The five-second answer
A pint to line cup holds 568ml of liquid at a clearly marked fill line, with the rest of the cup giving you head space for foam. A pint to brim holds around 625ml of liquid when filled to the very top rim, with no marked line and no UKCA legal measure mark. The first is the legal cup for serving beer in pints. The second is a soft drinks or mixer cup. They look similar from a distance and are routinely confused. Getting the difference wrong on a licensed bar gets you a trading standards visit.
Why the line matters
When you pour a pint of cask ale, the head needs somewhere to sit. A 568ml pint poured into a 568ml-total-capacity cup overflows. The pint-to-line cup solves this by being moulded with a measured fill line at 568ml and around 50 to 60ml of head space above. The UKCA mark sits next to the fill line. Bar staff pour to the line, the customer gets a legal pint, and the foam has room to settle.
A pint to brim cup has no fill line because it is not a legal measure. It is sold as a 625ml soft drinks cup, with the headline measure being its full capacity. Use it for mixers, cocktails, soft drinks, water and energy drinks. Do not use it for beer service in a venue that needs to comply with the Measuring Instruments Regulations. See our UKCA piece for the compliance side.
Capacity comparison at a glance
- Pint to line: 568ml of liquid at the marked line, around 50 to 60ml of head space, total cup capacity around 625ml. UKCA + CE marked.
- Pint to brim: around 625ml of total capacity, no fill line, no UKCA mark. Marketed as a soft drinks / mixer cup.
- Half pint to line: 284ml at the marked line, total around 320ml. UKCA + CE marked.
- Two pint to line: 1,136ml at the marked line, total around 1,250ml. UKCA + CE marked.
Use case mapping
- Beer, lager, cider, served on a licensed bar: pint to line or half pint, always. Two pint also legal for serving in 2-pint measures, which is common at festivals.
- Soft drinks, mixers, cocktails, water stations: pint to brim is more cost-effective because there is no UKCA tooling, and the larger total capacity gives you a satisfying serve for a soft drink at the same price point as beer.
- Mixed bars: stock both. Beer goes in line cups, mixers go in brim cups. Bar staff learn the difference quickly when prompted at training.
Branding both formats
From a print perspective the two cups behave the same. Both can be IML or screen printed, both support full UKCA-area branding (with the line cup's print laid out to keep the legal mark clear), both ship on the same lead-time tiers. Browse the full cup range or call 01642 615757 if you are putting a mixed order together and want to make sure the artwork lays out cleanly across both.
A common ordering mistake
The most common mistake we see is a brewery or taproom ordering pint-to-brim cups assuming the larger headline number is better. It is not, if the cup is going behind a licensed bar serving beer. The order will arrive UKCA-free, the cellar manager will refuse to put it into rotation, and you will be re-ordering the right cup with a tighter deadline. If your bar is licensed, default to pint to line. If you are unsure, send the venue name and license type and we will confirm which one you need.
