Thanksgiving is all about abundance and gratitude, so it’s important to think about quantity — in addition to quality, of course — when planning your menu (check out our top turkey cooking tips for a truly delicious bird). If your first thought is: how much turkey per person do I need for Thanksgiving? Congrats! Your head is in the right place. Here’s your answer: If you’re buying a whole turkey, plan on 1 lb of turkey per person. For a bone-in turkey breast, get 3/4 lb per person (½ lb per person for a boneless breast). This generous estimate will likely leave you with turkey leftovers to enjoy, so be sure to study how to reheat turkey before diving into that day-after sandwich.
One exception to the rule: If you’re serving more than 16 people, buy one 12 to 14 lb bird and a breast instead of roasting a supersize turkey, which can be tricky to cook evenly while retaining moisture. Roast the full turkey on the upper rack of your oven and the breast on the lower rack. Curious about our serving suggestions for sides, too? We broke it all down:
How much turkey do I need for Thanksgiving?
8 People
- Whole turkey (8 lbs)
- Dry mix stuffing (12 oz)
- Potatoes (4 lbs)
- Sweet potatoes (4 lbs)
- Canned cranberry sauce (2 14 oz cans)
- Pie (1–2)
- Brussels sprouts (1.5 lbs)
- Green beans (2 lbs)
16 People
- Whole turkey (16 lbs)
- Dry mix stuffing (24 oz)
- Potatoes (8 lbs)
- Sweet potatoes (8 lbs)
- Canned cranberry sauce (3 14 oz cans)
- Pie (2–3)
- Brussels sprouts (3 lbs)
- Green beans (4 lbs)
24 People
- One 12 to 14 lb whole turkey and one 6 to 10 lb bone-in breast
- Dry mix stuffing (36 oz)
- Potatoes (10 lbs)
- Sweet potatoes (10 lbs)
- Canned cranberry sauce (4 14 oz cans)
- Pie (3–4)
- Brussels sprouts (4.5 lbs)
- Green beans (6 lbs)
You're halfway there. Now that you know how much you need to buy, browse through the galleries below to figure out what dishes you'll wow your family with this year. Happy cooking!
Check Out These Triple-Tested Recipes for Turkey Day Inspiration
Samantha (she/her) is an Assistant Editor in the Good Housekeeping Test Kitchen, where she writes about tasty recipes, must-try food products and top-tested secrets for home cooking success. She has taste-tasted hundreds of products and recipes since joining GH in 2020 (tough job!). A graduate of Fordham University, she considers the kitchen to be her happiest place.
Prevention’s digital director has more than a decade of experience editing and strategizing for news and lifestyle publications such as Good Housekeeping, Time Out New York, Time Out New York Kids, Haute Living, and Forbes (previously writing for PureWow, Paste, xoJane, Men’s Fitness, House Beautiful, and Life by Daily Burn among others). She’s happiest when she's elevating a great story with perfect packaging, digging into longform storytelling, or remixing the way we experience reported journalism.
