How Much Alcohol for a 250-Guest Wedding

The full shopping list for 250 guests

This is a 4-hour open bar at the wine-leaning default of 25 percent beer, 50 percent wine, and 25 percent liquor, with a 20 percent overage buffer already built in. Every quantity rounds up, because running dry is worse than a few unopened bottles you can return.

Where the numbers come from

Same engine as our wedding alcohol calculator: one drink per guest per hour, a 20 percent buffer, and published yields (5 pours per wine bottle, 24 beers per case, 22 cocktails per liter at a 1.5 ounce pour). The 100-guest list shows every conversion step by step. What's below is what changes once the headcount hits 250: keg economics, station count, and how you actually get the order to the venue.

Kegs versus cases at scale

At the wine-leaning default, 300 beers rounds up to 13 cases, or about 2 half-barrel kegs holding 330 twelve-ounce pours between them, roughly 30 more servings than the count actually calls for. That headroom is normal since kegs only come in whole units. Cases are simpler logistically: no tap line, no CO2, no deposit to track down after the wedding, but they cost more per beer and leave you hauling a lot of empty cardboard. A keg needs a jockey box or a tap setup and someone who knows how to hook it up, so confirm the venue or rental company handles that before you commit. Lean more into beer, at the beer-forward mix, and the order moves to about 20 cases or 3 kegs, which is usually the size where the keg math clearly wins.

Two bars with a per-station split

Two hundred fifty guests is large enough that most venues run two bar stations rather than one long line. Split the list in half and each station stocks about 60 bottles of wine, 7 cases of beer, 7 liters of liquor, 188 pounds of ice, and 375 cups, each half rounded up so neither side comes up short. Keep the drink menu identical at both stations so guests don't wander across the room chasing a specific pour, and split the 4 bartenders across the two with the barback floating to whichever line gets long first.

Delivery and return logistics

An order this size is rarely a single trip to the store. Most beverage retailers and wholesale clubs waive delivery fees once you clear a case-count minimum, so ask before you rent a van. Place the order 2 to 3 weeks ahead, especially if a keg is part of the plan, since venues and rental companies that supply taps often book those out during peak wedding months. Just as important: confirm the return policy for unopened bottles and full cases before the wedding, including how many days you have to bring surplus back, so the buffer built into this list doesn't turn into dead inventory in your garage.

Why 250 guests needs a barback

Past 200 guests, a bartender who steps away from the well to restock ice or grab a fresh case stalls the whole line behind them. A barback keeps ice, cups, garnish, and backup bottles flowing at both stations so the bartenders never stop pouring. At 250 guests running two bars, the barback is doing double duty, so if the budget allows it, a second one is worth pricing out. Our how many bartenders guide covers the full staffing ladder.

What a 250-guest bar costs

The list above sizes the bar; it doesn't price it. As an editorial estimate, the alcohol and mixers alone run about $8 to $12 per guest at typical US retail prices, which is roughly $2,060 to $3,078 for the whole 250-guest order. That figure is our own construct, built from the exact bottle counts above times common retail price bands (wine around $12 to $18 a bottle, beer $24 to $34 a case, liquor $22 to $34 a liter). It is not a quote, and it excludes labor.

At this size, staffing is a real budget line: 4 bartenders plus a barback at $35 to $75 an hour each, plus the $200 to $400 tip. For where your own market falls, see our cost-by-state and cost-by-city pages and the wedding bartender cost guide.