What this calculator does
Catering for a group means turning a guest count into an actual quantity to buy, and the standard way to do that is a per-person serving guideline: a fixed amount of food that experience shows is enough for one person, multiplied by the number of guests. This calculator covers three common questions people search separately: how much rice per person, how much popcorn kernels per person, and how much pizza per person.
Each food uses its own standard catering guideline: 75 g of uncooked rice per person as a side dish, 20 g of unpopped popcorn kernels per person, or 3 slices of pizza per person from a pizza cut into 8 slices. These are reference figures used widely in catering planning, not a precise science, and are worth adjusting up for big eaters or down for a meal with several other dishes.
The formula
Multiply the guideline serving size for the chosen food by the number of guests. For rice, an approximate cooked weight is also shown, since rice roughly doubles to two and a half times its raw weight once it absorbs water during cooking. For pizza, the total slices needed are rounded up to a whole number of pizzas, since a supplier will not sell part of one.
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Serving guideline | A standard, widely used per-person amount for a specific food, used as a planning reference rather than an exact requirement. |
| Uncooked rice | Rice measured before cooking; its cooked weight is higher because it absorbs water as it cooks. |
| Slices per pizza | This calculator assumes a pizza cut into 8 slices, the most common home and takeaway size. |
The inputs explained
| Field | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Food | Choose which food you are calculating a quantity for: rice, popcorn kernels or pizza. |
| Guests | The number of people you are catering for. |
When to use it
Planning a dinner side dish
Rice as a side dish is usually one of two or three items on the plate, so the 75 g per person guideline assumes it is sharing the meal with other food rather than being the only thing served.
Setting up a popcorn bar for a party
A popcorn-bar or movie-night popcorn guideline works from unpopped kernel weight, since kernels are what gets bought and stored, before popping closer to serving time.
Ordering pizza for a group
Three slices per person from an 8-slice pizza is a standard party-planning rule of thumb; it is worth rounding up further for a group of mostly teenagers or a meal with no other food on offer.
Worked examples
Every figure in the tables below is produced by this page’s own calculator at build time, so the numbers and the tool always agree. Select any row to load that scenario.
How much rice to buy for a group?
Rice quantities for a range of common guest counts.
| Guests | Uncooked rice needed | Approx. cooked weight |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | 300 g (0.30 kg) | 750 g (0.75 kg) |
| 6 | 450 g (0.45 kg) | 1,125 g (1.13 kg) |
| 8 | 600 g (0.60 kg) | 1,500 g (1.50 kg) |
| 10 | 750 g (0.75 kg) | 1,875 g (1.88 kg) |
| 15 | 1,125 g (1.13 kg) | 2,813 g (2.81 kg) |
| 20 | 1,500 g (1.50 kg) | 3,750 g (3.75 kg) |
How much popcorn to buy for a group?
Popcorn kernel quantities for a range of common guest counts.
| Guests | Unpopped kernels needed | In cups |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | 80 g | 0.40 cups (using 200 g per cup of kernels) |
| 6 | 120 g | 0.60 cups (using 200 g per cup of kernels) |
| 8 | 160 g | 0.80 cups (using 200 g per cup of kernels) |
| 10 | 200 g | 1.00 cups (using 200 g per cup of kernels) |
| 15 | 300 g | 1.50 cups (using 200 g per cup of kernels) |
| 20 | 400 g | 2.00 cups (using 200 g per cup of kernels) |
How many pizzas to order for a group?
Pizza quantities for a range of common guest counts.
| Guests | Pizzas to order | Total slices needed |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | 2 | 12 (from 8-slice pizzas) |
| 6 | 3 | 18 (from 8-slice pizzas) |
| 8 | 3 | 24 (from 8-slice pizzas) |
| 10 | 4 | 30 (from 8-slice pizzas) |
| 15 | 6 | 45 (from 8-slice pizzas) |
| 20 | 8 | 60 (from 8-slice pizzas) |
Questions
How much rice per person should I buy?
A standard catering guideline is about 75 g of uncooked rice per person as a side dish, which cooks up to roughly 1.5 to 2.5 times that weight. For a main course rather than a side, more is usually needed.
How much popcorn kernels per person is enough?
About 20 g of unpopped kernels per person is a standard popcorn-bar guideline, enough for a generous bowl once popped. Popping expands kernels many times over in volume, so a small weight of kernels goes a long way.
How much pizza per person should I order?
Three slices per person from a pizza cut into 8 slices is a common party-planning guideline, though appetite varies with age, time of day and whatever else is being served.
Are these guidelines exact?
No. They are standard reference figures used widely in catering planning, not a precise requirement for every group. Adjust upward for a meal where the food is the main event, or downward when it is one of several dishes on offer.
For the maths behind how much popped popcorn a given quantity of kernels makes, see the popcorn yield calculator. To scale a whole recipe rather than a single serving guideline, see the recipe scaling calculator.