How much ice per person: calculator and simple maths
Ice is the last thing on the party plan and the first thing to run out. Home freezer ice lasts about an hour. To keep drinks cold all evening, it's worth working out the amount in advance.
The basic formula
A party needs two kinds of ice: drinking ice (in glasses and cocktails) and cooling ice (for bottles in buckets and tubs). Count them separately.
- Drinks: 0.7 kg per guest if it's mostly wine and beer; 1 kg for mixed drinks; 1.5 kg with a cocktail bar.
- Cooling: about 1 kg for every 2 to 3 bottles sitting in ice.
- Summer and outdoors: add 25 to 50%.
Examples
- Birthday, 20 guests, mixed drinks: 20 kg for drinks + 10 kg for bottles = 30 kg.
- Summer garden party, 80 guests, cocktails, July: 120 kg for drinks + 40 kg for cooling + 30% = about 210 kg.
- Family celebration, 50 guests, wine and beer: 35 kg + 20 kg = 55 kg.
For a quick estimate, try our ice calculator.
Which format to order
- For drinks: HOSHIZAKI cubes in a thermo box, which keeps ice for up to 8 hours without a freezer.
- For chilling bottles: 10 kg ice bags, cheaper and easy to tip into buckets.
- For large parties: the 120 kg ice tub, filled on site by our driver.
Storage tips
Keep ice boxes in the shade and don't open them unnecessarily. Never put cocktail ice in the bottle bucket. For parties longer than 6 hours, split the delivery: one before the start and one mid-evening.
