Standard drinks calculator
Free standard drinks calculator: enter volume and ABV to see how many US standard drinks any beverage contains (14g pure alcohol, NIAAA).
A standard drinks calculator converts any beverage's volume and ABV into the equivalent number of US standard drinks, where one standard drink equals 14 grams of pure alcohol (the NIAAA definition). Useful for comparing a strong craft beer against a glass of wine, tracking weekly intake against guidelines, or honestly sizing up what you actually had.
This standard drinks calculator uses the NIAAA definition, 14 grams of pure alcohol per US standard drink, to convert any beverage's volume and ABV into an apples-to-apples count. Useful for tracking weekly intake against guidelines, comparing a strong craft beer against a glass of wine, or just sanity-checking how much you actually had.
How this calculator works
The math: grams of pure alcohol = volume in mL Ã- ABV ÷ 100 Ã-
0.789 (the density of ethanol). Then standard drinks
= grams ÷ 14. If you enter the volume in fluid ounces,
the page converts to mL first (Ã- 29.5735).
Full formulas and citations live on the methodology page.
Standard drinks calculator: questions people ask
What is a US standard drink?
The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism defines a US standard drink as any drink containing about 14 grams (0.6 fl oz) of pure alcohol. Common examples: a 12 oz beer at 5% ABV, a 5 oz glass of wine at 12% ABV, or a 1.5 oz shot of 40% spirit.
How do you calculate standard drinks from ABV?
Multiply volume by ABV to get the volume of pure alcohol, then divide by the standard-drink size. In metric: standard drinks = volume in mL Ã- ABV Ã- 0.789 ÷ 14. In US units: standard drinks = volume in fl oz Ã- ABV ÷ 0.6.
Is a pint of beer one standard drink?
Not usually. A US pint (16 fl oz) of 5% beer works out to about 1.3 standard drinks. A UK pint (20 fl oz) of the same beer is closer to 1.7. Stronger craft beers can push a single pint past 2 standard drinks easily.
Are US and UK standard drinks the same?
No. The UK uses alcohol units (10 mL = 8 g of pure alcohol per unit), Australia uses 10 g standard drinks, and the US uses 14 g standard drinks. This calculator uses the US definition. Use the UK units calculator on this site for the British figure.
Does this calculator handle mixed drinks?
Yes, if you know the ABV of the finished drink. For home cocktails, that is often unknown, in which case enter just the spirit portion (volume and ABV of what you poured) and treat the mixer as zero.