Kitchen and Meal Planning · KF-598 · Form

Cooking for a Crowd Quantity Calculator

Cooking for a crowd calculator — your per-adult and per-child quantities times guest numbers, with packs to buy and cost. Excel, PDF and browser.

Download Free · no sign-up

One page. The A4 and US Letter files are laid out identically, so neither is shrunk to fit.

Print it and write on it

A4 44 kB US Letter 44 kB

Fillable PDF type and save

A4 125 kB US Letter 125 kB

Spreadsheet formulas included

Excel (.xlsx) 10 kB Fill in online

The fillable versions have real form fields — open them in any PDF reader, type into them and save. Printing help.

Fill it in online

The same sheet, on screen. Totals and figures are worked out as you type, rows can be added or removed, and you can print it or download the completed version as a PDF. Everything stays in your browser — your entries are kept in this browser's own storage on this device, nothing is uploaded, and there is no account.

Who this is for

Quantities for a crowd, from your own portions. Enter how many adults and children are coming and what you allow per person for each dish, and the sheet works out the total to cook, the packs to buy and the estimated cost.

Anyone feeding a larger group than usual: family gatherings, parties, community lunches and club events where the shopping has to be right first time.

What this helps you track

Total quantity of each dish or item for the number of guests
How many packs to buy at the pack size in your shop
Estimated cost per item, in total and per head
Who is bringing or cooking each item

How to use it

Write the event, the date, and the number of adults and children, with counts for any dietary needs.
List each dish or item with the amount you allow per adult and per child, from your own recipes or past events, and the unit.
Add the pack size you will buy; the total and packs to buy are worked out in the browser and the workbook.
Fill in an estimated cost per line from your own shop prices and note who is responsible for each item.
On paper, multiply per-person amounts by guest numbers, divide by pack size and round up.

Formats

Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
Fillable PDF with form fields
Fill in online, saved in your browser
Excel / Google Sheets workbook

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The workbook uses plain formulas only — SUM, IF, COUNTIF and the like — so it opens in Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets without anything breaking, and every calculated cell is grey so you can see which figures it worked out.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

How much should I allow per person?

The sheet does not say, because appetites, menus and occasions differ. Use what you know from your own recipes and past events, and write it in the per-adult and per-child columns so the totals follow your judgement.

How are packs to buy worked out?

The total quantity is divided by the pack size and rounded up to a whole pack, so you never buy short. Keep the total and the pack size in the same unit, for example both in grams.

What about guests with dietary needs?

Record the counts in the header, then give their dishes separate lines. Because the totals use the full guest numbers, enter those lines' quantities per person and adjust the packs by hand, or note the count in the Who column.

Is the cost per head exact?

It is the total of your estimated costs divided by adults and children together. Use it as a guide to the budget, not a price to charge.