Recipe Cost per Serving Calculator

For each ingredient, enter what the package costs, how much it holds and how much the recipe uses. Rows with 0 used are left out.

ServingsHow many servings the recipe makes.

Menu price per serving($)Optional; 0 leaves the food-cost percentage out.

Ingredient 1 package price($)

Ingredient 1 package size

Ingredient 1 package unit

Ingredient 1 amount usedA row with 0 used is left out.

Ingredient 1 unit used

Ingredient 2 package price($)

Ingredient 2 package size

Ingredient 2 package unit

Ingredient 2 amount used

Ingredient 2 unit used

Ingredient 3 package price($)

Ingredient 3 package size

Ingredient 3 package unit

Ingredient 3 amount used

Ingredient 3 unit used

Ingredient 4 package price($)

Ingredient 4 package size

Ingredient 4 package unit

Ingredient 4 amount used

Ingredient 4 unit used

Ingredient 5 package price($)

Ingredient 5 package size

Ingredient 5 package unit

Ingredient 5 amount used

Ingredient 5 unit used

Cost per serving

$2.20

Recipe cost

$13.21

Food cost of the menu price

18.3%

Ingredient 1 cost

$1.89

Ingredient 2 cost

$5.99

Ingredient 3 cost

$3.49

Ingredient 4 cost

$1.25

Ingredient 5 cost

$0.59

How it works

Each ingredient costs its package price divided by the package size, times the amount the recipe uses. When the recipe measures in a different unit from the package (tablespoons from a 500 mL bottle, ounces from a pound), the amount used is converted to the package's unit first. Weights convert to weights and volumes to volumes; a cup of flour cannot be priced from a bag sold by the pound without its density.

The recipe cost is the sum of the ingredient costs, and the cost per serving is that sum divided by the number of servings.

Food-service operators compare the cost of a plate with its menu price: the food-cost percentage is the cost per serving divided by the menu price.

Formula

ingredient cost = package price ÷ package size × amount used (in the package's unit)
recipe cost = sum of ingredient costs
cost per serving = recipe cost ÷ servings
food cost % = cost per serving ÷ menu price × 100

Example

A spaghetti dinner for 6 at illustrative prices: 1 lb spaghetti ($1.89 a pound), 1 lb ground beef ($5.99), a 24 oz jar of sauce ($3.49), 2 oz from an 8 oz wedge of Parmesan ($4.99 × 2 ÷ 8 = $1.25) and 2 tbsp from a 500 mL bottle of olive oil (2 tbsp = 29.57 mL; $9.99 × 29.57 ÷ 500 = $0.59).

The recipe costs $13.21, or $2.20 a serving; against a $12 menu price that is a food cost of 18.3%.

Assumptions and limitations

Prices are what you enter; the defaults are illustrative, not current market prices. Taxes, delivery, labour, energy, packaging and waste are not included.
Only the amount entered as used is costed. Trimming and cooking losses are not modelled, so an ingredient with heavy trim costs more per serving than its edible amount suggests.
Units convert within a kind only (weights, volumes or counts) using exact US customary and metric definitions; cups and fluid ounces are US measures.
This is an estimate for budgeting and menu planning, not accounting or financial advice.

Frequently asked questions

How does the USDA work out a cost per serving?

The USDA Food Buying Guide for Child Nutrition Programs multiplies the purchase units needed for one serving by the price of one unit. In its example, fresh green beans at $0.30 a pound need 9.1 lb for 100 servings, so one serving costs 0.091 × $0.30 = $0.027.

What does a food cost of 30% mean?

The ingredients for a serving cost 30% of the price charged for it. It covers ingredients only; labour, rent and other costs come out of the remaining 70%.

How it works

Formula

Example

Assumptions and limitations

Frequently asked questions

Related Calculators

Recipe Scaling Calculator

Batch Yield and Servings Calculator

Food for a Crowd Calculator

Baking Pan Size Conversion Calculator