How much promille is one beer? Why no beer count fits the legal limit

Written by Kazim Altınok, founder of CROM TEST and AlkoSafe. Last updated: 30 September 2026.

For drivers held to 0.20‰ (drivers of any vehicle other than a private car, and novice drivers in their first two years), even one small beer can be above the limit. That is why “how many beers is the limit” has no honest answer. All figures here are model estimates; none of them is a measurement.

This guide explains where these numbers come from and why they differ. It does not tell you how much you can drink before driving, because no count can. It is written for people who drive in Turkey and want to know what one or two beers do to their promille.

How much promille is one beer?

One 5% beer gives a model peak of roughly 0.17 to 0.77‰, depending on who drinks it: 0.17–0.51‰ for a 33 cl beer and 0.26–0.77‰ for a 50 cl beer. Weight and body water drive the spread; food and time change the real value further. These are model estimates, not measurements.

The alcohol in a drink is its volume × alcohol percentage × 0.789, the density of ethanol in grams per millilitre (Searle 2015). A 33 cl beer at 5% holds about 13 grams of alcohol; a 50 cl beer about 20 grams.

To turn grams into promille, the Widmark model divides the alcohol by body weight × a distribution volume, the share of the body the alcohol spreads into. A current forensic standard gives population ranges of 0.58–0.83 L/kg for men and 0.43–0.73 L/kg for women (ANSI/ASB 122, 2024; Maskell et al. 2023). One promille here means one gram of alcohol per litre of blood, the unit the Turkish limits use (Turkish Traffic Department). In BAC terms, 0.50‰ equals 0.05%.

What does 0.50 promille mean? 0.50 grams of alcohol per litre of blood, or 50 milligrams per 100 ml. The popular Turkish phrase “fifty per cent drunk” is wrong, and the Turkish Traffic Department says so explicitly (Turkish Traffic Department).

Formula: alcohol (g) = volume (ml) × ABV × 0.789; promille ≈ alcohol (g) ÷ [weight (kg) × distribution volume (L/kg)].

The model peak for one beer, assuming all the alcohol is absorbed and none is broken down yet:

Person (model)	33 cl (330 ml) beer, 5%	50 cl (500 ml) beer, 5%
Man, 90 kg	0.17–0.25‰	0.26–0.38‰
Man, 70 kg	0.22–0.33‰	0.33–0.49‰
Woman, 60 kg	0.29–0.51‰	0.45–0.77‰

Our own calculation with the formula above, rounded outward to two decimals. The ranges are wide because the model does not know your body composition, only your sex and weight. You can see the range for your own weight and drinks in the blood alcohol calculator.

Two things follow from the table. First, every cell starts at 0.17‰ or higher, so one beer is measurable in blood for all three example people. Second, for the 60 kg woman the 50 cl column crosses 0.50‰, and even the 33 cl upper value (0.51‰) reaches it. Whether one beer puts you over the limit depends on the drinker as much as on the glass.

The model assumes full absorption and leaves out food and time. Both change the real number, as the next sections show.

How many beers is 0.50 promille?

There is no beer count for 0.50‰. The limit is a concentration in your blood, and a beer is an amount in a glass. Between the two sit your weight, your body water, how much you ate and how much time has passed.

How much promille are two beers?

Two beers carry twice the alcohol of one, so the model peak roughly doubles. For a 70 kg man, two 33 cl beers give a model peak of 0.44–0.65‰; for a 60 kg woman, two 50 cl beers give 0.90–1.53‰. A rule of thumb such as “0.50‰ = two beers” hides this spread: in the model, the same two 33 cl beers give a peak of 0.34–0.50‰ for a 90 kg man and 0.59–1.01‰ for a 60 kg woman.

How much promille are three beers?

Three 33 cl beers hold about 39 grams of alcohol. In the model that gives a peak of 0.67–0.97‰ for a 70 kg man and 0.89–1.52‰ for a 60 kg woman. Both ranges lie entirely above 0.50‰.

Drivers of any vehicle other than a private car, and novice drivers, have a limit of 0.20‰ (see below). In our examples, the lower end for one 50 cl beer is already 0.26‰ or more.

What affects promille? Five factors behind the same beer

The same beer gives two people different promille. Five factors decide the difference: the amount of alcohol, body weight, body water, food in the stomach and time.

1. Amount and strength. A 50 cl beer holds about 50% more alcohol than a 33 cl beer, and a strong beer more than a regular one. Read the percentage on the label, not the number of glasses.
2. Body weight. The same alcohol spreads into a larger body and gives a lower concentration.
3. Body water. Alcohol dissolves in water, not fat. Women on average have less body water per kilogram, which is why the female range above starts lower (0.43 L/kg) and gives higher promille for the same drink (ANSI/ASB 122).
4. Food in the stomach. In a crossover study, ten men drank the same dose after an overnight fast and after breakfast. The average peak was 1.04‰ on an empty stomach and 0.67‰ after the meal (Jones & Jönsson 1994, PMID 8064267). Food lowers the peak; it does not remove the alcohol.
5. Time. Absorption can take up to about two hours (ANSI/ASB 122), so blood alcohol can still rise after the last sip. After that, blood alcohol falls by roughly 0.10–0.20‰ per hour, often near 0.15 (Jones 2010, PMID 20304569). Coffee, exercise or a short nap do not speed this up; that takes the liver and time (Turkish Traffic Department). More in our guide how long alcohol stays in your system.

Beer, wine and rakı: how many grams of alcohol in one serving?

A small beer, a glass of wine and 40 ml of rakı hold almost the same amount of alcohol. “One drink” still is not one fixed amount. Using the serving sizes of a Turkish addiction-medicine guide (Üsküdar University):

Drink	Serving	Alcohol	Pure alcohol
Beer	330 ml	5%	about 13 g
Beer	500 ml	5%	about 20 g
Wine	140 ml	12%	about 13 g
Rakı	40 ml	45%	about 14 g

The 500 ml row is our addition for the common large bottle; the other servings are from the guide. A 50 cl beer holds half as much again as a small one. Your glass at home or at the restaurant may be larger than these servings. For rakı or wine, the blood alcohol calculator shows your own range.

What is the legal limit in Turkey?

In Turkey the drink-driving limit is 0.50‰ for private-car drivers and 0.20‰ for drivers of all other vehicles (Turkish Traffic Department). Novice drivers are held to 0.20‰ in any vehicle during their first two licensed years (Law 2918, Additional Article 17). Above the limit, a first offence in a private car means a 25,000 TL fine and six months without a licence (Law 2918, art. 48(5); amount in force since 27 February 2026 and revalued every January). Above 1.00‰, Article 179(3) of the Turkish Penal Code applies in addition to the administrative fine, and refusing the test has its own penalty. Penalties, repeat offences and the novice rule are explained with the law’s articles in drink-driving limits and fines in Turkey.

Promille estimate or measurement?

A count is an estimate, and so is a calculator. Our blood alcohol calculator uses the same model as this article: you enter drinks, weight and time, and it gives a range, not a verdict.

If you want a signal from your own body instead of an estimate, a saliva test checks instead of counting. Ethanol passes from blood into saliva, and in a study of 48 men saliva alcohol followed blood alcohol closely, at about 1.08 times the blood value (Jones 1979, PMID 761427). That describes saliva, not the accuracy of any strip. AlkoSafe is a saliva screening strip with a stated detection threshold of 0.20‰ (manufacturer statement); how it turns alcohol into a colour is explained on how AlkoSafe works.

What no count can tell you

No beer count, calculator or test result tells you that you are fit to drive. Alcohol affects reaction and judgement below the legal limit too, and the limit for many drivers is 0.20‰. If you have been drinking, do not drive. Take a taxi, public transport or a driver who has not been drinking.

Frequently asked questions

About this guide

This guide was written from the sources listed below, checked on 30 September 2026. The promille ranges are our own calculations with the published Widmark model and the distribution volumes of ANSI/ASB 122, the same model our calculator uses. Legal limits follow the Turkish Traffic Department and our separately sourced guide to Turkish drink-driving law.

Disclaimer

AlkoSafe is a personal screening and self-check product. It does not replace an official breath test, a blood test, medical advice, employer rules or traffic law. A test result does not prove that you are free of alcohol or legally fit to drive. If you have been drinking, feel tired or unwell, or are unsure, do not drive.

Sources

Official

• Turkish Traffic Department (EGM Trafik Başkanlığı), Alkollü Araç Kullanımı: https://trafik.gov.tr/alkollu-arac-kullanimi
• ANSI/ASB Best Practice Recommendation 122, final 2024 (distribution volumes §4.1.3.2, absorption §4.1.2): https://www.aafs.org/sites/default/files/media/documents/122_BPR_e1.pdf

Studies

• Maskell PD et al. Population ranges for the volume of distribution (Vd) of alcohol for use in forensic alcohol calculations. J Forensic Sci. 2023. DOI 10.1111/1556-4029.15317. https://eprints.gla.ac.uk/301086/1/301086.pdf
• Searle J. Alcohol calculations and their uncertainty. Med Sci Law. 2015;55(1):58–64. PMID 24644224. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0025802414524385
• Jones AW, Jönsson KA. Food-induced lowering of blood-ethanol profiles and increased rate of elimination immediately after a meal. J Forensic Sci. 1994. PMID 8064267
• Jones AW. Evidence-based survey of the elimination rates of ethanol from blood with applications in forensic casework. Forensic Sci Int. 2010. PMID 20304569
• Jones AW. Distribution of ethanol between saliva and blood in man. Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol. 1979. PMID 761427
• Eryılmaz G, Dilbaz N. Alkol Kullanım Bozukluğu Tanısı Konulmuş Hastaların Aileleri İçin Rehber. Üsküdar University Press (serving sizes, p. 20). https://uuyayinlari.com/download/77

Manufacturer

• AlkoSafe product page (detection threshold 0.20‰): https://alkosafe.com/alkosafe/