What should you charge to bartend this event?
For mobile bartenders and caterers. Enter the guest count, bar hours and your rates. Get the order, your cost, the price to quote, the price per guest and what you keep.
How the math works
The order uses the same rules as our alcohol calculator: 2 drinks per guest in the first hour, then 1 per hour, split 65% liquor, 15% beer and 20% wine. Liquor is counted in 1.75 L handles (39 pours of 1.5 oz), which is what pros buy. For beer and wine only, the liquor share is dropped and beer and wine keep their 15:20 ratio. Toast: 1 bottle per 9 guests. Ice: 1 lb per guest, in 10 lb bags.
Your cost prices that order at sample costs: beer $24 a case, wine $11 a bottle, liquor $32 a handle, sparkling $12, mixers $2 a liter, ice $3.50 a bag. Labor is bartenders × (bar hours + setup and breakdown) × what you pay per hour. Bartenders: 1 per 30 guests for a full bar when everyone arrives at once, 1 per 50 when they spread out; 1 per 50 and 1 per 75 for beer and wine. Those full-bar ratios are house numbers from a former country-club banquet captain.
The quote is product cost plus your markup, plus every paid bartender hour at your client rate. Your margin is the quote minus product and labor. The quote leaves out travel, insurance, rentals, gratuity and tax; add those the way you normally do.
Worked example (the defaults): 120 guests, 5 hours, full bar, toast. 720 drinks: 5 cases of beer, 29 bottles of wine, 12 handles of liquor, 59 L of mixers, 14 bottles of sparkling wine and 12 bags of ice, for $1,151 of product. 4 bartenders × 7 hours is 28 paid hours, or $700. Quote: $1,151 × 1.30 + 28 × $45 = $2,756.30, or $22.97 a guest, and you keep $905.30.
Check your state's rules before you sell alcohol to a client. Where you can't without a license, set the markup to 0% and hand the client the order as their shopping list.
Questions people ask
How much should I charge to bartend a 120-guest wedding?
At this page's sample costs ($25 an hour pay, $45 an hour charged, 30% markup on product), a 5-hour full bar with a champagne toast quotes at $2,756.30. That is $22.97 a guest, and $905.30 is left after product and labor. Your local prices will move this, so type in your own rates.
Do I charge for setup and breakdown time?
Yes. Every bartender works before the bar opens and after it closes. This calculator adds 2 hours per bartender by default, and charges them at your client rate.
How many bartenders do I need for 150 guests?
5 for a full bar if everyone arrives at once (1 per 30), 3 if arrivals spread out (1 per 50). For beer and wine only, 3 or 2.
Can I mark up the alcohol?
Only where you're allowed to sell it. In many states a mobile bartender without a liquor license can't sell alcohol to the client. Then set the markup to 0%, give the client the order as a shopping list, and charge for service.