Food & drink · Draught beer
Keg pours calculator.
Pick a keg size and a pour size to see how many glasses a keg gives, then add keg cost and price to get cost per pour and profit per keg.
Inputs
Your keg
Choose a keg size and pour size.
How many beers are in a keg
Pours per keg = keg volume × (1 − loss) ÷ pour size. A US half barrel is 15.5 US gallons, which is 58.7 L or exactly 124 US pints before any loss. The Beer Store lists kegs in 58.6 L, 50 L, 30 L and 20 L sizes. Cost per pour = keg cost ÷ pours, and revenue counts only whole pours.
Worked example. A US half barrel poured in 16 US fl oz pints holds 124 pints. Allow 10% for foam and the dregs and that is 111.6, so 111 whole pints. At $200 for the keg the cost is $1.79 per pint. Sold at $7 the keg brings in $777, a profit of $577 and a pour cost of 25.7%. At 5% ABV the sellable beer is about 155 Canadian standard drinks.
This is the bar-side view of one keg. To work out how many kegs a party needs, use the party alcohol and keg calculator.
Frequently asked questions
How many beers are in a keg?
A US half barrel (15.5 gallons) holds 124 US pints, or about 165 twelve-ounce drinks, before any loss. With a 10% allowance for foam and dregs you can expect about 111 pints.
How many pints are in a 50 L keg?
Divide 50,000 mL by the pour. Using 568 mL imperial pints a 50 L keg gives about 88 before loss; using 473 mL US pints it gives about 106.
What is a sixth barrel keg?
A sixth barrel (sixtel) is 5.17 US gallons, about 19.6 L. A quarter barrel is 7.75 gallons.
How do I work out profit per keg?
Multiply the number of whole pours by the price per pour and subtract the keg cost. In the example, 111 pours at $7 less $200 is $577.
Sources
Opened
- Wikipedia: Keg: US half barrel 15.5 US gallons (124 US pints), quarter barrel 7.75 gallons, sixth barrel 5.17 gallons.
- The Beer Store: Keg Sizing Guide for Events: Lists 58.6 L, 50 L, 30 L and 20 L kegs.
- Health Canada: Low-risk alcohol drinking guidelines: A Canadian standard drink is 17.05 mL or 13.45 g of pure alcohol.
- NIAAA: What is a standard drink?: A US standard drink contains 14 grams of pure alcohol.
- CCSA: Canada's Guidance on Alcohol and Health: Lists 2 standard drinks or less per week as the level where you are likely to avoid alcohol-related consequences, and says risk rises with each additional drink.
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Scope
Drink responsibly. Canada’s Guidance on Alcohol and Health (CCSA) puts 2 standard drinks or less per week as the level where you are likely to avoid alcohol-related consequences, and says risk rises with each additional drink. Never drive after drinking, and follow your local rules on serving alcohol. This tool is arithmetic, not medical or legal advice. The loss allowance is yours to set; real losses vary with line length, temperature and technique.