When will it be out of my blood?
Only time does it. Put in your drinks and see the curve from your first sip to the moment it's mostly cleared, with the one-drink-an-hour myth drawn beside it.
Out of your blood
Mostly cleared about 2:50am
That's 6.8 hours from your first sip, between 2:05am and 3:55am if your liver runs faster or slower than average. About 3.8 hours of your sleep overlap it.
This is an average curve. Your own level can be higher, and it can keep rising after your last drink. Never use it to decide whether you can drive.
The signs of an alcohol overdose
Call 911 right away if someone who has been drinking has any of these:
- Confusion or stupor
- Can't stay conscious, or can't be woken
- Vomiting
- Seizures
- Slow breathing, fewer than 8 breaths a minute
- Irregular breathing, 10 seconds or more between breaths
- Slow heart rate
- Clammy skin
- No gag reflex
- Very low body temperature
- Bluish skin or paleness
Don't leave them to sleep it off. Cold showers, hot coffee and walking don't reverse an overdose. NIAAA on alcohol overdose
- 18.9 g, 1.35 US drinksoz%
- 18.9 g, 1.35 US drinksoz%
The dashed line is the myth. If your liver really cleared one US drink an hour, these drinks would be gone by 11pm. On an average liver they last until about 2:50am.
How long for N drinks?
4 US drinks spread over an hour, for your body: mostly cleared about 11 hours after the first sip (8.4 to 16.4 if your liver runs faster or slower). Started at 9pm, that's about 8:00am.
| US drinks | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hours from the first sip | 3.1 | 5.9 | 8.5 | 11 | 16.1 | 21.2 |
With Gyroscope One, snap or tap each drink and see what it did to your resting heart rate and sleep. How it works
For adults of legal drinking age, 21 in the US. If you're pregnant or trying, the CDC says there's no known safe amount of alcohol.
Hours from the first sip
US standard drinks spread over the first hour, not sure about food, on an average liver. The first column's band is a faster and a slower liver.
| Body | 1 drink | 2 drinks | 3 drinks | 4 drinks | 6 drinks | 8 drinks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woman, 130 lb | 3.5 (2.7 to 5.1) | 6.7 | 9.6 | 12.6 | 18.5 | 24.3 |
| Woman, 160 lb | 2.9 (2.2 to 4.2) | 5.6 | 8 | 10.4 | 15.2 | 19.9 |
| Woman, 190 lb | 2.5 (1.9 to 3.6) | 4.8 | 6.9 | 8.9 | 12.9 | 17 |
| Man, 160 lb | 2.4 (1.9 to 3.4) | 4.6 | 6.6 | 8.6 | 12.5 | 16.3 |
| Man, 190 lb | 2.1 (1.6 to 2.9) | 4 | 5.7 | 7.4 | 10.6 | 13.9 |
| Man, 220 lb | 1.8 (1.5 to 2.6) | 3.6 | 5 | 6.5 | 9.3 | 12.1 |
Why one drink an hour is wrong
Once a drink or two is in, the liver's enzyme is saturated, so the level falls by a fixed amount an hour, about 15 mg per 100 mL on average and 10 to 20 in most people. For a US drink that's about 2 to 3.5 hours, not one. At one drink an hour the drinks stack up, like a store with one checkout lane: more shoppers don't go faster, they wait in line.
Why women's levels run higher
Alcohol lives mostly in body water, and pound for pound women have less of it, so the same drink at the same weight gives a higher level that lasts longer. Food lowers the peak and speeds clearing a little. Nothing else does: coffee, a cold shower and a walk don't lower your level.
Never a driving verdict
This is an average curve. Your own level can be higher, and it can keep rising after your last drink, even while someone is asleep. This page never tells you when you can drive. Don't drive after drinking.
7 sources
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, What Is A Standard Drink? Updated December 2025niaaa.nih.gov
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Women and Alcohol, updated December 2025niaaa.nih.gov
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Understanding the Dangers of Alcohol Overdose, updated December 2025niaaa.nih.gov
- Jones AW, Evidence-based survey of the elimination rates of ethanol from blood with applications in forensic casework, Forensic Science International, 2010pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Searle J, Alcohol calculations and their uncertainty, Medicine, Science and the Law, 2015pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Jones AW, Jönsson KA, Food-induced lowering of blood-ethanol profiles and increased rate of elimination immediately after a meal, Journal of Forensic Sciences, 1994pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Drinking Levels and Patterns, updated January 2026niaaa.nih.gov
