A Tim Hortons Take 12 holds roughly 96 fl oz—about 12 small (8-oz) cups or 9–10 medium pours, depending on how you serve it.
Group coffee runs are messy when no one agrees on “a cup.” The phrase How Many Cups Of Coffee Are In A Tim Hortons Carafe? sounds simple, but the answer shifts with pour size, milk, and refills. This guide gives you straight math, real-world adjustments, and an easy planning chart so you buy the right amount the first time.
How Many Cups Of Coffee Are In A Tim Hortons Carafe? By Cup Size And Pour
Tim Hortons offers a carry-out coffee box commonly called “Take 12.” It’s built to serve twelve small pours. Twelve small pours means twelve 8-ounce servings, which implies a total volume near 96 fl oz. That matches what most people mean by a coffee carafe for meetings: a hot box around one half-gallon.
Here’s the quick way to translate that into the cups you’ll actually hand out. Just pick a pour size and look at the yield from a ~96-oz carafe.
Cups From A 96-Oz Tim Hortons Carafe By Pour Size
| Pour Size (fl oz) | Approx. Cups | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | 16 | Small tasting pours |
| 7 | 13 | Light meeting pour |
| 8 | 12 | Matches “12 small cups” |
| 9 | 10–11 | Room for milk/cream |
| 10 | 9–10 | Close to a Tim small cup fill |
| 12 | 8 | Hearty pour; fewer servings |
| 14 | 6–7 | Near a medium-style fill |
| 16 | 6 | Big mugs only |
| 20 | 4–5 | Large travel mugs |
| 24 | 4 | Extra-large style |
Why the ranges? A “cup” is rarely exact. Lids, headspace, and milk push the fill down a little, which trims a serving here and there. If you want to be safe, plan on the lower end of the range for bigger pours.
What “Carafe” And “Take 12” Mean At Tim Hortons
In most restaurants, the meeting-size coffee comes as a sealed, insulated box with cups, lids, and stir sticks. Tim Hortons markets this as a “Take 12” pack designed to make twelve small pours. Some regional pages state this plainly as 12 x 8-oz cups, which lines up with the table above and the ~96-oz working volume. If your store uses a different label (box vs carafe), the serving math stays the same: think in ounces, then divide by your pour size.
Typical Cup Sizes People Pour From A Carafe
Most groups mix small 8–10 oz pours for casual meetings and 12–14 oz pours when folks grab a larger mug. That’s why yield swings so much in practice. Your plan should match the crowd: smaller pours for quick huddles, larger pours for longer sessions.
Tim Hortons Carafe Cups — Practical Factors That Shift The Count
Even with clean math, real service changes the number of cups you pour. Here are the variables that matter most:
Milk, Cream, And Toppings
Adding milk shortens the coffee portion slightly, but people often top off anyway. Expect one fewer serving across the box when lots of milk goes in the cup.
Headspace And Lids
If you leave a little space for travel, each pour drops an ounce or so. Ten big pours instead of eleven is common when you prefer no spills.
Heat Loss And Idle Time
Brewers fill hot, but an open spout and long meeting cool the coffee. Cooler coffee pours slower and people measure less carefully, which shaves a serving in the back half of the box.
Heavy Mugs And Refills
When mugs are on the table, the first few guests pour tall, and refills arrive early. If your crowd leans “heavy mug,” assume a 96-oz carafe makes 8–9 satisfying servings.
Plan Your Order: How Many Carafes You Need
The fastest planning rule is this: a 96-oz carafe comfortably serves 8 people when you assume an average of 1.5 small cups per person (about 12 oz each across the meeting). Use the chart below for common headcounts.
Meeting Headcount To Carafes Needed (8-Oz Cups, 1.5 Each)
| People | Assumed Cups/Person | Carafes (96 oz) |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | 1.5 | 1 |
| 8 | 1.5 | 1 |
| 10 | 1.5 | 2 |
| 12 | 1.5 | 2 |
| 15 | 1.5 | 2 |
| 20 | 1.5 | 3 |
| 25 | 1.5 | 4 |
| 30 | 1.5 | 4 |
| 40 | 1.5 | 5 |
| 50 | 1.5 | 7 |
If you’re serving early morning crews or a long workshop, bump to 2 small cups per person. At that rate, one carafe serves about six people.
Fast Math: Convert Any Carafe To Cups In Seconds
Use this one-liner to answer “How many cups of coffee are in a Tim Hortons carafe?” for any pour size you prefer:
Formula
Number of cups = Carafe ounces ÷ Pour ounces
For a ~96-oz box: 96 ÷ 8 = 12 small cups, 96 ÷ 10 ≈ 9–10 modest pours, 96 ÷ 12 = 8 hearty pours.
When To Order More Than One Carafe
Order an extra when any of these apply:
- Guests like large mugs or take travel-cup refills.
- You’ll set out milk, cream, or flavored syrups.
- The agenda runs longer than an hour.
- You’re serving outdoors in cool weather, where top-ups happen often.
Serving Tips That Stretch Each Carafe
Set A Default Pour Line
Place a small marker on the cup sleeve right at 8–10 oz. When hosts pour to that line, yields match the chart, and later guests get a fair share.
Provide Milk In Pitchers
Milk added after the pour preserves carafe volume. Milk poured into the cup first invites taller coffee pours to “make up” the level.
Keep The Spout Closed Between Pours
Close the spout to keep heat longer. Hotter coffee pours faster, which helps people stick closer to the default line.
Add A Small “Refill” Sign
A simple table sign near the carafe invites short top-offs instead of full second cups. That alone raises total servings by one or two.
Ordering Notes And Official References
For group orders, many locations can prep “Take 12” with cups, lids, stir sticks, and accompaniments. Some official pages describe this kit as twelve 8-oz cups packaged with a hot beverage box, which aligns with the ~96-oz math used above. You can also place advance orders via the Canadian Tims Catering portal at select restaurants.
Worked Examples You Can Copy
Example 1: 14-Person Team, Small Cups
Assume 1.5 small cups each (12 oz total per person). That’s 14 × 12 = 168 oz. Divide by 96: 1.75. Round up: order 2 carafes. You’ll likely have a couple of cups left for late arrivals.
Example 2: 10 Guests, Mixed Mugs
Average pour drifts toward 10–12 oz. With refills, plan for 15–18 small-cup equivalents. That’s 120–144 oz. One carafe gets tight; two carafes give breathing room.
Example 3: 20-Minute Stand-Up
Short meetings use smaller pours. Budget a single small cup per person. For 12 people, one carafe is plenty, with leftovers for a couple of seconds.
Troubleshooting Common Carafe Pains
“We Ran Out Early”
That’s a pour-size issue nine times out of ten. Switch to a clear default line and offer milk after the pour. For a thirsty crowd, add one more box per eight people.
“Coffee Cooled Too Fast”
Park the box on a stable surface away from a draft, keep the spout closed, and serve in waves rather than leaving it open for a long stretch.
“Cups Were Too Small”
Bring a sleeve of larger cups for the few who want more. When they pour larger, others can stick to the default line and the total count stays on target.
Final Take On Tim Hortons Carafe Cups
If you came here asking, How Many Cups Of Coffee Are In A Tim Hortons Carafe? the clean answer is twelve small 8-oz pours from a ~96-oz Take 12, or about nine to ten modest 10-oz pours. For bigger mugs, plan eight servings per box. For ordering, one carafe covers eight people at 1.5 small cups each; add one more carafe per extra eight people to keep the line happy.