DC Happy Hour Index
What it actually costs to drink in the DMV, priced from every happy hour we list. Updated as the listings change.
27 venues pouring · last call in 5h 15m
as of 9:15 PM EDT
The Happy Hour Index
$25.00
A beer, a cocktail, a glass of wine and something to eat.
Cheapest night to go out: Monday at $24.73
Date Night Index
$21.00
Two cocktails and something to share.
The $20 Bill
3.2items
How many happy hour items a twenty still buys.
Priced from 470 venues across every day of the week. 705 venues list a happy hour today.
Drinks
Median of each venue’s cheapest qualifying pour.
| Spread | Trend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BEERDraft Beer IndexWhat a happy hour beer costs across the DMV.Cheapest: $1 at Cornerstone Grill & Loft | $5.00 | $4.00–$6.00 | — | — | 314venues | |
| RAILRail Drink IndexWell liquor — the floor of the DMV drinks market.Cheapest: $3 at Recessions Lounge | $5.00 | $5.00–$6.50 | — | — | 115venues | |
| SHOTShot IndexCheapest way to make a decision you regret.Cheapest: $2 at Cornerstone Grill & Loft | $6.00 | $3.88–$6.13 | — | — | 24venues | |
| WINEHouse Wine IndexA glass of house wine at happy hour prices.Cheapest: $3 at Larry's Lounge | $7.00 | $5.00–$8.00 | — | +$1.00 | 307venues | |
| MARGMargarita IndexThe DMV’s most-discounted cocktail, tracked on its own.Cheapest: $3 at Chevys Fresh Mex | $7.50 | $6.00–$9.00 | — | +$0.25 | 61venues | |
| CKTLCocktail IndexThe going rate for a discounted cocktail.Cheapest: $3 at Nellie's Sports Bar | $8.00 | $6.00–$9.00 | — | — | 285venues |
Food
Per-item prices. Plate deals are filtered out by bounds.
| Spread | Trend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OYSTOyster IndexReviewThe classic buck-a-shuck benchmark, priced per oyster.Cheapest: $1 at J. Hollinger's Waterman's Chophouse | $2.00 | $1.00–$2.25 | — | — | 23venues | |
| FOODBar Food IndexWhat a happy hour snack costs, across every kind of food deal.Cheapest: $1 at J. Hollinger's Waterman's Chophouse | $5.00 | $4.00–$7.99 | — | — | 232venues | |
| TACOTaco IndexTaco Tuesday, quantified.Cheapest: $1 at Philadelphia Tavern | $5.00 | $2.96–$6.00 | — | — | 26venues | |
| WINGWing IndexPer-wing and per-order deals across the region.Cheapest: 50¢ at Sudhouse | $6.50 | $2.00–$10.00 | — | −$0.25 | 48venues | |
| BURGBurger IndexThe happy hour burger, region-wide.Cheapest: $4 at All Set Restaurant & Bar | $10.00 | $7.13–$10.75 | — | — | 22venues | |
| PIZAPizza IndexSlices and happy hour pies.Cheapest: $3.50 at Segreto DC Speakeasy Bar | $10.00 | $6.50–$10.00 | — | +$1.05 | 27venues |
Market conditions
Structure rather than price — read alongside each row’s coverage.
| Spread | Trend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DURTypical HH DurationHow long the median happy hour actually lasts. | 3h 0m | 2h 0m–3h 0m | — | — | 673venues | |
| CLIFFThe 7 O’Clock CliffShare of venues whose happy hours are all over by 7pm. | 75.3% | — | +0.1pp(+0.1%) | +0.6pp | 714venues | |
| WKNDWeekend CoverageShare of venues running a Saturday or Sunday happy hour. | 43.1% | — | +0.0pp(+0.1%) | +1.4pp | 714venues | |
| LATELate-Night IndexVenues with happy hour still running after 10pm. | 70 | — | — | −5 | 70venues | |
| BRDTHMarket BreadthVenues with a happy hour today — listings on the exchange. | 705 | — | +14(+2.0%) | −47 | 705venues | |
| FLATFlat-Price ShareShare of specials quoting a real price instead of a discount. | 75.9% | — | +0.0pp | −0.1pp | 15,986specials |
The Exchange
Cheapest beerManassas$2.50
Each jurisdiction is priced from its own venues, not averaged from the neighborhoods below — that includes the DC listings we can’t place in a specific neighborhood. Selecting one also filters the table.
| Old Town AlexandriaVA | $4.25 | $7.50 | $5.50 | $5.00 | $22.25 | 18 |
| U Street CorridorDC | $4.00 | $8.00 | $6.00 | $5.00 | $23.00 | 11 |
| Adams MorganDC | $5.00 | $7.00 | $6.00 | $5.50 | $23.50 | 14 |
| Navy YardDC | $5.00 | $8.00 | $6.00 | $5.00 | $24.00 | 14 |
| Penn QuarterDC | $5.00 | $8.00 | $7.00 | $5.00 | $25.00 | 18 |
| Dupont CircleDC | $5.00 | $8.00 | $7.00 | $5.13 | $25.13 | 26 |
| ClarendonVA | $4.78 | $8.00 | $7.50 | $5.00 | $25.28 | 10 |
| Logan CircleDC | $6.00 | $8.00 | $6.00 | $5.50 | $25.50 | 10 |
| ChinatownDC | $5.50 | $7.00 | $8.00 | $5.00 | $25.50 | 10 |
| GeorgetownDC | $5.50 | $7.50 | $8.00 | $5.50 | $26.50 | 12 |
| Downtown DCDC | $6.00 | $9.00 | $9.00 | $5.00 | $29.00 | 11 |
| The WharfDC | $6.00 | $10.00 | $8.00 | $6.00 | $30.00 | 7 |
| BethesdaMD | — | $7.00 | $7.00 | — | — | 7 |
| National HarborMD | — | $8.00 | $6.00 | $5.00 | — | 7 |
| ManassasVA | $2.50 | — | $5.00 | — | — | 6 |
| Foggy BottomDC | $4.50 | $8.00 | $7.00 | — | — | 6 |
| Silver SpringMD | — | — | — | $5.00 | — | 5 |
| Falls ChurchVA | $4.00 | — | — | — | — | 5 |
| Tysons CornerVA | — | $8.00 | $7.00 | — | — | 5 |
| BallstonVA | — | — | $7.00 | $8.00 | — | 5 |
| Crystal CityVA | — | — | — | $4.00 | — | 5 |
| Capitol HillDC | $6.50 | — | — | — | — | 5 |
| Woodley ParkDC | $4.00 | — | — | — | — | 5 |
| ShawDC | — | — | — | — | — | 4 |
| LeesburgVA | — | — | — | — | — | 4 |
| H Street (Atlas District)DC | — | — | — | — | — | 4 |
| Southwest WaterfrontDC | — | — | — | — | — | 4 |
| CourthouseVA | — | — | — | — | — | 4 |
| West EndDC | — | — | — | — | — | 4 |
| AnnapolisMD | — | — | — | — | — | 4 |
| ArlingtonVA | — | — | — | — | — | 3 |
| GainesvilleVA | — | — | — | — | — | 3 |
| Mount PleasantDC | — | — | — | — | — | 3 |
| NoMaDC | — | — | — | — | — | 3 |
| TriangleDC | — | — | — | — | — | 3 |
| FairfaxVA | — | — | — | — | — | 3 |
| AshburnVA | — | — | — | — | — | 3 |
| Columbia HeightsDC | — | — | — | — | — | 3 |
| Mt Vernon TriangleDC | — | — | — | — | — | 3 |
| Chevy ChaseDC | — | — | — | — | — | 3 |
| BloomingdaleDC | — | — | — | — | — | 3 |
| Del RayVA | — | — | — | — | — | 3 |
| ShirlingtonVA | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| Takoma ParkMD | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| Wesley HeightsDC | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| Union MarketDC | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| Glover ParkDC | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| SterlingVA | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| Friendship HeightsDC | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| ColumbiaMD | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| North BethesdaMD | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| CliftonVA | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| Capitol Hill/SoutheastDC | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| MerrifieldVA | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| PurcellvilleVA | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| AlexandriaVA | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| KingstowneVA | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| Le Droit ParkDC | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| RockvilleMD | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| Cabin JohnMD | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| BrooklandDC | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| BurkeVA | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| Pentagon CityVA | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| GaithersburgMD | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| College ParkMD | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| BrightwoodDC | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| PetworthDC | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| RosslynVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| Park ViewDC | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| Cleveland ParkDC | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| Alexandria WestVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| SoutheastDC | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| Eastern MarketDC | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| Arundel MillsMD | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| KensingtonMD | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| BroadlandsVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| ClarksburgMD | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| Northeast DCDC | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| HaymarketVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| Hunt ValleyMD | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| TenleytownDC | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| RestonVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| Cathedral HeightsDC | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| EdgewaterMD | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| University Town CenterMD | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| ViennaVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| Hyattsville, MDMD | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| HerndonVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| One LoudounVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| VirginiaVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| HyattsvilleMD | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| KaloramaDC | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| McLeanVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| Reston Town CenterVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| Old Town NorthVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| MosaicVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| BaltimoreMD | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| WoodbridgeVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| Bailey's CrossroadsVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| OdentonMD | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| GambrillsMD | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| SpringfieldVA | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| BurtonsvilleMD | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| Judiciary SquareDC | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
The Index is the four price columns added together, so it only appears when all four publish. A dash means that neighborhood doesn’t have enough priced venues yet — every column needs at least five venues behind it. Sorting always leaves the dashes at the bottom.
How these numbers are made
One vote per venue. We take each bar’s cheapest qualifying price, then the median across bars — so a place with a forty-line menu counts exactly as much as a place with one deal.
Median, not average. A single twenty-six dollar cocktail shouldn’t move the market. The spread column shows the middle half of the range, so you can see how much venues actually disagree.
Outliers are filtered and counted. Typos and plate prices are dropped by declared bounds and a Tukey fence. 103 prices were excluded from today’s board, and every index page lists exactly which ones and why.
Falling is good — usually. Green means cheaper, the opposite of a stock ticker. It flips on the coverage and count indexes, where more venues and longer happy hours are the good direction.
Stale prices are excluded. A venue has to have been updated or verified within 1 year to be priced here. The typical listing on this board was last touched 28 days ago.
Trends start when we started. We have 21 days of history so far.