Tool
How many units is this?
UK units and grams of pure alcohol for any serving, with the US standard drink shown alongside — because the two measures differ and advice written for one country does not transfer.
Alcohol units
A UK pint is 568 ml; a half is 284; a 330 ml bottle is 330.
UK alcohol units
2.6 units
Pure alcohol: 20.2 g
How this is worked out
- Definition: One UK unit is 10 ml (8 g) of pure ethanol.
- Calculation: 568 ml × 4.5% ÷ 1000 = 2.56 units
- Pure alcohol: 20.2 g of ethanol
- For comparison: 1.4 US standard drinks, which are 14 g each
What this assumes (3)
- The UK Chief Medical Officers advise keeping to no more than 14 units a week, spread over three or more days, with several drink-free days.
- Units measure alcohol, not effect. How a given amount affects a person depends on body size, sex, food, medication and much else, and no calculator can tell anyone they are safe to drive.
- A UK unit and a US standard drink are not the same measure. Advice written for one country does not transfer to the other.
Why this matters more for cider than for beer
Cider spans a much wider strength range than most drinkers expect — from 2.5% at the bottom of the low-alcohol category to over 8% for a traditional bottled cider and well beyond that for apple wine and ice cider. A pint of one and a pint of another are not comparable in any useful sense.
The UK Chief Medical Officers advise keeping to no more than 14 units a week, spread over three or more days, with several drink-free days. Units measure alcohol, not effect, and nothing here tells anyone they are safe to drive.
A UK unit is 8 g of pure alcohol; a US standard drink is 14 g. Guidance written for one country does not transfer to the other, and the difference is large enough to matter.
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Where this reading comes from
Guides that reach this calculator, and what the number decides once you have it.