How much alcohol is contained in a 12 ounce beer a 4 ounce glass of wine or a 1 ounce serving of 80 proof liquor?

Many people are surprised to learn what counts as a drink.  The amount of liquid in your glass, can, or bottle does not necessarily match up to how much alcohol is actually in your drink.  Different types of beer, wine, or malt liquor can have very different amounts of alcohol content. For example, many light beers have almost as much alcohol as regular beer – about 85% as much.   Here’s another way to put it:

• Regular beer: 5% alcohol content
• Some light beers: 4.2% alcohol content

That’s why it’s important to know how much alcohol your drink contains.  In the United States, one "standard" drink (or one alcoholic drink equivalent) contains roughly 14 grams of pure alcohol, which is found in:

• 12 ounces of regular beer, which is usually about 5% alcohol
• 5 ounces of wine, which is typically about 12% alcohol
• 1.5 ounces of distilled spirits, which is about 40% alcohol

How do you know how much alcohol is in your drink?

Even though they come in different sizes, the drinks below are each examples of one standard drink:

Each beverage portrayed above represents one standard drink (or one alcoholic drink equivalent), defined in the United States as any beverage containing 0.6 fl oz or 14 grams of pure alcohol. The percentage of pure alcohol, expressed here as alcohol by volume (alc/vol), varies within and across beverage types. Although the standard drink amounts are helpful for following health guidelines, they may not reflect customary serving sizes.

For more information, visit Rethinking Drinking.

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Home How much is too much What counts as a drink? What's a “standard drink”?

• What counts as a drink?
  • What's a “standard drink”?
  • How many drinks are in common containers?

• What's your pattern?
  • What are the U.S. guidelines for drinking?
  • Why do women face higher risks for alcohol-related consequences?

• What's the harm?
  • What is alcohol misuse?
  • What are the consequences?
  • What are symptoms of alcohol use disorder?

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In the United States, a “standard drink” (also known as an alcoholic drink equivalent) is defined as any drink that contains about 0.6 fluid ounces or 14 grams of pure alcohol. Although the drinks pictured here are different sizes, each contains approximately the same amount of alcohol and counts as one U.S. standard drink or one alcoholic drink equivalent.

12 fl oz of regular beer

about 5% alcohol

=

8–10 fl oz of malt liquor or flavored malt beverages such as hard seltzer
(shown in a 12 oz glass)

about 7% alcohol

=

5 fl oz of table wine

about 12% alcohol

=

3–4 oz of fortified wine
(such as sherry or port; 3.5 oz shown)

about 17% alcohol

=

2–3 oz of cordial, liqueur, or aperitif
(2.5 oz shown)

about 24% alcohol

=

1.5 oz of brandy or cognac
(a single jigger)

about 40% alcohol

=

1.5 fl oz shot of distilled spirits
(gin, rum, tequila, vodka, whiskey, etc.)

about 40% alcohol

Each beverage portrayed above represents one standard drink (or one alcoholic drink equivalent), defined in the United States as any beverage containing 0.6 oz or 14 grams of pure alcohol. The percentage of pure alcohol, expressed here as alcohol by volume (alc/vol), varies within and across beverage types. Although the standard drink amounts are helpful for following health guidelines, they may not reflect customary serving sizes.

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Is your "lite" beer light in alcohol?

Not necessarily. Although they have fewer calories, many light beers have almost as much alcohol as regular beer—about 85% as much, or 4.2% versus 5.0% alcohol by volume, on average.

Check the alcohol content of your beverage. Malt beverages are not required to list their alcohol content on the labels, so you may need to visit the bottler's Web site.

See What's a standard drink?

How many "drinks" are in a bottle of wine?

A typical 25-ounce (750 ml) bottle of table wine holds about 5 "standard" drinks, each containing about 5 ounces. This serving size of wine contains about the same amount of alcohol as a 12-ounce regular beer or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof spirits.

Get to know what 5 ounces looks like by measuring it out at home. That way you can estimate how many standard drinks you're being served in a restaurant or bar that uses large glasses and generous serving sizes.

See What's a standard drink?

Mixing alcohol with certain medications can cause nausea, headaches, drowsiness, fainting, a loss of coordination, internal bleeding, heart problems, and difficulties in breathing. Alcohol can also make a medication less effective. For more information, see Harmful Interactions: Mixing Alcohol with Medicines.

Examples of medical conditions for which it's safest to avoid drinking include liver disease (such as from hepatitis C), bipolar disorder, abnormal heart rhythm, and chronic pain.

Among the dangers of underage drinking:

• Each year, an estimated 5,000 people under age 21 die from alcohol-related injuries.
• The younger people are when they start to drink, the more likely they are to develop alcohol use disorder at some point in their lives.
• Underage drinking is illegal—an arrest can lead to losing a job, a driver's license, or a college scholarship.

Even moderate amounts of alcohol can significantly impair driving performance and your ability to operate other machinery, whether or not you feel the effects of alcohol.

Heavy drinking during pregnancy can cause brain damage and other serious problems in the baby. Because it is not yet known whether any amount of alcohol is safe for a developing baby, women who are pregnant or may become pregnant should not drink.

Highest risk

About 50% of people who drink in this group have alcohol use disorder.

Increased risk

This "increased risk" category contains three different drinking pattern groups. Overall, nearly 20% of people who drink in this category have alcohol use disorder.

Low-risk drinking

Only about 2% of drinkers in this group has alcohol use disorder.

A U.S. standard drink contains about 0.6 fluid ounces or 14 grams of pure alcohol (also known as an alcoholic drink-equivalent). That's the amount in 12 ounces of regular beer, 5 ounces of table wine, or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof distilled spirits.

Distilled spirits include vodka, whiskey, gin, rum, and tequila.

Light to moderate drinking

• Men: Up to 2 drinks per day
• Women: Up to 1 drink per day

Heavy or at-risk drinking

• Men: More than 4 drinks on any day or more than 14 drinks per week
• Women: More than 3 drinks on any day or more than 7 drinks per week

Low-risk drinking

Men: No more than 4 drinks on any day and no more than 14 per week

Women: No more than 3 drinks on any day and no more than 7 per week

People with a parent, grandparent, or other close relative with alcoholism have a higher risk for becoming dependent on alcohol. For many, it may be difficult to maintain low-risk drinking habits.

Pace yourself: It's best to have no more than one standard drink per hour, with nonalcoholic "drink spacers" between alcohol beverages. On any day, stay within low-risk levels of no more than 4 drinks for men or 3 for women. Note that it takes about 2 hours for the adult body to completely break down a single drink. Do not drive after drinking.

For comparison, regular beer is 5% alcohol by volume (alc/vol), table wine is about 12% alc/vol, and straight 80-proof distilled spirits is 40% alc/vol.

The percent alcohol by volume (alc/vol) for distilled spirits is listed on bottle labels and may be found online as well. It is half the "proof," such that 80-proof spirits is 40% alc/vol.

Convert proof to alc/vol

Enter in the proof of the alcohol in the left field to automatically calculate the alc/vol.

Convert to fluid ounces

Enter in the measurement in milliliters in the left field to automatically calculate the amount in fluid ounces.

How much alcohol is contained in a 12 ounce beer a 4 ounce glass of wine or a 1 ounce serving of 80 proof liquor in ounces?

What do 5 ounces of wine 12 ounces of beer and 1.5 ounces of vodka have in common?

What is the alcohol content of a 12 oz?

How many ounces of hard liquor is equal to 12 ounces of beer?