The Best Happy Hour in Your Chicago Neighborhood

When: Weekdays, 4-6pm
If your happy hour excursion calls for sports on flatscreens and 90+ beers on draft, point your GPS towards this sprawling emporium of booze for $5 select beers and well drinks, $6 wine glasses, and half-off appetizers including cheese curds and pretzel bites.

When: Weekdays, 4-7pm
Stop by one of Chicago’s premier soccer bars to discover a lost art of the happy hour special: the $1 Jello shot. Pair that gloriously ridiculous item with half-price appetizers, half-price wines by the bottle or glass, and $2 off all drafts, and suddenly soccer is looking a lot more interesting.

When: Daily, 5-7pm
This dimly lit karaoke lounge provides the perfect escape from another interchangeable work week with $3 small pizzas and $4 flatbreads, $4 Three Floyds bottles and Absolut Moscow mules, and $5 Bulleit Rye Old Fashioneds and Carlsberg/Jameson boilermakers.

When: Mon-Sat, 3-5:30pm
Kickstart your after-work routine at this newish spot opened in 2017 with $3 champagne followed by $5 well drinks, drafts, and wine, plus $5 off pizzas and starters and $5 off select wine bottles.

When: Mon-Thurs, 4-6pm (happy hour not available during Cubs home games)
One of the newest entrants to Wrigleyville’s ever-expanding and upscale-trending dining scene is this extremely well-located spot by Boka Restaurant Group opened last year in what is now the closest bar/restaurant to the Wrigley Field marquee. Swing by the bar area for $1 wings and $5 mini Chicago dogs served alongside $3 Bud Light drafts and $3 Jim Beam shooters.

When: Fri-Sat, 8-10pm
Ready to get the night rolling, but need to get off the couch before The Shawshank Redemption pops on? Head to Late Bar and throw back $1 PBRs at this anything-goes dance spot.

When: Tues-Fri, 5-6pm
Stop in at this stylish neighborhood haunt for half-price beer, wine, cocktails, and bar snacks in the bar and lounge during the week (except Monday, when the place is closed).

When: Daily, 5:30-6:30pm
This industry favorite offers its happy hour all week. Stop in for half-off all wines by the glass and by the bottle, half-off draft beer, and half-off small plates.

When: Weekdays, 3-6pm
Oysters and beer on the cheap? No, you haven't died and gone to Belgium. Cold Storage offers $1 oysters and $3 drafts on weekdays.

When: Mon-Fri, 4-7pm
The Gold Coast location of this small tri-state chain (with locations in Florida and Texas) is serious about happy hour with a menu that includes $4 fries, $7 mini margherita pizzas, $3 Amstel Lights, Miller Lites, and Pacificos, and $5 rotating drafts, wines, and well drinks.

When: Mon-Fri, 4-7pm
This cool little spot from the crew behind Bangers & Lace and Spilt Milk offers what might be the best Monday night tradition in Chicago: the $5 daiquiri. Stop by the rest of the week for half-price wines and drafts.

When: Sun-Fri, 5-7pm
Take a break from the hot wings and Miller Lites and hit this seductive Argentine eatery for daily specials including $7 margaritas, mojitos, and caipirinhas, plus $9 Argentine street food classics such as steak and chorizo sandwiches or empanadas.

When: Sun-Thurs, 5-7pm
$2 Tecates, $2 rock shrimp fritters, and $5 Tecate + a shot of mescal make this daily happy hour one of the best deals in town.

When: Daily, 4-6:30pm
This popular downtown happy hour go-to offers a large menu of selections in its bar and patio areas (we highly recommend the patio area) including $3.50 truffle fries and $5.50 burgers daily in addition to $7 select cocktails and wines, plus $1 oysters and shrimp on Wednesdays and $2 fish tacos on Tuesdays. Happy hour specials are available with a minimum beverage purchase of a very random $3.40.

When: Mon, Wed & Fri 5-6pm; Sat-Sun 3-5pm
Who doesn't like $1 oysters? No one, and Frontier has them, along with $3 High Life drafts, $3 Beam shots, $5 house wine pours, and $6 draft cocktails including the Ketel mule.

When: Daily, 5-6:30pm
River North is actually packed with great happy hours (from Tortoise Supper Club's $1 oysters and cocktail shrimp to half-off the ridiculously Instagrammable cocktails at Barton G the Restaurant) but this little under-the-radar spot snags top honors thanks to its affordability, as many River North happy hour “specials” hover around the $7-$10 range for drinks. Union Sushi + BBQ solves that problem with $1.50 oysters, $3 beef filet skewers, $5 Moscow mules and glasses of rose, plus $6 spicy shrimp sushi rolls.

When: Weekdays, 4-6pm
You'll probably have to call out of work/school/military service for this one, but if you do, $4 beer of the month and well drink specials, $5 wine specials and $6 appetizers await.

When: Weekdays, 4-7pm
Rogers Park Social is as good a spot as any to bring your Tinder Tuesday date, and as a bonus, you can order pick-your-own mules for $6 (vodka, gin, rum, bourbon, or tequila). Also: $6 wines and $1 off local brews.

When: Mon-Thurs 8pm-close; Sat-Sun 2-4pm
When you want to hit a cool downtown rooftop bar but don’t want to deal with the seemingly mandatory $13 cocktails that come with the honor of boozing from on high, hit this stylish spot at the Loews Chicago for half-price specialty cocktails from 2-4pm on weekends and 8pm-close Monday-Thursday.

When: Thurs-Fri, 7-9pm
This unique German/Southern-styled food joint which opened last year wins the award for the most fun happy hour special in Chicago: a boot of beer. As in, a $5 boot of Krombacher Pilsner, which you definitely should drink. Additional specials include smoked rib tips at $5 a pound and $7 German wines.

When: Tue-Sun, 5-7pm
This no-frills local hot dog stand not only has been slinging classic Chicago-style eats since 1977, it also houses a full bar that makes for an interesting under-the-radar diversion from your usual happy hour routine. Belly up to its Clark Street Bar for $6 mules, $8 Bud Light, and $16 craft beer pitchers, and $4 “pickleback” shots using Vienna Whole Spears pickle juice.

When: Mon-Thur, 4-6pm
Four days a week, this happy hour offers $5 highballs, $6 wine glasses, and $5 drafts. Select cocktails, such as the Manhattan or gin and ginger, are a wallet-friendly $6.

When: Mon-Thurs 5-6pm, Fri-Sun 4-5 pm
This cool neighborhood music venue/restaurant (operated by the folks behind Empty Bottle and Thalia Hall) keeps it classy with a happy hour menu that includes $5 Goose Island 312 and IPA ales, $7 cocktail and wine specials, and select bites including $5 chickpea fries with curry ketchup.

When: Mon-Fri, 4-7pm
Sepia is one of the finest restaurants in Chicago, and that sometimes overshadows the fact that its bar staff is also exemplary. Offering a “Greatest Hits” menu that showcases items from the past eight years, Sepia's happy hour invites patrons to enjoy $7 cocktails, wines, and beer. Bites such as petite Reuben sandwiches and shishito peppers are also available for $7.

When: Mon-Fri 5-7pm, Sat-Sun 3-5:30pm
Pound for pound, Easy Bar has one of the best drinking happy hours in Chicago. From Monday-Friday, enjoy half of EVERYTHING from 5-7pm, with additional daily specials including $2 High Life bottles on Sundays, $2 PBRs on Mondays, and $4 select craft cans on Wednesdays.