Alcohol basics
What Is a Standard Drink? How Many Are in Your Beer, Wine and Cocktails
A standard drink is 14 g of alcohol in the US, 10 g in Australia and 8 g (one unit) in the UK. See how many are in a pint, a glass of wine, a bottle and a cocktail, and how to count your own.
By the Pour Decision team · Updated · 9 min read
Quick answer: a standard drink is a fixed amount of pure alcohol, not of liquid. In the US it's 14 grams, about a 12 oz can of 5% beer, a 5 oz glass of 12% wine or a 1.5 oz shot of 40% spirits. Australia, Ireland and New Zealand use 10 g, Canada 13.45 g, and the UK counts in units of 8 g.
What is a standard drink?
Drinks come in wildly different sizes and strengths. A light beer and a double IPA can both be called “a beer”, but one can have twice the alcohol of the other. A standard drink solves that by counting what actually matters: the grams of pure alcohol in your glass.
That makes standard drinks the common language of drinking guidelines. When a health authority says “no more than 10 a week”, it means 10 standard drinks, not 10 glasses. If you want to cut back on drinking, knowing how to count them is the first step.
Standard drink sizes by country
There's no single global standard. Here's how a few countries define a standard drink, and what their lower-risk guidelines say:
| Country | Pure alcohol | Lower-risk guideline |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 14 g | Drink less for better overall health (2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines; no daily number) |
| United Kingdom | 8 g (1 unit = 10 ml) | No more than 14 units a week, spread over 3 or more days |
| Canada | 13.45 g | 2 or fewer standard drinks a week is low risk |
| Australia | 10 g | No more than 10 a week and no more than 4 on any one day |
| Ireland | 10 g | Under 11 a week for women and 17 for men, with 2 to 3 alcohol-free days |
| New Zealand | 10 g | No more than 10 a week for women and 15 for men, with at least 2 alcohol-free days |
The differences are bigger than they look. One American standard drink holds as much alcohol as 1.4 Australian standard drinks or 1.75 UK units, so the same evening can count very differently depending on where you live.
How many standard drinks are in your drink?
Here's how common drinks compare. Strength varies by brand, so check the ABV on the label for an exact figure.
| Drink | ABV | Alcohol (g) | US drinks | UK units | AU drinks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Can of beer (12 oz / 355 ml) | 5% | 14.0 | 1.0 | 1.8 | 1.4 |
| Bottle of beer (330 ml) | 5% | 13.0 | 0.9 | 1.6 | 1.3 |
| UK pint of beer (568 ml) | 5% | 22.4 | 1.6 | 2.8 | 2.2 |
| US pint of craft beer (473 ml) | 6.5% | 24.3 | 1.7 | 3.1 | 2.4 |
| Can of cider (440 ml) | 4.5% | 15.6 | 1.1 | 2.0 | 1.6 |
| Hard seltzer (12 oz / 355 ml) | 5% | 14.0 | 1.0 | 1.8 | 1.4 |
| Small glass of wine (125 ml) | 12% | 11.8 | 0.8 | 1.5 | 1.2 |
| Glass of wine (5 oz / 150 ml) | 12% | 14.2 | 1.0 | 1.8 | 1.4 |
| Medium glass of wine (175 ml) | 13% | 17.9 | 1.3 | 2.3 | 1.8 |
| Large glass of wine (250 ml) | 13% | 25.6 | 1.8 | 3.3 | 2.6 |
| Bottle of wine (750 ml) | 13% | 76.9 | 5.5 | 9.8 | 7.7 |
| Single measure of spirits (25 ml) | 40% | 7.9 | 0.6 | 1.0 | 0.8 |
| Shot of spirits (1.5 oz / 44 ml) | 40% | 13.9 | 1.0 | 1.8 | 1.4 |
| Margarita (2 oz tequila + 1 oz triple sec) | 40% | 28.0 | 2.0 | 3.5 | 2.8 |
Two things stand out. A UK pint of ordinary beer is well over one standard drink anywhere in the world, and a single bottle of wine holds almost 10 UK units, about two-thirds of the UK's weekly guideline.
How to calculate standard drinks yourself
You need two numbers from the label: the volume and the ABV.
- Grams of alcohol = volume in ml × ABV ÷ 100 × 0.789 (the density of alcohol).
- Standard drinks = grams ÷ your country's standard (14 in the US, 13.45 in Canada, 10 in Australia, Ireland and New Zealand).
- UK units are even simpler: volume in ml × ABV ÷ 1,000.
Example: a 175 ml glass of 13.5% wine contains 175 × 13.5 ÷ 100 × 0.789 = 18.6 g of alcohol. That's 1.3 US standard drinks, 1.9 Australian standard drinks or 2.4 UK units.
Why your drinks are bigger than you think
- Home pours are generous. Few people measure at home, and a casual pour of wine is often closer to 200 ml than 150 ml.
- Glasses have grown. Many bars serve wine in 175 ml and 250 ml measures. A large glass is a third of a bottle.
- Drinks are stronger. Plenty of wines are 13.5% to 15% rather than 12%, and craft beers commonly run 6% to 9%.
- Cocktails hide doubles. A classic margarita with 2 oz of tequila and 1 oz of 40% triple sec is about two US standard drinks in one glass.
- Sharing blurs the count. Split a bottle of wine between two and you've each had nearly five UK units, even if it only felt like “a couple of glasses”.
Standard drinks and calories
Alcohol has 7 calories per gram, almost twice as much as sugar. One US standard drink carries about 98 calories from alcohol alone, before any sugar, juice or mixer. A bottle of 13% wine is around 540 calories of alcohol, and a UK pint of 5% beer about 157, plus whatever comes from the beer itself.
Make counting automatic
Doing this math for every drink gets old fast. Pour Decision does it for you: pick a drink from a library of more than 200 drinks and cocktails with standard portions and ABV built in, and it counts in your country's units or standard drinks, or in grams if you prefer. Your daily and weekly goals use the same measure, so you always know exactly where you stand.
Frequently asked questions
How many standard drinks are in a bottle of wine?
A 750 ml bottle of 13% wine holds about 77 g of alcohol: roughly 5.5 US standard drinks, 7.7 Australian standard drinks or 9.8 UK units.
Is a pint of beer one drink?
Usually not. A UK pint (568 ml) of 5% beer is about 1.6 US standard drinks or 2.8 UK units. A US pint (473 ml) of 5% beer is about 1.3 US standard drinks, and stronger craft beers are more.
How many units are in a shot?
A 25 ml single measure of 40% spirits is exactly 1 UK unit. A 1.5 oz (44 ml) US shot of 40% spirits is 1 US standard drink, or about 1.8 UK units.
Does beer have less alcohol than liquor?
Per serving, no. A 12 oz can of 5% beer, a 5 oz glass of 12% wine and a 1.5 oz shot of 40% spirits each contain about the same amount of alcohol: one US standard drink.
What is the difference between a unit and a standard drink?
Both measure pure alcohol. The UK uses units of 8 g (10 ml) of alcohol, while most other countries use a standard drink, which ranges from 10 g in Australia, Ireland and New Zealand to 14 g in the US.
Sources
- NIAAA: What is a standard drink?
- NHS: Calculating alcohol units
- UK Chief Medical Officers: Alcohol consumption advice on low risk drinking
- NHMRC: Australian guidelines to reduce health risks from drinking alcohol
- CCSA: Canada's Guidance on Alcohol and Health
- HSE: Weekly low-risk alcohol guidelines
- alcohol.org.nz: Standard drinks
- Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025–2030
This article is for general information only and isn't medical advice. If you're worried about your drinking, or you drink heavily every day, talk to a doctor before you cut back: stopping suddenly can be dangerous.