The Bar School

Louisiana · Updated Oct 2026

How to become a bartender in Louisiana

Mandatory bar card required by the state to bartend here

Louisiana bartenders need a server permit, often called a bar card, but that won't teach you the job. Here's your path from zero experience to your first shift, plus the rules and pay to know.

Quick answer

Louisiana requires every employee who sells or serves alcohol to get a Responsible Vendor server permit, often called a bar card, by taking an approved course. The venue holds the alcohol permit for the business, and your server permit belongs to you, not your employer. You must be 18 or older to serve or bartend. Learn the job first, then get your bar card.

Start step 1: learn to bartendBar Ready · 100% online · $197 one-time

Your path

5 steps to bartending in Louisiana

  1. Learn to bartend

    Take Bar Ready online: tools, pours, spirits, cocktails, service and how to get hired.

  2. Earn your certificates

    Watch every lesson in full to unlock each course's certificate of completion in your dashboard. It shows employers you trained. It isn't a license.

  3. Get your bar card

    Take a Responsible Vendor server course from an approved provider and get your server permit within 45 days of starting work. It lasts 4 years.

    See local rules ↓

  4. Go apply

    Put your training and certificates on your resume and apply to bars and restaurants near you.

  5. Start pouring

    Pour, serve and earn tips. In Louisiana, tipped staff get at least $2.13/hr, and tips must bring them to $7.25/hr.

Louisiana rules

Louisiana bartending rules at a glance

Age

You must be 18 or older to prepare, sell or serve alcohol in a Louisiana bar or restaurant, so the same age applies to servers and bartenders.

Louisiana ATC FAQs La. R.S. 26:90

License

Louisiana requires every employee who sells or serves alcohol to get a Responsible Vendor server permit, often called a bar card, by taking an approved course. The venue holds the alcohol permit for the business, and your server permit belongs to you, not your employer.

Louisiana ATC FAQs La. R.S. 26:934 La. R.S. 26:932

Tipped pay

Louisiana has no state minimum wage law, so federal rules apply: employers can pay tipped staff $2.13 an hour if tips bring them to at least $7.25 an hour; if not, the employer makes up the difference.

U.S. DOL state tipped wage table (rev. July 1, 2026)

Rules change and can vary by parish or city. Last checked October 2026. This is general information, not legal advice. Confirm with the Louisiana Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control (ATC) and your employer before you apply.

Local rules

Where to check the rules

If your employer is a certified responsible vendor, you're exempt from local server training and licensing rules, except local licensing rules already in place in June 1997. Parishes and cities also set things like bar hours, so ask your employer or your local alcohol permit office.

La. R.S. 26:937 Louisiana ATC FAQs

State alcohol agency

Louisiana Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control (ATC)

The agency that licenses and regulates alcohol sales in Louisiana.

Open the official website

Your employer can also tell you which rules apply where you'll work.

Pay

How much do bartenders make in Louisiana?

Median hourly$10.02$20,850 a year
Average hourly$12.14$25,250 a year
Top 10% earn more than$20.00$41,600 a year
Bartenders employed10,140May 2025 estimate
Tipped base pay$2.13/hrTips must bring you to $7.25/hr

Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (Louisiana, Bartenders 35-3011) and U.S. DOL state tipped wage table (rev. July 1, 2026). BLS wages include tips reported by employers. What you earn depends on the venue, your shifts and your location, and isn't guaranteed.

I'm ready to get startedStep 1: Bar Ready · 100% online · $197 one-time

Jobs

Where to find bartending jobs in Louisiana

Open bartender listings near you on Indeed. Barback and server openings are worth a look too: they're a common way behind the bar.

Behind the bar at The Bar School, answering whether the course is a license
Is this a license to bartend?1:33

The question we hear most

Is Bar Ready a Louisiana bartending license?

  • No. Louisiana requires a server permit, often called a bar card, and Bar Ready doesn't replace it.
  • Server training is required in Louisiana. See step 3 above for the deadline.
  • Each course ends with a certificate of completion. It shows employers you trained, but it isn't a license or a state certification.

Questions people ask

Becoming a bartender in Louisiana: your questions, answered

Do you need a license to be a bartender in Louisiana?

Louisiana requires every employee who sells or serves alcohol to get a Responsible Vendor server permit, often called a bar card, by taking an approved course. The venue holds the alcohol permit for the business, and your server permit belongs to you, not your employer.

Louisiana ATC FAQs La. R.S. 26:934 La. R.S. 26:932

How old do you have to be to bartend in Louisiana?

You must be 18 or older to prepare, sell or serve alcohol in a Louisiana bar or restaurant, so the same age applies to servers and bartenders. Employers can set a higher minimum age, so check with the bar.

Louisiana ATC FAQs La. R.S. 26:90

Do you need TIPS or ServSafe certification to bartend in Louisiana?

Every employee who sells or serves alcohol must take a Responsible Vendor course from an approved provider and get a server permit within 45 days of starting work. Courses are offered in classrooms and online, and the permit expires after 4 years, so you'll need to renew it.

La. R.S. 26:934 Louisiana ATC FAQs Louisiana ATC Responsible Vendor information

Do local rules apply in Louisiana?

If your employer is a certified responsible vendor, you're exempt from local server training and licensing rules, except local licensing rules already in place in June 1997. Parishes and cities also set things like bar hours, so ask your employer or your local alcohol permit office.

See local rules ↑ La. R.S. 26:937 Louisiana ATC FAQs

How much do bartenders make in Louisiana?

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 2025), Louisiana bartenders earned a median of $10.02 an hour and a mean of $12.14 an hour ($25,250 a year), including tips reported by employers. The top 10% earned more than $20.00 an hour. Louisiana has no state minimum wage law, so federal rules apply: employers can pay tipped staff $2.13 an hour if tips bring them to at least $7.25 an hour; if not, the employer makes up the difference. Pay varies by venue, shifts and location.

BLS U.S. DOL state tipped wage table (rev. July 1, 2026)

Can I get a bartending job in Louisiana with no experience?

Experience is up to each employer, but you'll need your bar card too. Learning the fundamentals first, and being able to show you finished training, helps you stand out when you apply. That's what step 1 is for.

Where can I find bartending jobs in Louisiana?

Search job boards like Indeed for bartender, barback and server openings in your city, check the websites and social pages of bars you'd like to work at, and drop off a resume in person when it's quiet. Barback and server jobs are a common way in. New Orleans is busiest during Mardi Gras and the spring festival season, when bars add extra shifts.

Find jobs by city ↑

Do you have to go to bartending school in Louisiana?

No. Louisiana doesn't require bartending school. The bar card is about serving alcohol safely and legally; it doesn't teach you to make drinks or work a bar. An online course lets you learn the tools, pours, cocktails and service at your own pace.

Does The Bar School offer job placement?

No. We don't place students in jobs. Bar Ready shows you what the job involves and how to get hired, with a resume guide and template and what to expect when you apply. Then you apply to bars and restaurants near you.

How long does it take to become a bartender in Louisiana?

Bar Ready is self-paced, so you go as fast as your schedule allows. After that, timing depends on how long it takes to get your bar card and the jobs near you.

Is the Bar School certificate a Louisiana license or TIPS certification?

No. Your Bar School certificates of completion, one for each Bar Ready course, show employers you finished our training. They aren't a government license or permit, and they don't replace your bar card or any state or local requirement.

Ready to start bartending in Louisiana?

Step 1 is learning the job. Start Bar Ready online today, at your own pace.

Start step 1: learn to bartend

Bar Ready · 100% online · $197 one-time · Certificates of completion

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