BBQ Meat CalculatorPlan my cook

Whole menu BBQ planner

How much BBQ do you need?

Tell us who is coming and when you eat. Get a shopping list in whole briskets, butts, and racks, plus a smoker timeline that lands everything at serve time.

20 guests total

What are you smoking?
Quick start:

Your plan

Shopping ticket

Feeds about
20

For 20 guests (20 adult equivalents), buy about 11 lb of brisket, and about 12 lb of pork butt.

  • Whole packer brisket
    11 lb raw · about 5.5 lb cooked
    1
    packer brisket, ~14 lb
  • Bone-in pork butt
    12.2 lb raw · about 5.5 lb cooked
    2
    pork butts, ~16 lb
Guests
20
Cooked meat
11.0 lb
Per adult
0.55 lb

Buy smart

Whole packer brisket
  • Ask for a whole packer brisket: point and flat still joined.
  • Pick one that bends easily when you hold it in the middle. Floppy usually means more marbling.
  • Look for a thick, even flat. Thin flats dry out before the point is done.
  • Choice grade or better is worth it for brisket.
Bone-in pork butt
  • Ask for bone-in Boston butt, also called pork shoulder butt.
  • Two 8 lb butts cook faster than one 16 lb shoulder and give you more bark.
  • Many stores sell them in twin packs. Count pieces, not packages.

Trusted recipes to try

Brisket
Pulled pork
How this was calculated
  • Adults count 1, teens 1.25, kids 5 to 12 count 0.5. Under 5 not counted.
  • Start at 0.5 lb cooked meat per adult, adjusted for appetite, meal, sides, and serving style, then kept between 0.25 and 1 lb.
  • Brisket yields 50% (45% heavy trim), pork butt 45%. Ribs use bones: 12 per lb for baby backs, 8 for St. Louis, 12 bones per rack.
  • Cook time uses the slow end for your pit temp and your largest single piece, plus a stall cushion and rest.
Full method and sources
See my plan

Whole menu, not stacked

Pick three meats and the total is split across them. You do not buy three times the meat.

Real buying math

Cooked portions become raw pounds using each cut's true yield, then round up to whole pieces and racks.

One smoker, one timeline

Start times are staggered from your biggest piece so brisket, pork, and ribs all land on time.

Quick answers