Cocktail ABV Calculator

I get asked this question more than almost anything else, how strong is the cocktail I am about to make. Spirits vary, measures vary, and once you start mixing five different bottles into one glass the maths gets fiddly fast. So I built this, a proper cocktail ABV calculator that works out the alcohol content of your cocktail from the measures you actually use, not some rough guess on the back of a napkin.

Pick one of the recipes below and it will load the standard measures straight in, or start from scratch and build your own. Either way you can adjust every ingredient, scale it up for a party, and see the estimated strength update as you go. I have wired in every recipe from our own site plus a big bank of the classics, so whatever you are making, there is a good chance it is already in there.

How This Calculator Works

The maths behind it is simple once you break it down. Each ingredient has a volume and an ABV percentage, spirits sit around 37 to 40 percent, liqueurs and fortified wines are usually lower, and mixers, juices and syrups count as zero. Multiply each ingredient's volume by its strength, add them all together, then divide by the total volume of the drink. That gives you the pre-dilution ABV of what is in the glass before any ice goes near it.

Ice matters more than people think. A shaken or stirred drink picks up meltwater as you work it, which brings the final strength down further, often by ten to twenty percent depending how long you go. So treat the number here as the strength of the liquid you are pouring, not the exact strength of what lands in your mouth once the ice has done its work. That is deliberate, it is the more useful and more honest number to work from.

What counts as a standard measure in the UK?

A single UK spirit measure is 25ml, though most bars now pour 35ml or 50ml doubles as standard. This calculator defaults to the sort of measures you would actually use at home, and you can change any of them.

Does ice change the ABV of a cocktail?

Yes. Shaking or stirring with ice dilutes a drink as some of the ice melts into it, which lowers the final strength below the pre-dilution figure this calculator gives you. A well made cocktail is usually diluted by around twenty to twenty five percent by the time it hits the glass.

Why do some ingredients show 0 percent ABV?

Juices, syrups, sodas, cordials, cream and bitters used in small dashes are all treated as zero for the purposes of this calculator. Bitters technically contain alcohol but the quantities used are so small they do not meaningfully move the final number.

Is a ready made canned cocktail stronger or weaker than a home made one?

It depends entirely on the recipe and the pour. Our own cans run from 8.4 percent to 12 percent ABV, which sits comfortably in the same range as most home made versions of the same drinks once you account for dilution, just without the washing up.

How accurate is this calculator?

As accurate as the measures and percentages you put into it. We have used standard bottle strengths and classic bar measures throughout, but bottles do vary by brand, so treat the result as a close estimate rather than a lab reading.

Skip the Mixing

If you would rather not measure any of this out yourself, we have already done it for you. Our range of ready to drink canned cocktails covers many of the classics on this page, properly mixed and ready over ice. Take a look at the full range of Boozy ready to drink cocktails, or head straight to our cocktail recipes if you want the method behind any of the drinks above.

This calculator is provided for general interest and is not a substitute for professional advice. Please drink responsibly and be aware of your own alcohol limits.