There are quite a few guides on the Internet concerning how to open your own bar.  What I have here is a concise compiling of the best pieces from all of those sites, into one great guide to get yourself started.  This certainly won't be the last place you need to look, but it will definately be a positive step in the right direction. 

There are a variety of factors that you need to take into account when opening a bar. It seems like such a simple question at first: "How much money does it cost to open a bar?" But it's a really tough thing to estimate if you've never done it.  This guide is here to help you along so you can avoid some really costly mistakes.There are some pretty unavoidable costs that anyone has to pay to get a bar going, which are listed below:

First is Location, Location, Location. So much of a bar's success comes from it's location. If you put a bar in the middle of a school zone you're probably not only going to get little business, but you'll probably be shut down by the PTA of the school. Try to find an area in a relatively decent part of town, preferably where lots of younger people like to hang out. Nothing's better than having people walk by often and stop inside. The cost for this is highly flexible; depending on where you live it can cost anywhere between a $3,000/month rent, or if you want to buy, it can go from $80,000-$120,000 and beyond. Before anything else, make sure that you have a good location in mind for the bar.

Second is Education. You'll certainly need some classes on bartending, entrepreneurialship, and getting loans. This is easy to do by simply doing a google search for local community colleges in your area. Unfortunately, this won't be too cheap; expect to bay around $2,000 for your classes and a semesters worth (2-3 months) of time taking the classes. My personal recommendation would be taking online classes; they're easier and dont require the commute time that more traditional classes require. You will need to take a few college courses before you even begin the process of getting a loan and opening a bar. You should first take a class on bartending. This will teach you the proper way to make drinks and all the tricks of the trade. Then you will need to take a few different business courses. You should be very knowledgeable about your business and this is the best way to get there. Once you have finished this, you can then move onto how much money it will cost to open a bar.

Third is Music. Obviously you're gonna want some pretty good music on. And crappy home speakers are not going to cut it for a serious commercial enterprise like a bar; you're going to need to buy some serious quality sound system. Bose has some fantastic systems for sound that make it go three-dimensional. Nothing will attract customers during a football game like high-quality surround sound. All in all this will probably cost you between $4,000 and $12,00.

On number four, we have the Insurance/Licensing. Unless you plan on running a speakeasy (NOT recommended)., you will need to purchase two licenses: a business license plus a liquor license. Don't forget, it expires every year, so you have to keep renewing it else you run into trouble with the law. .Along with that you will need to have high paying insurance, as things will certainly go wrong at your bar, and when they do you don't want to be in the red. This should cost you no more than $15,000.

The fifth thing you'll be needing is some suitable Equipment. This covers a wide range of items, including glasses, shakers, stools, flooring, bar sets, towels, and any other item of this nature. You can start out with some cheap basics, but even then it's going to cost you a minimum of $30,000, and can potentially cost upwards of $60,000 depending on the quality of the equipment and the size of the bar.

Sixth, you'll need a three month supply of Liquor. This should run you about $15,000 to $25,000. Better to have too much of a certain alcohol than to tell a customer "sorry, we're out". This is a serious expenditure so you really need to make it work.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, you'll need people. Employees. Also, you need to be able to keep people. This means either you directly manage them to work efficiently, or hire an assistant manager to direct them around. Employees with no direction will not be productive for you. You should expect on setting aside $8,000 - $12,000 originally just for employee pay. When you're first starting out, you should only have a skeleton crew, just barely enough to get the business running. If your business starts to take hold, then expand, but not until then, lest your business fall flat on it's face.

In conclusion, opening up your own bar is no cheap endeavor. Unless you're already quite wealthy, you'll need to secure a loan, which is hard to come by these days after the economy has collapsed. Nevertheless, the final answer to how much money does it cost to open a bar is:

Total Cost: $180,000 - $250,000, depending on location