How much meat per person, by cut
| Meat | Raw per adult (only meat, normal sides) | Cooked yield | What that looks like |
| Brisket | 1 lb | ~50% | ½ lb sliced; a 14-lb packer feeds ~14 |
| Pulled pork | 0.75 lb | ~50–55% | ⅓–½ lb pulled; an 8-lb butt feeds ~10 plates or 16 sandwiches |
| Baby back ribs | 0.85 lb | ~60% | half a rack, 6 bones |
| Spare / St. Louis ribs | 1 lb | ~60% | 4–5 bones, about a third of a rack |
| Beef plate ribs | 1.25 lb | ~50% | one big bone |
| Chicken, bone-in pieces | 0.6 lb | ~40% | 2 pieces (thigh + drum) or a quarter bird |
| Whole turkey | 1.25 lb | ~50% | 1–1.25 lb; 1.5 lb for leftovers |
| Sausage | 0.4 lb | ~85% | 1–2 links |
| Tri-tip | 0.5 lb | ~75% | 4–6 oz sliced |
| Pork belly burnt ends | 0.5 lb | ~55% | 6–8 cubes as a main; 3–4 as an appetizer |
The two numbers that matter
The first is the cooked portion: a third to a half pound of meat per adult with sides, which is the range Smoked BBQ Source and most caterers use, up to eight ounces for a hungry crowd with little else on the table, and half for kids. The second is yield. Brisket trims 2–4 lb of fat off a packer and then loses another third to the smoker; caterers who weigh it measure 43–50% of the raw weight on the plate. Pork butt loses the bone, the fat cap and a lot of water and lands around 50%. Whole chickens yield only about 35–40% edible meat. Get the portion right and forget the yield and you'll run out at the 30th plate.
Multiple meats
When you serve two or three meats, people take some of each, and the total goes up a bit, not double. The calculator splits the per-person portion evenly across the meats you check and adds 15% for the "a little of everything" effect. If you know one meat will be the star (it's usually brisket), buy a bit more of it and a bit less of the others.
Buying and cost
Enter a price per pound for each meat and the calculator totals it. Packers come 12–18 lb untrimmed, butts 7–10 lb, St. Louis racks about 2.5–3 lb, baby backs 1.5–2 lb; it rounds up to whole pieces where that matters. Frozen and pre-cooked meat both hold up well, so cooking the day before and reheating wrapped at 250°F is a legitimate plan for anything over about 30 people.
Now work out when everything has to go on the smoker →
Frequently asked questions
How much meat per person?
⅓–½ lb cooked per adult with sides; ½ lb for big eaters; half for kids. That's about 1 lb raw brisket or ¾ lb raw pork butt.
Brisket for 20?
~20 lb raw as the only meat; 12–14 lb if there are other meats.
Pulled pork for 50?
~25 lb raw for sandwiches, 30–40 lb for plates.
Ribs for 10?
5 racks of baby backs or 4 racks of St. Louis as the main meat.
Does cooked weight really drop by half?
For brisket and pork butt, yes: trimming, rendered fat and moisture. Ribs and chicken lose 40–60% too once you count the bones.
Sources
- Smoked BBQ Source: How much meat per person (⅓–½ lb cooked; ribs and chicken counts).
- Smoked BBQ Source: How much brisket per person (1 lb raw ≈ ½ lb cooked).
- BBQ Revolution: Catering weight calculations and yields (brisket 43–52%, pork butt 50%, chicken 34%, turkey 50%).
- Butter & Baggage: How much meat per person for BBQ (8 oz portions, kids ¼ lb).
- AmazingRibs: Texas brisket (1 lb raw per person).
- Destination BBQ: How much turkey per person.