Sometimes a cocktail is too much. At a restaurant, cocktails typically cost $12 or greater. Sometimes you want a chill drink to sip on throughout dinner, without blowing your wallet on the fancy stuff. And on top of that, you might want to pick a healthier option, especially if it’s Spring or Summer and you wanna maintain that rooftop party beach bod you’ve spent the last month or two excessively exercising to snap into form for those new tank tops you bought from Marshalls.

So you boil your options down to wine, beer, or cider. Of these options, which is healthiest?

Obviously, drinking any of these drinks does not equate to drinking a veggie smoothie with vitamin supplements, so when I say “healthiest”, I really mean lowest in carbs and calories.

Ranked by order of “least bad for you”….

1. Beer! Well… not just any beer. Light beer, to be exact. If you go with a light beer, then you’ve picked one the beverage with the least calories.

While regular beer is the highest calorie drink, light beer is the lowest, with an average of 103 calories per 12-ounce serving. Bud Light is a little higher than average, with 110 calories per serving, while Miller Light is a little lower than average, with 96 calories per serving. The lowest calorie light beer choice is Budweiser Select 55, with just 55 calories per 12-ounce. — livestrong.com

2. Wine. If you decide on wine, go with a light white wine. A glass of a light white wine will generally have between 95-139 calories. Champaign will have generally 125-160 cal. Standard DRY Red/White wines will have between 175-189. Chardonnay/Shiraz/Zin will have between 187-219 cal. Followed by Dessert wines… which boast a hefty 220-260 cal/glass. Go with the light white wine, or a fine DRY red/white. Quality wine means a quality wine opener. Don’t mess up the cork as you pull it from the bottle.

A good rule of thumb is to choose the lightest alcohol dry wine or beer in order to have the least calories. — winefolly.com

3. Dry Cider. Typically, Ciders have more sugar content, wherein Beer is usually sugar free. Though, a dry-cider (like my summer fave, Wolffer Dry Rose Cider) will be the better option as far as ciders go.

As we stated before, the main ingredient in cider is apple. This means that cider contains the same antioxidants and vitamin C that apples are loaded with. Beer, on the other hand, is made from barley and yeast, which unfortunately only has an inflammatory effect on your body. — spoonuniversity.com

4. Beer. Beer is loaded with carbs. If you do go for that beer, go for the light beer! If not… enjoy that beer belly.

When it comes to beer, the alcohol range is a little bit wider. Since beer is not only beer, but it is divided into different types – lager, brown ale, IPA, and stout. The percentage of these alcohol types vary depending on the type. It usually ranges from 3-10%, IPA being the one with the highest range of 6-7%. — spoonuniversity.com

This budget summer, I’ll be sticking to a dry cider and light white wines. Granted I’m not much of a beer person. I’ve tried to force myself to get used to beer, I just can’t. If you are, definitely go with the light beer!