Alcohol Dilution Calculator for Tinctures

If your bottle of high-proof grain alcohol, such as Everclear, says 190 proof, mix 4.21 fl oz of it with 3.79 fl oz of water to make about 1 cup at 50% ABV (100 proof).

The calculator above works this out for any strength. Enter the strength on your bottle, in proof or ABV, and the strength you want. Then enter the batch you want, or how much spirit you have. You get the spirit and the water in fl oz, cups, and mL.

How much water to add to 190 or 151 proof

First pick a target strength. Then size the batch one of two ways.

Choosing a strength. Use the one your recipe calls for. If you’re following our tinctures guide, it suggests 80–100 proof (40–50% ABV) vodka or brandy, says dried herbs work fine with 80 proof, and suggests higher proof (100+) for fresh herbs, “since they carry water.” Those are that guide’s suggestions, not a standard. Our liniments guide, for a preparation used only on the skin, calls for 80–100 proof vodka.

Make a set amount. Enter the batch you want. For 1 cup at 40% ABV (80 proof), mix 3.37 fl oz of 190 proof with 4.63 fl oz of water.

Use what you have. Enter the spirit you’re starting with. A 750 mL bottle of 190 proof takes 22.82 fl oz (675 mL) of water to reach 50% ABV. To reach 40%, it takes 34.87 fl oz (1.03 L).

Starting from 151 proof. For 1 cup at 50%, mix 5.3 fl oz of 151 proof with 2.7 fl oz of water.

Behind the numbers is one rule: the spirit you need is the batch size times the target strength, divided by the starting strength. Water makes up the rest. Water can only make a spirit weaker, so the calculator stops you if the target is stronger than your bottle.

To mix, measure the spirit into a clean jar, away from the stove or any flame (see Mix it safely). Add the water, stir, and label the jar with its strength.

The tinctures guide covers the rest of the method, from filling the jar to bottling. Not sure how much liquid your herb needs? The tincture ratio calculator works that out from the herb’s weight. If your recipe gives herb and liquid in parts, the herbal recipe calculator turns them into cups and ounces. Growing the herbs you’ll extract? Start with your first medicinal herb garden.

Proof vs. ABV

Federal rules define proof as “the ethyl alcohol content of a liquid at 60 degrees Fahrenheit, stated as twice the percentage of ethyl alcohol by volume” (27 CFR § 5.1).

So 190 proof is 95% ABV, 151 proof is 75.5%, and 80 proof is 40%. The calculator takes either measure.

Why you end up with a little less than you poured

Alcohol and water shrink when they mix, so the result comes out a little stronger than your target. Mix 4.21 fl oz of 190 proof with 3.79 fl oz of water, and you’ll end up with a little less than 1 cup. All the alcohol is still there, just in less liquid.

The federal Gauging Manual’s Table 6 lists the volumes of alcohol and water in spirits at each proof. We computed the shrinkage from its rows for 190 proof diluted to 40–60% ABV: 2.84% at 40%, 3.02% at 50%, and 2.88% at 60%. The table doesn’t print those percentages; they’re our math. That’s where the calculator’s “expect about 3% less liquid than the spirit and water you poured” comes from.

We didn’t compute other strengths, including any 151-proof start. For those, the calculator just says to expect a little less liquid. It uses the simple rule and doesn’t correct for shrinkage.

Mix it safely

• Keep it away from flame. PubChem lists ethanol as a “Highly Flammable liquid and vapor” (PubChem), and NIOSH classes it as a Class IB flammable liquid (NIOSH). Those listings are for ethanol itself. At 190 proof, a spirit is 95% ethanol, so our advice is to treat it the same way: mix it away from the stove, candles, and any flame.
• Keep it away from children. Poison Control warns, “Alcohol can be a dangerous poison for children” (Poison Control). Our advice: keep the bottle and your tinctures out of sight and reach, and label every jar.
• If a child swallows it. Poison Control advises: “If a child swallows alcohol, remove the container and use the webPOISONCONTROL® online tool to get help, or call your poison center at 1-800-222-1222.” (Poison Control)
• Our advice: don’t drink high-proof spirit straight.

The tinctures guide’s safety notes cover storing and labeling your finished tinctures.

Common questions

Can you add water to Everclear?

Yes, and that’s how you bring it down to your recipe’s strength. With a bottle labeled 190 proof, a cup at 60% ABV takes 5.05 fl oz of spirit and 2.95 fl oz of water. Water only lowers the strength; it can’t raise it.

How do you dilute Everclear to 100 proof?

At 100 proof, a spirit is 50% ABV. If your Everclear is 190 proof, pour a 750 mL bottle into a jar big enough for both, then add 22.82 fl oz (675 mL) of water. Expect about 3% less liquid than you poured. If your label shows a different strength, enter it in the calculator.

How much alcohol is 190 proof?

That’s 95% alcohol by volume, because US proof counts each percent of ABV twice, measured at 60°F.

What ABV is 120 proof?

It’s 60% ABV. Halve the proof to get the ABV.

Is 40% ABV the same as 80 proof?

Yes, in the US. An 80-proof spirit is already 40% ABV, so it needs no water to reach that strength.