Adjust for your crowd
Enter how many of your guests are kids; each counts as half an adult.
Brisket chart: 10 to 200 people
tap a row for its own list ↓| Guests | Cooked | Raw to buy | Whole briskets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 people | 4 lb | 8 lb | 1 |
| 20 people | 7 lb | 15 lb | 1 |
| 25 people | 9 lb | 19 lb | 2 |
| 30 people | 11 lb | 22 lb | 2 |
| 40 people | 15 lb | 30 lb | 2 |
| 50 people | 18 lb | 37 lb | 3 |
| 75 people | 28 lb | 55 lb | 4 |
| 100 people | 37 lb | 74 lb | 5 |
| 150 people | 55 lb | 110 lb | 8 |
| 200 people | 73 lb | 147 lb | 10 |
How many people does a 12-lb brisket feed?
Feeds about 18 people with sides, or 12 if brisket is the main event.
Everything else for 20 people
How we got this number
- 120 guests × 1/3 lb cooked = 6.7 lb
- 2× 1.10 cushion = 7.3 lb cooked
- 3÷ 0.50 cooked yield = 14.7 lb raw → 1 whole packer
we always round up to whole briskets. Leftovers beat running out!
We count briskets at 15 lb each, the top of the usual 12–15 lb range. If the ones at your store run smaller, buy by weight: about 15 lb in all.
Food safety: cook brisket to at least 145°F and let it rest 3 minutes (most pitmasters take it far past that, to about 200°F, so it slices tender) (USDA safe temperature chart), and don't leave it out more than 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F (USDA).
Sources for this rule: Smoked BBQ Source (2023, updated 2026); Old Farmer's Almanac party chart; USDA Food Buying Guide; AMSA / Texas A&M brisket study summary (2021); Traeger.
How to smoke a brisket: the most-watched videos
Videos from YouTube, picked by us from the most-watched on the topic; view counts as of October 2026. We don't make these videos and aren't paid for them. Pressing play loads YouTube.
Brisket questions
How much brisket per person?
Plan on 1/3 lb of cooked brisket per person with sides, or 1/2 lb as the main event. Brisket loses about half its weight cooking, so that's 2/3 to 1 lb raw per person.
How much brisket for 100 people?
Buy about 74 lb of raw brisket: 5 whole packer briskets. It cooks down to about 37 lb sliced: 1/3 lb per guest with sides, plus a 10% cushion. Range: 58–92 lb depending on appetite.
How many people does a 12-lb brisket feed?
Feeds about 18 people with sides, or 12 if brisket is the main event.
Should kids count as a full person?
Count each kid as half an adult. Add them in the Kids box and the shopping list updates.
Should I buy a whole packer or just the flat?
A whole packer (point and flat together) is the usual barbecue cut and the store unit we count in. A flat alone is leaner, cooks a little faster and loses about the same share of its weight, so the raw pounds stay the same.