How many standard drinks are in a shot of spirits?
A neat nip feels like the most honest drink at the bar — small glass, one measure, surely one drink. It's true, but only just, and only at the right size. A 30ml nip of spirits is about 1 Australian standard drink. A bar double is roughly 2, a generous home pour lands somewhere in between, and a pre-mixed can is often more than either. Here's a clear table by measure and strength, the simple formula, and what it means for the guidelines.
The short answer
Spirits are the reference point the whole standard-drink system is built around: a 30ml nip at 40% ABV is defined as almost exactly one standard drink. The catch is that hardly anyone pours exactly 30ml at home, and the bar rarely stops there either. As a quick guide for a typical 40% spirit:
- A nip / shot (30ml) ≈ 1.0 standard drink
- A generous pour (45ml) ≈ 1.4 standard drinks
- A double (60ml) ≈ 1.9 standard drinks
- A 375ml pre-mixed can (5%) ≈ 1.5 standard drinks
So the only spirit serve that's genuinely one standard drink is a properly measured 30ml nip. The moment you free-pour, order a double, or crack a pre-mix, you're past it.
What is an Australian standard drink?
An Australian standard drink contains 10 grams of pure alcohol, regardless of the type of drink or the size of the glass. Ten grams of alcohol is ten grams whether it's in beer, wine or spirits — the type makes no difference, only the amount. According to the Alcohol and Drug Foundation, a 30ml nip of spirits at 40% ABV is one standard drink, and that nip is the tidy benchmark everything else is measured against.
Because spirits are so strong, the volume that delivers those 10 grams is tiny — smaller than most people picture. That's exactly why a shot is easy to underestimate: it looks like a mouthful, but it packs the same alcohol as a middy of beer or a small glass of wine.
Standard drinks by measure and strength
Most spirits sold in Australia sit between 37% and 40% ABV, though some run higher. Here's how the common measures work out across that range:
| Measure | 37% ABV | 40% ABV | 45% ABV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nip / shot — 30ml | ~0.9 | ~1.0 | ~1.1 |
| Generous pour — 45ml | ~1.3 | ~1.4 | ~1.6 |
| Double — 60ml | ~1.8 | ~1.9 | ~2.1 |
| Large home pour — 75ml | ~2.2 | ~2.4 | ~2.7 |
The pattern is worth remembering: a double is close to two standard drinks, and an eyeballed pour at home is almost never just one. When you're the one holding the bottle, the measure creeps up — a free pour is commonly 40 to 50ml, so three "single" home spirits can quietly be four or five standard drinks.
Standard drinks by bottle size
Buying a bottle makes the totals concrete. At 40% ABV, a full bottle holds far more than a night's worth:
| Bottle | Standard drinks (40% ABV) |
|---|---|
| 375ml (half bottle) | ~12 |
| 700ml (standard) | ~22 |
| 1 litre | ~32 |
| 1.125 litre | ~35 |
A single 700ml bottle of spirits is around 22 standard drinks — more than double the weekly guideline of 10. Split across a table it disappears fast, which is part of why spirits are so easy to lose count of: the pours are small, the bottle is shared, and no one is tracking who had how many.
Pre-mixed spirits and RTDs
Pre-mixed drinks — spirit-based "ready to drink" cans and bottles — are where the count really slips. They taste light and sweet, but the alcohol is anything but consistent:
- A 275ml bottle at 5% ≈ 1.1 standard drinks
- A 375ml can at 5% ≈ 1.5 standard drinks
- A 375ml "full-strength" can at 7% ≈ 2.1 standard drinks
- A 375ml high-strength can at 10% ≈ 3.0 standard drinks
So a four-pack of full-strength RTD cans can be around 8 standard drinks — most of a week's guideline in one sitting. The number is always printed on the can as a "standard drinks" figure; on a mixed-strength shelf, it's the only reliable way to know what you're actually holding.
The formula (it's genuinely simple)
You can work out the standard drinks in any spirit with one line of maths:
For a 30ml nip at 40% ABV: 0.030 × 40 × 0.789 = about 0.95 — roughly 1 standard drink.
The 0.789 is the specific gravity of ethanol — the weight of one litre of pure alcohol in kilograms. It converts the volume of alcohol into its weight, so the answer lines up with the 10-grams-per-standard-drink rule. You only need two numbers: how much liquid, and how strong.
Why spirits are so easy to undercount
The trouble with spirits isn't any single nip — it's the pour and the mixer. A shot vanishes into a tall glass of soft drink, tastes like almost nothing, and goes down faster than a beer you'd sip for twenty minutes. Because the glass is big and the alcohol is hidden, three mixed drinks can slide past the guidelines without a moment that felt like a big session.
The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) advises healthy adults to have no more than 4 standard drinks on any one day and no more than 10 in a week to reduce the risk of harm. Put a night of spirits next to that:
- Four single mixed drinks (30ml each) ≈ 4 standard drinks — right at the daily guideline.
- Three doubles ≈ 5.7 standard drinks — already over.
- A four-pack of 7% RTD cans ≈ 8.4 standard drinks — more than double the daily guideline, and most of the weekly one.
The Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education (FARE) makes the same point: because home and bar pours vary so much, the standard-drinks figure on the label is the only measure you can rely on — not the size of the glass.
Simple ways to keep count
You don't need to do sums over the sink. A few habits do most of the work:
- Use a measure. A 30ml jigger keeps a "single" an actual single. Free-pouring almost always means more.
- Treat a double as two. At the bar, a double is roughly two standard drinks — count it that way.
- Check the can. Every pre-mix in Australia prints its standard-drinks figure, and it varies wildly between 5% and 10% products.
- Alternate with water. Mixed drinks go down fast — spacing them out with water slows the pace.
That's exactly what the Drink Buddy app is built for. Tap the spirit or pre-mix you're having and it keeps a running tally of your standard drinks, estimates your blood alcohol concentration in real time, and shows a live sobriety timer counting down to zero. No more wondering whether "just a couple" quietly became a lot.
Frequently asked questions
How many standard drinks are in a shot of spirits?
A 30ml nip at 40% ABV is about 1 standard drink. A bar double is roughly 2, and a generous 45 to 60ml home pour is about 1.4 to 1.9. The shot is only one standard drink when it's actually 30ml.
How many standard drinks are in a 700ml bottle?
About 22 standard drinks at 40% ABV. A 1 litre bottle is around 32, and a 375ml half bottle about 12 — well over the weekly guideline in a single bottle.
How do you calculate standard drinks in spirits?
Volume in litres × ABV percentage × 0.789. For a 30ml nip at 40%: 0.030 × 40 × 0.789 = about 0.95, roughly 1 standard drink.
Is a pre-mixed can one standard drink?
Usually not. A 375ml RTD can at 5% is about 1.5 standard drinks, and a 7% "full-strength" can is around 2.1. Check the standard-drinks figure printed on the can.
Does the type of spirit matter?
Only through its strength. Vodka, gin, whisky, rum and tequila are mostly 37 to 40%, so a 30ml nip of each is close to 1 standard drink. Overproof rum and cask-strength spirits pack much more into the same glass.