When service ends, which licenses you need, what the bill and the team cost, and the nights that fill the city, for anyone running a club, lounge or bar here.
The City sets the hours and issues the local liquor license, the state issues its own, and the City licenses amusements separately. Liquor licenses come from the BACP.
Hours come from the City’s 2021 liquor licensing guide. The City’s current license page confirms the 2 a.m. close and the Late Hour times but doesn’t repeat the 3 a.m. Sunday morning close, and the ordinance itself could not be read, so confirm with the BACP. A Late Hour license is a second license that only Tavern or COP holders can apply for, and it doesn’t reach an outdoor patio.
Everyone in Cook County who serves drinks or checks ID at the door must complete responsible alcohol service training within 120 days of starting.
MoreThe certificate belongs to the server, moves between employers and lasts 3 years. Keep proof ready for State law enforcement.
Source: Illinois General AssemblyIllinois licenses private security through the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. Its pages list a Permanent Employee Registration Card and a 20-hour basic training program.
MoreWhich track your door staff fall under depends on whether you hire them or contract an agency, so confirm with IDFPR. New applications go through its CORE system.
Source: IDFPRNo alcohol for anyone under 21 or anyone intoxicated. You can refuse anyone who can’t show government-issued ID proving their age.
MoreRelying in good faith on a government ID is a defense, unless the employee knew it was false.
Source: Illinois General AssemblyA Tavern license covers bars, nightclubs and lounges. A Consumption on Premises license covers rooms where drinks are incidental, like restaurants and hotels. Both are $4,400 plus $40 and run 2 years.
MoreThe Illinois license is separate, and you need it first: without it the City license is refused.
Source: BACP licensesNightclubs, dancing, karaoke and renting a room for a public party need this separate license. The fee depends on occupancy.
MoreA liquor license doesn’t cover it. The City’s 2021 guide says it may be needed from a capacity of 100, and for any admission fee.
Source: City of ChicagoNo new license within 100 feet of a school, church, hospital or library, and ward by ward moratoria can bar new Tavern and COP licenses. Dry precincts can be voted in.
MoreCheck the address before you sign a lease. The City passes new moratoria regularly.
Source: BACP restrictionsDisplay a 14 inch by 14 inch friendly neighbor sign, call 911 for batteries and other illegal activity, employ no minors and serve no intoxicated guest.
MoreReport a change of officers to the City within 30 days.
Source: BACP top tipsA second license, $6,000 plus $40 for 2 years, lets a Tavern or COP serve to 4 a.m. Monday to Saturday and to 5 a.m. on Sunday.
MoreApplying involves a petition. The City bars anyone who files false signatures.
Source: BACP licensesA private patio next to your room needs the Outdoor Patio license, $1,760 plus $40. It closes at 11 p.m. Sunday to Thursday and midnight Friday and Saturday, with no live or recorded music.
MoreA Late Hour license doesn’t extend to the patio.
Source: BACP licensesA permit lets a Tavern or a retail food business serve on the sidewalk in front of it, fully enclosed with a 6 foot clear path for walkers. Permits run March 1 to the end of February.
MoreServing liquor there needs your liquor license too. Apply with insurance, a measured site plan and a photo.
Source: BACP sidewalk cafeA bar needs two licenses: the City’s, issued through the BACP as the Local Liquor Control Commission, and an Illinois retailer’s license. The City refuses anyone who is ineligible for the state one. In Chicago the City path runs in this order.
Book a Hospitality Business Consultant at City Hall, Room 800, 121 N. LaSalle St.
Source: BACP stepsLook for dry precincts, ward moratoria on new Tavern, COP and packaged goods licenses, and the 100 foot distance from schools, churches and libraries.
Source: BACP stepsSource: BACP restrictionsSubmit the written application for zoning review, then file and pay. That date is your application date. The $40 publication fee is on top.
Source: BACP stepsSource: BACP licensesRequired documents are due within 30 days or processing is suspended. Reactivating costs $500, within 6 months. A liquor application needs an occupancy placard, plans, liquor liability insurance, a BASSET certificate, a lease and a financial disclosure.
Source: BACP stepsSource: BACP 2021 guideHealth, Fire and Buildings, including plumbing and ventilation, plus a criminal history review.
Source: BACP stepsSource: BACP licensesOwners and officers with 5% or more, and anyone lending or giving more than 10% interest, go through a fingerprint background check. Owners with 5% or more also sign a spousal affidavit.
Source: BACP stepsWithin 5 days of filing, the BACP mails notice to registered voters within 250 feet and tells the alderman and the police district commander. The public has 35 days to comment or object, and no license issues until that ends.
Source: BACP stepsThe BACP decides within 60 days of receiving every required document. A license can issue as early as 36 days after you pay. A denial can be appealed to the License Appeal Commission within 20 days.
Source: BACP stepsIssued by the BACP
General information, not legal advice. Laws and license conditions change and vary by venue. Confirm with the BACP or the Illinois Liquor Control Commission before acting on it.
How a table’s bill adds up once tax and a service charge are on it, and what guests pay at the door.
| Minimum spend | $1,000.00 |
|---|---|
| Service charge 20%, added by the venue | $200.00 |
| Sales tax 10.5% of the spend | $105.00 |
| Guest pays | $1,305.00 |
| Tip the guest chooses to add | No tax |
The sales tax rate in Chicago is 10.50% since August 1, 2026, up from 10.25%. Confirm your address in the state’s tax rate finder.
Source: Illinois Department of RevenueInside the MPEA boundary, which takes in the downtown lakefront from Diversey to the Stevenson, food and drinks carry another 1% tax. The example leaves it out.
Source: Illinois Department of RevenueThe City’s 0.5% Restaurant Tax applies to a place for eating. The City page doesn’t say whether a Tavern counts, so it isn’t in the example.
Source: City of Chicago Department of FinanceChicago’s tax on drinks served on the premises is collected from the wholesaler by the gallon, so it sits in your cost of goods and not on the bill.
Source: City of Chicago Department of FinanceWhether the 20% service charge is taxable, or counts as a tip belonging to staff, isn’t confirmed here, so the example doesn’t tax it. Ask the Department of Revenue before you print a bill.
Source: Illinois Department of RevenueA cover charge is taxed separately: the amusement tax is 9% of what the guest pays, fees included, unless the night is an exempt live cultural performance.
Source: City of Chicago Department of FinanceRough estimates for tickets and bottle-service tables, from public listings and venues’ own pages.
$10 to $20
Typically about $15
The door cover two River North clubs publish on their own pages for Thursday to Saturday nights. Headliner nights cost more.
$500 to $600
A typical table, about $550
The Friday and Saturday bottle packages one River North club publishes on its own page, before tax and tip. Most rooms quote tables privately.
Figures are estimates from the sources and samples listed. They change often and may be wrong. Check with the venue or the relevant authority before relying on them. Venues and events named here aren’t affiliated with VenueStack and haven’t endorsed this guide. Price sources: Tunnel Chicago, Sound-Bar.
Hourly wages for the roles a night runs on, and the rules on tips.
| Role | Range, low to high | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Bartenders$15.00 to $23.33 | $15.00 | |
| Servers$15.00 to $24.24 | $15.00 | |
| Hosts$15.00 to $21.76 | $15.25 | |
| Security guards$17.28 to $30.86 | $19.22 | |
| Cooks$15.46 to $22.42 | $18.72 | |
| Bar and floor leads$15.46 to $32.69 | $20.50 | |
| Managers$17.28 to $48.29 | $31.55 |
Minimum wage $17.05 an hour, since July 1, 2026Source: BACP minimum wage
Bar: lowest to highest wage reported. Dot: median. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
The tipped minimum wage is $12.96 an hour, 76% of the full wage. The City’s tip credit stays at 24% for every employer through June 30, 2028.
Source: Office of Labor StandardsIf a tipped worker’s pay plus tips falls short of the full minimum wage, you make up the difference.
Source: BACP minimum wageThe Chicago minimum wage rises each July 1 with inflation, capped at 2.5% and rounded up to the next 5 cents. Youth workers now get the full rate.
Source: BACP minimum wageIllinois’s own minimum is $15.00, with a tip credit of up to 40%. The higher Chicago rate governs inside the city for employers with 4 or more employees.
Source: Illinois Department of Labor
The nights that fill a room, or empty it, month by month.
A federal holiday Monday makes a long weekend.
The dinner and date crowd. When it falls midweek, couples book the weekend before too.
A federal holiday Monday makes a long weekend.
One of the year’s biggest bar nights, whatever the weekday.
No city-wide dates
A long weekend that opens the summer season.
A free downtown festival.
Official siteCentred on Northalsted, the biggest weekend of the year for its venues.
Official siteWhen it falls on a weekend, the federal holiday is observed on the nearest weekday. It falls in Pride month.
When it falls on a weekend, the federal holiday is observed on the nearest weekday.
A downtown food festival.
Official siteFour days in Grant Park, with after-shows and hotel-driven demand downtown.
Official siteCrowds along the lakefront.
Official siteThe last long weekend of summer.
It fills hotels and brings weekend and brunch trade.
Official siteA federal holiday Monday makes a long weekend.
When it falls midweek, the parties run the weekend before.
One of the year’s biggest bar nights.
A holiday market that brings visitors downtown.
Official siteWhen it falls on a weekend, the federal holiday is observed on the nearest weekday.
One of the year’s biggest nights.
Chicago’s nightlife districts and the rooms each is known for.
An urban nightlife hub with plenty of dining and striking architecture; clubs and lounges sit here.
Old warehouses turned into the city’s most talked-about restaurants.
Boutiques and street art around a lively bar scene.
A high-energy neighborhood known for entertainment and shopping, set on the lakefront.
Baseball at Wrigley Field by day, with busy bars and restaurants around it.
The oldest LGBTQ+ neighborhood in the country, still one of the liveliest.
An artsy, fashionable neighborhood with nightlife, dining, breweries and live music.
A luxury area of designer showrooms and polished restaurants.
Home to a famous improv theater and some of the city’s busiest bars.
Street art, a varied food scene and a deep Mexican culture.
Who lives in and visits the city. These describe Chicago’s population and visitors, not any venue’s guests.
Sell tickets, take table bookings with deposits, run the guest list and check guests in at the door, in one place. Built for clubs, lounges and bars.
Chicago’s minimum wage is $17.05 an hour since July 1, 2026, for employers with 4 or more employees. Illinois’s own is $15.00, and the higher Chicago rate governs inside the city.
The rate is 10.50% since August 1, 2026, up from 10.25%. Venues inside the MPEA boundary add a 1% food and beverage tax. Confirm an address in the state’s tax rate finder.
It is responsible alcohol service training. Everyone in Cook County who serves drinks or checks ID at the door must complete it within 120 days of starting. The certificate belongs to the server and lasts 3 years. The City also requires BASSET or TIPS training for the manager or owner, and a BASSET certificate goes with the liquor application.
Taverns and Consumption on Premises licensees close at 2 a.m. Monday to Saturday mornings and 3 a.m. on Sunday morning, per the City’s 2021 guide. A Late Hour license, $6,000 plus $40, extends that to 4 a.m. Monday to Saturday and 5 a.m. on Sunday. An outdoor patio closes at 11 p.m. Sunday to Thursday and midnight Friday and Saturday.
The facts on this page are BASSET training for anyone who serves, within 120 days of starting, and the manager or owner training the City requires. Confirm with the state before you hire.
$12.96 an hour, 76% of the $17.05 minimum wage. The City’s tip credit stays at 24% for all employers through June 30, 2028. If pay plus tips falls short of the full minimum, the employer makes up the difference.
Nine percent of what a guest pays to view or take part in an amusement, covers included, with related markups and service fees counted. It is paid by the 15th of the following month. Certain live cultural performances are exempt.
You need one to present nightclubs, dancing, karaoke or a public party in a rented room. It costs $770 to $13,200 depending on occupancy, plus $40 per person fingerprinted, and lasts 2 years. The City’s 2021 guide says it may be required from a capacity of 100 or when you charge admission.
You need a City of Chicago license and an Illinois retailer’s license. The City path starts with a consultant meeting and an address check, then an application, inspections, fingerprints and a 35-day public comment period. The BACP decides within 60 days of receiving every document.
A Tavern or Consumption on Premises license is $4,400 plus a $40 publication fee for 2 years. A Late Hour license is $6,000 plus $40, and an outdoor patio $1,760 plus $40. The state license is separate.
Illinois licenses private security through IDFPR, which lists a Permanent Employee Registration Card and a 20-hour basic training program. Door staff who check ID also count as servers for BASSET training.
21. A Tavern’s patrons must be 21 or older, and staff can refuse anyone who can’t show government-issued ID proving it. A Tavern can’t employ minors.
VenueStack publishes this guide for general information. We take care to keep it accurate and list our sources and review dates, but we can’t guarantee it is complete, current or correct, and we aren’t responsible for decisions made on it. Nothing here is legal, tax or financial advice. Prices, minimums and wages are estimates from the samples described and don’t represent any particular venue. Venues, events and organisations named here aren’t affiliated with VenueStack and haven’t endorsed this guide.
Data gathered in October 2026. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.
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