Food Cost per Serving Calculator
Calculate the cost per serving for any recipe.
Add up ingredient costs and divide by servings to find your true per-plate cost.
Food cost per serving is the backbone of menu pricing in both restaurants and home meal planning — it tells you exactly how much the ingredients for one portion of a dish actually cost.
Core formulas: Cost per Serving = Total Recipe Ingredient Cost ÷ Number of Servings Menu Price = Cost per Serving ÷ Target Food Cost % Food Cost % = Cost per Serving ÷ Menu Price × 100 Yield-Adjusted Cost = Ingredient Cost ÷ Yield % (as decimal)
Where Yield % accounts for trimming, cooking loss, and waste:
- Chicken breast: ~85–90% yield (bone-in: ~65%)
- Ground beef: ~75–80% yield (fat renders off)
- Fresh vegetables: 70–90% yield (after peeling/trimming)
- Pasta (dry to cooked): 2–2.5× weight increase (cost per serving drops)
Worked example — Pasta Arrabiata for 4 servings:
| Ingredient | Amount | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Rigatoni pasta (dry) | 400g | $1.20 |
| Canned San Marzano tomatoes | 400g | $2.50 |
| Garlic (4 cloves) | 20g | $0.30 |
| Olive oil | 40 mL | $0.60 |
| Chili flakes, salt, herbs | — | $0.20 |
| Total recipe cost | $4.80 |
Cost per serving = $4.80 ÷ 4 = $1.20 per serving If targeting 30% food cost: Menu price = $1.20 ÷ 0.30 = $4.00 If targeting 25% food cost: Menu price = $1.20 ÷ 0.25 = $4.80
Home cook use: Tracking cost per serving reveals which meals deliver the best value. Legume-based dishes ($0.30–$0.80/serving) are dramatically cheaper than meat-based dishes ($2.00–$5.00/serving). A weekly meal plan optimizing cost per serving can reduce a family’s grocery bill by 20–35%.