How much helium does a balloon need?

It varies hugely by size and type — small latex balloons need only a few litres, while a 3ft giant can need hundreds of litres, and foil balloons follow their own volumes. Quote Your Balloons has the full latex and foil fill volumes built into its Helium Calculator.

How do I calculate the helium cost per balloon?

Divide the price you paid for your helium tank by the number of litres it holds to get a cost per litre, then multiply that by the fill volume of the balloon size you are inflating. The Helium Calculator in Quote Your Balloons does this automatically for every latex and foil size.

How many balloons will a helium tank fill?

Divide your tank's litre capacity by the fill volume of your balloon size. The same tank that fills a large batch of small balloons may only manage a handful of big ones, so always work it out per size before quoting an order.

Helium Cost Per Balloon: Fill Volumes & Real Numbers by Size

Q: How much does it cost to fill a balloon with helium?

There is no single figure — it depends on what you paid for your gas and how big the balloon is. Work out your cost per litre, then multiply by that size's fill volume. The same balloon costs different amounts to two businesses buying from different suppliers, so using someone else's figure is the fastest way to underprice.

Q: How much does helium cost?

Cylinder prices vary by supplier, tank size, and whether you own or hire the cylinder — and hire charges and deposits are easy to forget. Rather than use a national average, divide what you actually paid on your last invoice by the litres in the tank to get the only helium price that matters for your quotes.

Q: How much helium do I need for 100 balloons?

Multiply the fill volume of the size you are using by 100, taking care over which size you assume — 100 small balloons and 100 large ones are completely different amounts of gas. Orders that mix sizes need each size worked out separately and added together, and it is worth checking the total against your tank capacity before you quote.

By Nicola · Balloon business owner · Updated July 2026

Helium is one of the few materials that quietly eats your profit, because most of us never actually work out what a single filled balloon costs. Once you know the fill volume of each size and your own cost per litre, costing helium takes seconds — and you stop giving gas away for free.

Every size needs a different amount of helium

The amount of gas a balloon swallows depends on its size and whether it's latex or foil — and the differences are bigger than most people expect. A small party latex needs just a few litres, a standard 11" latex takes several times that, and a single 3ft giant can drink hundreds of litres — more than a whole bag of small balloons put together.

That spread is exactly why guessing doesn't work: price every balloon as if it were "about the same" and the big statement pieces quietly eat your margin. You need the fill volume for each size you use — Quote Your Balloons has the full latex and foil volumes built in, so you never have to look them up.

Working out your cost per balloon

Two steps. First, find your cost per litre; then multiply by the balloon's fill volume.

Cost per balloon = (Tank price ÷ Tank litres) × Balloon fill volume

Or skip the maths entirely

In Quote Your Balloons it takes two inputs: pick your tank (the common tank sizes are already built in) and enter what you paid for it. The app does the rest — your cost per balloon for every latex and foil size, and the helium total for any order, instantly.

Fill a whole arch or bouquet order and the gas alone can quietly run to tens of pounds before a single balloon is counted. That's exactly the number people forget to charge for — and exactly what the app makes impossible to miss.

How many balloons will my tank fill?

Flip the maths: divide your tank's litres by the fill volume of the size you're using. The answer surprises most people — a tank that fills a big batch of small balloons manages only a handful of the large ones. Big balloons are deceptively thirsty, and it's why quoting a giant balloon at "a bit more" than a standard one loses money.

Common helium questions

How much does it cost to fill a balloon with helium?

There's no single figure, because it depends on two things that are personal to you: what you paid for your gas, and how big the balloon is. Work out your cost per litre, multiply by that size's fill volume, and you have a real number rather than a guess. The same balloon can cost wildly different amounts to two businesses buying from different suppliers — which is why borrowing someone else's figure off a Facebook group is the fastest way to underprice.

How much does helium cost?

Cylinder prices move around a lot depending on your supplier, the tank size, and whether you own the cylinder or hire it — and hire charges and deposits are easy to forget when you're costing a job. Rather than chase a national average, use the number on your own last invoice. Divide what you actually paid by the litres in the tank and you've got the only helium price that matters for your quotes.

How much helium do I need for 100 balloons?

Multiply the fill volume of the size you're using by 100 — but be careful about which size you assume, because that's where big orders go wrong. A hundred small balloons and a hundred large ones are completely different amounts of gas, and an order that mixes sizes needs each size worked out separately and added up. For a large order it's well worth checking the total against your tank capacity before you quote, so you're not buying an extra cylinder out of your own margin.

Does helium cost need to go in every quote?

Yes — and it's the cost most often left out. Materials get counted because you can hold them; gas doesn't, because it's already paid for and sitting in the corner. Treating the tank as a sunk cost rather than a per-balloon cost is exactly how a busy month turns into a disappointing one.

Two inputs. Every helium cost handled.

Pick your tank, tell the app what you paid, and Quote Your Balloons prices every latex and foil size and totals the gas for any order — then rolls it straight into your quote. No spreadsheet, no forgotten cost.

Cost your next order — £12.99/mo Or build a sample quote first — no account needed →