Seat occupancy measures how many seats are actually filled versus those available in a service. You calculate it by dividing the covers served by the available seats (per daypart or seating), as a percentage.
Example: 60 covers served at lunch on an 80-seat capacity gives a seat occupancy of 75%.
What it’s for and its limits
It’s a useful gauge of how well you’re using capacity, but on its own it’s incomplete: a venue can be full (high occupancy) yet earn little if the average check is low or tables turn slowly. That’s why it should be read alongside table turnover and above all RevPASH, which combines occupancy, time and revenue.
Occupancy tells you “how full I am”; RevPASH tells you “how much it earns”. Here are the metrics to track in 2026.
Frequently asked questions
- How do you calculate seat occupancy?
- Divide covers served by available seats in a daypart or seating, as a percentage. Example: 60 covers on 80 seats = 75% occupancy.
- Are seat occupancy and RevPASH the same?
- No. Occupancy tells you how many seats you fill; RevPASH tells you how much each seat earns over time. A full venue with a low check can have modest RevPASH.