Consumption vs Open Bar

Whats the price per head for open bar? and how many drinks from the consumption bar would that cover?

In my group==open bar was the better choice by far but prob 85-90% of guests drank-even if it wasn't a ton. At only 50%....a consumption bar may be smart.

ETA: if you let me know your open bar pp price and consumption prices, I don't mind running your numbers....bored af at work. Also need to know how many hours.

How pricey are the beverages that would be served?

If you have that many non-drinkers, then a consumption bar is probably better. What's the price per head for the open bar and the average price of drinks for the consumption bar?

Usually a consumption is better, only get charged for whats consumed, whereas open bar you get charged PP whether they drink or not

Do the math. Average open bar for us was about $40 per person plus tax and tip etc would equate to almost $53 per person.

We had about 50% non drinkers too.

Our total beverage consumption bar equaled to just about $31 all in.

But also keep in mind cost of non-alcoholic beverages as OPEN BAR usually includes them and consumption bar charges per drink so if you have a lot of non-alcoholic drinkers who want expensive non-alcoholic beverages you should run an estimate as well to get a true picture.

I haven't gotten a bar proposal for the consumption bar yet, but I was a little shocked at the price for the open bar. Here is the price break down:

Bar staff: $1440.00

Equipment: $2050.00

Beverages: $10,000.00

The beverages are calculated as $40/person/hour and we're having 250 for 4 hours. Bar staff and equipment are fixed prices. I don't know if I'm having sticker shock or if these prices are normal. Unfortunately my venue allows only this one particular caterer to provide alcohol so I feel they monopolize their open bar price. Everything is top shelf and there are NUMEROUS choices for wine/beer/liquor. More than half of our guests are FH family who do not drink.

If your estimate that more than half your guests won't drink is accurate, definitely go for a consumption bar.

I'm going with consumption because I've estimated that about 40 out of 120 guests will drink alcohol. A large portion of our guests do not drink alcohol due to religious reasons.

I agree with @Sarah that $40/PP sounds like it should be the total, not the per hour... That doesn't seem right.

ETA: $40 X 250 = $10,000. That's not per hour, that's total.

I agree $40 per person sounds more accurate than $40 per person per hour...I would double check with them on that one!

If you expect a lot of people won't drink, a consumption bar is probably the best bet. Have you done the math on the average drinks per person included in the open bar price?

PPs are right. It's not $40pp per hour. It's just $40pp. That equals the $10k they are quoting. $40pp is on the high side but not unheard of for a flat rate bar. It's coming out to $10k because you have a lot of guests.

If more half your guest list does not drink, I would do a consumption bar. Even if you estimate on the higher side: 8 drinks per person @ $8 per drink x 125 drinkers = $8000. This still saves you money compared to the flat rate.