Pour Cost

In the world of bar management, every drop matters. Behind the craft cocktails, fancy glassware, and buzzing happy hours lies a cold, hard number that determines if your bar is profitable: pour cost.

This single percentage tells you how well you’re turning alcohol into income—and where you might be leaking money without even realizing it.

What Is Pour Cost?

Pour cost is the percentage of your beverage sales spent on the alcohol used to make those drinks. In simple terms, it tells you how much you’re paying to make what you sell at the bar.

The formula:

(Beverage Cost ÷ Beverage Sales) x 100 = Pour Cost %

Example:
If you spent ₹2,000 on alcohol and sold ₹10,000 worth of drinks, your pour cost is 20%.

This number becomes your baseline for measuring bar efficiency and profitability.

You must read: Restaurant P&L Simplified 

What’s a Good Pour Cost?

Most well-run bars aim for a pour cost between 18% and 24%, depending on:

• Type of alcohol served (beer, wine, spirits)

• Venue concept (dive bar vs. fine dining)

• Location and pricing power

• Beverage mix and portion control

Small improvements here can make a big impact—because bar sales often have some of the highest margins in the entire restaurant.

What Affects Your Pour Cost?

1. Portion Control

Inconsistent pours = lost revenue.
Whether it’s a heavy-handed bartender or just casual guessing, over-pouring eats into your profits.

Fix it with:

• Jiggers and pour spouts

• Pre-batched cocktails

• Staff training on accurate pours

• Measured dispensing systems

2. Beverage Mix

Different drinks have different costs.

• Cocktails may have multiple ingredients and garnish costs

• Beer often has the lowest and most stable pour cost

• Wine has spoilage risks if not managed properly

• Premium liquors cost more but justify higher menu pricing

Understanding what you’re selling the most (and how it impacts your margins) is key.

Tracking Pour Cost Accurately

Some bars also use smart pour spouts or automated systems that measure usage in real time.

Watch Out for These Hidden Costs

Theft & Spillage

Missing bottles, free shots, or “heavy” pours from your friendliest bartender? It adds up.

Prevent loss by:

• Keeping high-value bottles secured

• Tracking opening/closing counts

• Encouraging accountability, not policing

Waste

Spoiled wine, unfinished kegs, broken bottles, over-garnished drinks—it’s all lost money.

Smart storage, FIFO (First In, First Out) methods, and staff awareness can help reduce these avoidable costs.

Pricing Plays a Big Role

Here’s a secret: You can improve pour cost without changing your recipes—just tweak your prices.

Raising drink prices (strategically) increases revenue while keeping costs the same, lowering your pour cost %.

Be careful, though. You need to balance:

• Customer expectations

• Competitor pricing

• Perceived value of your drinks

Menu Engineering for Better Margins

Design your bar menu to steer customers toward high-margin items:

• Promote house cocktails with low-cost ingredients

• Bundle drinks in happy hour combos

• Use premium names for well liquors when appropriate

• Highlight profitable wine options as “recommended”

Let the menu do the heavy lifting for your pour cost goals.

Technology That Helps

Modern POS systems and bar software tools make pour cost tracking easier than ever. Features like:

• Real-time sales vs. inventory sync

• Pour tracking by drink or employee

• Smart alerts when pour costs spike

• Sales reports tied to inventory usage

These tools help you make quick corrections before problems grow.

Don’t Panic About Seasonal Changes

Pour cost isn’t static. It can (and should) change depending on your bar calendar:

• Summer cocktails with fruit and mixers may have different margins

• Holiday wine specials could push costs up but increase sales

• Event-based volume might justify temporary cost fluctuations

The goal? Know what “normal” looks like for you—then adjust smartly.

Final Sip

If your bar is part of your restaurant’s revenue engine, pour cost is your most important performance gauge. A few percentage points in either direction can mean thousands in profit or loss every month.

Track it. Understand it. And most importantly—optimize it.