Liquor — Montana
Montana runs an quota system inside a control-state model (the state sells spirits wholesale). A restaurant license here typically takes 6–18 months. The quota math: All-beverages licenses are capped by a city/county quota system based on population (Mont. Code 16-4-201) and trade on a private market; new licenses issue only when quota space opens. Restaurant beer & wine licenses are issued outside the all-beverages quota..
| License | Covers |
|---|---|
| All-Beverages License (quota) | Full liquor |
| Restaurant Beer & Wine License (non-quota) | Beer & wine |
State fee: see note — State fees vary by license type and quota-area population; the dominant cost where the quota is full is the private purchase price. No single fee used here..
Open-market price (quota): no reliable published range — price is set by private negotiation in quota counties.
The exception: Restaurant Beer & Wine License — Beer and wine only, tied to a bona fide restaurant - issued outside the all-beverages quota. Run your floor plan and menu split through the Liquor Path Checker before you shop for a quota license.
6–18 months — Quota + transfer band for all-beverages licenses; the non-quota restaurant beer & wine path is faster.. At typical rents, every month of that clock is dead money: the Wait-vs-Burn visualizer inside the checker turns your rent × this timeline into the dollar figure.
Temporary permit: not a standard feature here.
Transfers: All-beverages licenses are tradable within their quota area with Dept. of Revenue approval; prices are set privately.
Don't read the table — run your verdict. Your sq ft, seats and food split decide exception eligibility — the checker does that math.
Montana, every door: Montana hub · sell from home in Montana · Montana restaurant permits · Montana liquor license · what it costs · your Opening Map
Included in the $49 Opening Pack: the filled templates, trackers, calendars and worksheets for this door — built from the same dated datasets as the free checker above.
Typically 6–18 months for a restaurant, per the dated sources on this page. Transfers and protests run longer.
The state fee is in the note above. In quota territory the real price is the open-market range on this page — labeled secondary, because no official price exists.
Sources: Montana Department of Revenue, Alcoholic Beverage Control Division. This row was compiled from the named sources; confirm final figures with the issuing office before you rely on them.. Dataset checked October 23, 2026. Where a fee or rule is set by a county or city, this page says so instead of guessing a number.