT |
|---|---|
| Cost per measure | £0.57 |
| At £4.20 | 83.7% GP |
- Higher GP% More profit
- Catches Over-pour + theft
UK legal measures for spirits 25 ml or 35 ml — not both
Gin, rum, vodka and whisky must be sold in 25 ml or 35 ml measures or multiples of them, and a venue must pick one house size and display it — serving both is an offence under the Weights and Measures (Intoxicating Liquor) Order 1988. The choice matters to margin: a 700 ml bottle gives 28 measures at 25 ml but only 20 at 35 ml, a 40% swing in cost per drink. Wine by the glass is 125/175/250 ml and the 125 ml must always be offered; fortified wine is 50 ml.
| Spirits | 25 or 35 ml |
|---|---|
| 700 ml gives | 28 or 20 |
| Wine | 125/175/250 ml |
- Both sizes An offence
- 35 ml house Fewer measures
Spirit GP and measures per bottle 700 ml ÷ 25 ml = 28
At the 25 ml house measure a 700 ml bottle gives 28 measures. A £16 trade bottle then costs about £0.57 a measure; on the board at £4.20 (£3.50 ex-VAT) that is 83.7% GP — comfortably inside the 75–80% spirits benchmark, which is why spirits are a pub's strongest wet category. Moving to a 35 ml house measure drops the same bottle to 20 measures at £0.80, and GP at the same price falls to 77.1%.
| Measures/bottle | 28 at 25 ml |
|---|---|
| Cost per measure | £0.57 |
| GP at £4.20 | 83.7% |
- Benchmark 75–80% GP
- 35 ml measure GP 77.1%
Wine GP by the glass 750 ml ÷ 175 ml ≈ 4
A 750 ml bottle at the 175 ml pour gives four glasses; at 125 ml it gives six, and at 250 ml just three. A £7 trade bottle over four 175 ml glasses is £1.75 a glass; sold at £6.50 (£5.42 ex-VAT) that is 67.7% GP, a little under the 75–80% target — which is why many venues price the 175 ml nearer £7.50. The 125 ml measure you must legally offer carries the best GP of the three.
| Glasses/bottle | 4 at 175 ml |
|---|---|
| Cost per glass | £1.75 |
| GP at £6.50 | 67.7% |
- Benchmark 75–80% GP
- 125 ml pour Best GP
Draught beer GP ~58–65% GP
Draught is the thinnest wet category. A 50 litre keg costing £120 yields about 88 pints of 568 ml, so roughly £1.36 a pint; at £5.20 (£4.33 ex-VAT) that is 68.5% GP before wastage. Line cleaning, foam and the first pull off a fresh keg typically cost several pints per keg, and beer duty rose 3.66% in 2026, so the realised figure lands nearer the 58–65% benchmark. Beer is a volume game; spirits and wine lift the blended GP.
| Pints per 50 L | ~88 |
|---|---|
| Cost per pint | £1.36 |
| Benchmark | 58–65% GP |
- Wastage Several pints/keg
- Duty 2026 +3.66%
Pricing a drink to a target GP cost ÷ (1 − GP) × 1.2
To price a drink, divide the cost per measure by one minus your target GP, then add VAT. A £0.57 measure at a 78% target is 0.57 ÷ 0.22 = £2.59 ex-VAT, so £3.11 on the board. This works backwards from the margin you want rather than guessing. Setting different targets by category — higher for spirits and wine, lower for draught — is how a pub builds a list that hits a healthy blended wet GP.
| At 78% GP | £3.11 |
|---|---|
| At 70% GP | £2.28 |
| Formula | cost ÷ (1−GP) |
- Price from Target margin
- Vary target By category
Worked examples
| Inputs | Pour cost | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 30 ml pours from a 700 ml bottle costing 35, sold at 10 a pour | 18% | about 16.5% pour cost |
FAQFrequently asked questions
What is GP% on a drink?
GP% is the gross profit a drink makes as a percentage of its ex-VAT price. Work out the cost of one measure — trade bottle cost divided by the measures in the bottle — strip VAT from the shelf price, then divide the cash profit by that ex-VAT price. A £16 bottle of house gin at the 25 ml measure gives 28 measures at about £0.57 each; sold at £4.20 (£3.50 ex-VAT) the GP is (3.50 − 0.57) ÷ 3.50 = 83.7%. Pour cost is the same sum from the other end: 100 − GP%, so 16.3% here.
How many measures do you get from a bottle of spirits?
Divide the bottle by your house measure. A 700 ml bottle gives 28 measures at 25 ml, or 20 at 35 ml — a 40% swing in cost per drink from the measure alone, which is why the house size matters so much to margin. A 1 litre bottle gives 40 or about 28. Real yield runs a measure or two short of the theoretical figure because of spillage and topping up, which is where GP quietly slips.
Is a 25 ml or 35 ml measure required by law in the UK?
Yes. Gin, rum, vodka and whisky must be sold in 25 ml or 35 ml measures, or multiples of them, under the Weights and Measures (Intoxicating Liquor) Order 1988. A venue must choose one house size and display which it uses — serving both is an offence, and failing to display the measure or serving short can bring fines. Wine by the glass must be 125 ml, 175 ml or 250 ml, and the 125 ml option has to be offered; fortified wine such as port or sherry is 50 ml.
What is a good GP% for a pub?
It varies by category. Most UK pubs and bars aim for roughly 75–80% GP on spirits, 75–80% on wine by the glass, and 58–65% on draught beer. Draught is structurally thinner: beer duty rose 3.66% in 2026, and line cleaning, foam and the first pull off a fresh keg all come out of the yield. A blended wet GP in the low 70s is a healthy target for a mixed venue.
Should GP be calculated before or after VAT?
Always ex-VAT. Shelf prices in a UK pub include VAT at 20%, but that VAT is never yours — it goes to HMRC. Divide the shelf price by 1.2 first, then compare it to the cost per measure. Working GP on the VAT-inclusive price overstates your margin by a wide margin: a £4.20 drink is only £3.50 of income. This calculator strips VAT for you before working the percentage.
Why is my actual GP lower than the figure on paper?
25 ml or 35 ml is the usual culprit. A 25 ml measure poured by eye is often 30–40 ml, and that over-pour lands straight on cost. Add spillage, comps, staff drinks, breakages and un-rung sales, and a spirit costed at 80% GP can be running nearer 70%. Optics or stamped thimble measures on every spirit, plus a regular stocktake comparing what sold to what poured, is the most effective fix.
The sources behind this calculator
- Corporate Finance Institute — EBITDA — why EBITDA is a non-GAAP measure with no single definition
- US SEC — Non-GAAP Financial Measures, Compliance & Disclosure Interpretations — the disclosure rules that exist precisely because EBITDA is not standardised
- Financial Reporting Council — the UK accounting and audit regulator
Last checked: September 2026. These are standard management-accounting definitions; where a term has no single agreed definition, the page says so.