How much food should you pack?
Pick the kind of trip. Get the weight and calories for your group, or check the density of your menu.
This is a planning aid, not nutrition advice. The NOLS figures are rules of thumb for healthy adults; food needs depend on your body, health and effort. Pack extra where help is far away, and talk to a doctor or dietitian about medical needs. How we check our calculators.
The last two fields are used only with "Use my own numbers". Otherwise the calculator takes the midpoint of the NOLS row.
Add up the calories from the package labels and weigh the food as it goes in the bag.
What the numbers mean
Food is the one consumable in a pack that you plan by both weight and energy. Weight decides how much you carry; calories decide whether you have the energy to carry it. NOLS, a school that runs long backcountry courses, packs both into a short table of weight and calories per person per day. This calculator multiplies that table by the size of your group and the length of your trip, and, in the second mode, tells you the calorie density of your own menu.
The method
Person-days = people × (days + spare days). Food weight = person-days × pounds per person per day. Calories = person-days × calories per person per day. Density in calories per ounce = calories per day ÷ pounds per day ÷ 16. In the planning mode, the weight and calories per day are the midpoints of the NOLS row you choose, and the range of the row is shown for the group, since a pound of dried food can differ widely.
| NOLS situation | lb per day | kcal per day |
|---|---|---|
| Short trip, mild weather, easy pace | 1 to 1.5 | 2,000 to 3,000 |
| Cooler weather, longer backpacking trip | 1.75 to 2 | 3,000 to 3,500 |
| Cold weather, heavy packs | 2 to 2.5 | 3,500 to 4,500 |
| Very cold, winter camping | 2 to 2.5 | 4,000 to 5,000 |
Worked example
Two people, five days of walking and one spare day, in cooler weather on a longer backpacking trip: the midpoint of the row is 1.875 pounds and 3,250 calories per person per day. Person-days: 2 × (5 + 1) = 12. Food: 12 × 1.875 = 22.5 pounds (10.2 kg), or 21 to 24 pounds across the row, and 39,000 calories. That works out to 108 calories per ounce.
Limits of this method
- A school's rule of thumb, not a standard. The figures come from NOLS's guidance for its courses. They are for healthy adults carrying packs; they do not replace individual nutrition advice, and they say nothing about allergies, diabetes or other medical needs.
- Hungry people eat more. The National Park Service says Grand Canyon hikers need about twice as much food as usual. Appetite after several days of effort often exceeds the plan, and cold weather raises it. The spare-days field is your lever.
- Weight alone is a poor guide. A pound of nuts and oil carries far more calories than a pound of fruit. Use the second mode to check the density of the menu, and watch the labels for the calories in the whole package, not one serving.
- Packaging and water. Foods that need a lot of water to prepare add to the water you must carry and the fuel you burn. See the trail water calculator for the first and the propane calculator for the second.
Common questions
How much food do I need per person per day?
NOLS, the National Outdoor Leadership School, gives four rules of thumb. For short trips in mild weather at an easy pace, plan 1 to 1.5 pounds per person per day, roughly 2,000 to 3,000 calories. For cooler weather and a longer backpacking trip, 1.75 to 2 pounds and 3,000 to 3,500 calories. For cold weather with heavy packs, 2 to 2.5 pounds and 3,500 to 4,500 calories, and for winter camping 2 to 2.5 pounds and 4,000 to 5,000 calories. The calculator takes the midpoint of the row you choose.
How many calories per ounce should my food have?
NOLS does not state a target. Dividing its calories by its weights gives 107 to 125 calories per ounce at the edges of its four rows, so a menu near or above about 110 calories per ounce will fit its numbers. A menu of fresh or canned food with much water in it will be far lower and will weigh more for the same energy. This is our arithmetic on the NOLS table, not a published standard.
Should I pack an extra day of food?
Many trip leaders do, as a margin for a delay or a bad weather day, but we have no source for a specific amount, so the spare days field is yours to set. It adds whole days of food for every person. Leave it at zero for a short, easy trip close to a road and consider one or more where help is far away.
Why do I need so much more food than at home?
Walking with a pack all day uses much more energy than a desk day. The National Park Service tells Grand Canyon hikers to eat about twice as much as they normally would. Your own appetite, body size and the weather matter; the rucking calories calculator estimates the energy of walking with a load, and the calorie calculator gives a baseline.
What about fuel and cooking?
The calculator covers food only. Fuel depends on the stove, the number of hot meals and the wind; the propane calculator can help with a camp stove. Add the weight of fuel to the pack in the backpack weight calculator.
My menu is lighter than the NOLS weights. Is that a problem?
Not by itself. Use the second mode: enter the weight and the calories of one person's day of food. If the calories fall within the row for your trip, a lighter menu simply means denser food. If they are below it, you may be short of energy even if the pack feels right.
This is a planning aid, not nutrition or medical advice. Pack more food where help is far away, and ask a doctor or dietitian about medical needs.
Sources: NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School), "5 Steps to Plan a Camping Menu" (food per person per day by conditions, with calories; read on a mirror of the NOLS site, the main page returned an error); National Park Service, Grand Canyon, "Hiking Tips." The density figures are our arithmetic on the NOLS table. Related: Backpack Weight Calculator, Trail Water Calculator, Rucking Calories Calculator, Calorie Calculator, Propane Calculator.