Pour Cost
Also called: liquor cost percentage, beverage cost percentage
What is Pour Cost?
Pour cost is the cost of beverages served expressed as a percentage of beverage sales. It is the bar equivalent of food cost, and typically much lower — which is why bar margin subsidises many restaurants.
Why Pour Cost matters
Bars lose money in small, invisible increments: a heavy pour, an unrecorded complimentary drink, a bottle that walks. Pour cost is the only number that catches this reliably.
Pour Cost formula
Pour cost % = Cost of beverages used ÷ Beverage sales × 100
Run it separately for spirits, beer and wine, since each behaves differently.
How Pour Cost works in practice
Measure by weighing or metering bottles at open and close on high-value spirits, and compare theoretical usage from sales against actual usage. Consistent gaps mean over-pouring or unbilled drinks.
Worked example
₹1,05,000 of liquor used against ₹4,20,000 of beverage sales is a 25% pour cost.
Frequently asked questions
Spirits usually run far leaner than beer, so a blended figure hides more than it shows — track categories separately.