BEVERAGE VOLUME REFERENCE

Case equivalent calculator and 9-liter case conversions

A beer case equivalent (CE) is 24 × 12 oz = 288 fl oz = 2.25 US gallons, the case unit for beer. A 9-liter case (9LE) is 12 × 750 mL = 9 liters, the standard for wine and spirits. One beer CE ≈ 0.95 9LE, and one 9LE ≈ 1.06 beer CE.

Last updated September 29, 2026

Case equivalent calculator

Enter the whole line, for example 24 units of 12 fl oz for one 24/12 case, or 1 unit of 0.5 beer barrels for a half-barrel keg. The calculator uses the formulas below and rounds to two decimals.

Which case unit to use

Beer, malt seltzer, malt-based RTD and NA beer: the 2.25-gallon case equivalent, written 24/12 CE [7]. Exports may also label it STD CS or 2.25 CE.
Wine, spirits, and wine- or spirits-based RTD: the 9-liter case, written 9LE or 9L CS [9][10].
Cider: reports use either unit, depending on the distributor; NBWA counts cider in 24/12 cases [7]. Use the unit the report states; if it states none, pick one and say which.
192 oz is the soft-drink unit case (24 × 8 oz) [11], not the 288 oz (24/12) beer CE [7]. A 192 oz figure in beer data is often a physical 12/16 or 6/32 case (0.67 CE).

Conversion formulas

1 BBL = 31 US gal (27 CFR 25.11) = 13.78 beer CE (NBWA). 1 US gal = 128 fl oz = 3.785411784 L; 1 US fl oz = 3,785.411784 mL ÷ 128 = 29.5735295625 mL [1][7][8].
Convert	Formula
Fluid ounces to beer CE	total fl oz ÷ 288
Gallons to beer CE	gallons ÷ 2.25
Barrels to beer CE	BBL × 31 ÷ 2.25 (≈ 13.78)
Milliliters to 9LE	total mL ÷ 9,000
Beer CE to 9LE	CE × 8.5172 L ÷ 9 L (≈ 0.9464)
9LE to beer CE	9LE × 9 L ÷ 8.5172 L (≈ 1.0567)

Worked examples

10 half barrels: 10 × 15.5 gal = 155 gal ÷ 2.25 = 68.89 CE.
50 cases of 12/16 oz cans: 50 × 192 fl oz = 9,600 fl oz ÷ 288 = 33.33 CE.
40 cases of 6/1.75 L: 40 × 10,500 mL = 420,000 mL ÷ 9,000 = 46.67 9LE.

Keg sizes in beer case equivalents

27 CFR 25.156 lists barrel fractions (halves, thirds, quarters, sixths and eighths) and fixed barrel equivalents for 5 gal, 30 L and 50 L kegs; 20 L and 5 L are not listed there. Gallons = BBL fraction × 31 or liters ÷ 3.785411784; CE = gallons ÷ 2.25 [1][2][7][8].
Keg	US gallons	Beer CE
1/2 BBL (half barrel)	15.5	6.89
1/3 BBL	10.33	4.59
1/4 BBL (quarter barrel)	7.75	3.44
1/6 BBL (sixtel)	5.17	2.30
1/8 BBL (eighth barrel)	3.875	1.72
5 gal	5	2.22
50 L	13.21	5.87
30 L	7.93	3.52
20 L	5.28	2.35
5 L (minikeg)	1.32	0.59

Sixtel figures vary: exports show 5.16 or 5.17 gal, so 2.29 or 2.30 CE. The exact figure is 31/6 gal (5.1667).

Beer case configurations

US beer has no federal standard of fill [12]; labels state net contents in US measure, with metric optional [3]. The table covers common configurations. A 12/16 case is one physical case but 0.67 CE.

Beer CE per case, calculated as total fl oz ÷ 288.
Case	Total fl oz	Beer CE
24/12 (also 4/6/12 oz)	288	1.00
30/12	360	1.25
18/12	216	0.75
12/12	144	0.50
6/12	72	0.25
24/16	384	1.33
12/16	192	0.67
4/16	64	0.22
15/19.2	288	1.00
12/22	264	0.92
12/750 mL	304.33	1.06
6/32	192	0.67

Wine 9-liter case conversions

TTB wine standards of fill run from 50 mL to 3 L; above 3 L, wine is packed in even liters (4 L, 5 L and up) [4].

Bottle sizes are TTB wine standards of fill (27 CFR 4.72). 9-liter case values follow the industry 12 × 750 mL convention (total mL ÷ 9,000) [4][9][10].
Case	Liters per case	9LE
12/750 mL	9.00	1.00
6/750 mL	4.50	0.50
6/1.5 L	9.00	1.00
12/375 mL	4.50	0.50
24/187 mL	4.49	0.50
4/3 L box	12.00	1.33

Spirits 9-liter case conversions

TTB spirits standards of fill run from 50 mL to 3.75 L. Since T.D. TTB-200 (January 2025), one list covers cans and other containers alike; before that, cans had a separate, shorter list [5][6].

Bottle sizes are TTB spirits standards of fill (27 CFR 5.203, as amended by T.D. TTB-200). 9-liter case values follow the industry 12 × 750 mL convention (total mL ÷ 9,000) [5][6][9][10].
Case	Liters per case	9LE
12/750 mL	9.00	1.00
6/1.75 L	10.50	1.17
12/1 L	12.00	1.33
24/375 mL	9.00	1.00
48/200 mL	9.60	1.07
120/50 mL	6.00	0.67
12/700 mL	8.40	0.93

Spirits bottle names

Fifth: 750 mL. Historically 1/5 US gallon (3,785.41 mL ÷ 5 ≈ 757 mL) [8].
Handle: 1.75 L.
Nip: 50 mL, sometimes 100 mL, so check the case count (120/50 vs 60/100).

Reading pack notation

How case and pack notation reads in distributor and sales exports.
Written	Means	Example
A/B oz	A units of B oz	24/12 = 24 × 12 oz
A/B/C oz	A packs × B units of C oz	4/6/12 oz = 4 six-packs of 12 oz
1/4 pack, 1/2 CS	A fraction of a case, not a keg	A 6-pack is 1/4 of a 24/12 case

Common traps

1/6 next to BBL, keg or gallons is a sixtel. A six-pack is written 6PK or 6/12.
12PK is a count (12 units); 12OZ is a size. 12/12 means 12 units of 12 oz.
Metric kegs are not barrel fractions: 50 L is not a half barrel (13.21 vs 15.5 gal), and 20 L is not a sixtel (5.28 vs 5.17 gal).
Barrels: in US beer data a barrel is 31 US gallons, the federal tax barrel for fermented liquors [1][8]. Other barrel units, such as the 42-gallon petroleum barrel, are not interchangeable with it [8].
Deposits: keg and bottle deposit lines are money, not volume. Leave them out of CE totals.
Mixed units: don't add 9LE and beer CE together without converting. One beer CE ≈ 0.95 9LE.

Rounding. Exact values are shown in full; others are rounded to two decimals unless shown otherwise. For large totals, convert the total volume (fl oz, gallons or mL) and round once at the end.

Case math in BevBeacon

BevBeacon's analysis is instructed to apply these conversions to uploaded reports and to list any unit corrections it makes, next to the original values. For the columns and units in a typical export, see how to read a depletion report.

Connect with us

Sources

27 CFR 25.11, Meaning of terms (eCFR): barrel = 31 US gallons; gallon = 231 cubic inches.
27 CFR 25.156, Determination of tax on keg beer (eCFR): authorized barrel fractions; 5 gal = 0.16129, 30 L = 0.25565 and 50 L = 0.42608 BBL.
27 CFR 7.70, Net contents (eCFR): malt beverage net contents in US measure; metric optional.
27 CFR 4.72, Metric standards of fill (eCFR): wine.
27 CFR 5.203, Standards of fill (eCFR): distilled spirits.
TTB Adds New Standards of Fill for Wine and Distilled Spirits (TTB, T.D. TTB-200, January 2025).
Industry Fast Facts (NBWA): one barrel = 31 gallons or 13.78 24/12 case equivalents.
NIST Handbook 44 (2024), Appendix C: General Tables of Units of Measurement (NIST): 1 gal = 231 in³ = 3.785411784 L = 128 fl oz; beer tax barrel 31 gal, petroleum barrel 42 gal.
Proof Gallons to Cases (American Craft Spirits Association): a case is 12 750 mL bottles (9 liters).
When Wine Spectator lists a wine’s production volume, are these 6-bottle cases or 12-bottle cases? (Wine Spectator): 9-liter units, the equivalent of 12 × 750 mL.
4Q25 results (Coca-Cola FEMSA): unit case = 192 oz of finished beverage (24 × 8 oz).
T.D. TTB-165, 85 FR 85514 (December 29, 2020) (Federal Register): no standards of fill are prescribed for malt beverages.