How to price catering for your restaurant (per person and per tray)

To price catering, work out your real cost per portion, divide it by a target food cost percentage (many caterers aim for about 28% to 35%), then add delivery, setup and staff as separate charges. Sell it per person for full meals and per tray for guests who want to choose dishes. Before you send the quote, check that the order still makes money after labor and packaging.

Why catering pricing is different from your menu

Your dine-in prices are built for one plate at a time, with drinks, dessert and table turns adding to the check. Catering is different:

• Bigger batches can lower food cost per portion.
• Packaging, utensils and delivery add costs you don’t have in the dining room.
• No drinks or dessert add-ons unless you sell them.
• One mistake is bigger. If a tray of 40 portions goes wrong, it all goes wrong.

So don’t just multiply your menu price by the headcount. Build the price from cost.

Step 1: Know your cost per portion

For each catering dish, write down:

1. Portion size (by weight or count). Weigh it, don’t guess.
2. Recipe cost per portion, including oil, spices and garnish.
3. Waste allowance. Trays come back with leftovers, and big batches have trim.

If you already cost your menu, start there. Our guide to menu pricing and food cost shows how to cost a plate step by step.

Step 2: Pick a target food cost percentage

Your target food cost is the share of the catering price that goes to food and packaging.

Type of catering	Typical food cost target
Typical caterer	28% to 35%
High-end catering	Near 25%
High-volume catering	Near 40%

These ranges come from catering software company Galley Solutions. For comparison, Resy cites US Foods saying full-service and limited-service restaurants average 28% to 32% food cost.

A lower target means a higher price. Choose a target that leaves room for labor and overhead. Galley Solutions says catering labor typically runs 25% to 35% of revenue.

Step 3: Use the formula

Catering price = (food cost + packaging) ÷ target food cost %

For example, if food and packaging cost $5.10 per person and your target is 30%:

$5.10 ÷ 0.30 = $17.00 per person

That is the base price. Delivery, setup and service staff come next.

Per-person pricing: a worked example

An office orders lunch for 40 people. Each person gets one main dish, rice, salad and bread. These are example costs; use your own.

Item per person	Cost
Main dish (6 oz)	$2.90
Rice (5 oz)	$0.40
Salad	$0.55
Bread	$0.45
Plates, utensils, napkins, containers	$0.80
Total cost per person	$5.10

At a 30% target: $5.10 ÷ 0.30 = $17.00 per person.

Now check the whole order:

Line	Amount
Food price: 40 × $17.00	$680.00
Delivery fee	$25.00
Order total before tax	$705.00
Food and packaging: 40 × $5.10	–$204.00
Extra prep labor (3 hours, with payroll costs)	–$70.00
Driver time and fuel	–$25.00
Left for rent, overhead and profit	$406.00

If the $406 doesn’t feel worth the work, raise the price, cut the menu down or set a minimum order.

Per-tray pricing: a worked example

Families and parties often want trays so they can mix dishes. Price trays from the same cost per portion.

1. Weigh a full tray the way you actually pack it. Say your half tray holds 60 oz.
2. Count portions. At 6 oz each, that is 10 portions.
3. Cost the tray. 10 × $2.90 = $29.00, plus a $1.50 container and lid = $30.50.
4. Divide by your target. $30.50 ÷ 0.30 = $101.67.
5. Round to a clean price, such as $100 (30.5% food cost) or $105 (29%).

Tell guests how many people a tray serves, based on your own portions. Tray yields vary a lot by dish and pan depth, so test yours instead of trusting a chart online. Rice, bread and salad trays are usually cheaper to make, so their markup can carry part of the meal.

Per person or per tray: which should you use?

	Per person	Per tray
Best for	Offices, events, set headcounts	Family parties, potlucks, holidays
Easy for the guest	Very: one number times guests	Needs help choosing how many trays
Your risk	Portions must match headcount	Guest may order too little or too much
Upsell	Add-ons per person (dessert, drinks)	Extra trays, bigger sizes

Many restaurants offer both. A simple per-person package covers most office orders, and trays cover everyone else.

Offer simple packages

Guests choose faster when they see two or three clear options instead of your whole menu. A common setup:

Package	What’s in it	How to price
Basic	One main, rice, salad, bread	Formula price from your costs
Standard	Two mains, rice, salad, bread, dessert	Basic plus the cost of the extra items, at the same target
Premium	Three mains with one premium protein, appetizer, dessert	Same method, often at a slightly lower food cost target

Price each package with the same formula. Then sanity-check against your local market. One catering software guide, Katalyst, gives rough ranges of $15 to $40 per person for drop-off catering and $25 to $65 for buffets. Your area and cuisine may differ, so compare with nearby caterers too.

What else belongs in a catering quote

Write these as separate lines, so the food price stays clean:

• Delivery fee. Cover driver time and fuel. One catering software guide puts delivery cost at about $15 to $30 per run.
• Setup and staff. If you send servers, charge by the hour.
• Rentals. Chafing dishes, warmers or linens.
• Minimum order for delivery, so small orders don’t lose money.
• Sales tax. Rules on catering, delivery fees and service charges differ by state. Check your state’s tax agency.
• Service charge, if you use one. The IRS says mandatory charges added to a bill are service charges, not tips, and service charges paid out to staff are treated as wages. Check the official IRS page and your state’s rules before you name or split it.

Deposits, counts and changes

Catering orders change. Protect yourself in writing.

• Deposit. Ask for part of the total when the guest books. Katalyst suggests 25% to 50%, with more for large events. Say whether it is refundable.
• Final headcount deadline. For example, three business days before the event.
• Change cut-off. After this date, you can add food but not remove it.
• Payment due date. Before delivery, on delivery or by invoice for approved business accounts.

Common catering pricing mistakes

• Copying the dine-in price. You give away packaging and delivery for free.
• Forgetting labor. A 200-portion order may need an extra cook for a morning.
• Free delivery on small orders. Set a minimum or a fee.
• Vague portions. “Feeds 10 to 15” leads to arguments. Pick a number you can stand behind.
• No price review. Food costs change. Recheck your catering costs at least a few times a year.

Quick catering pricing checklist

• I weighed each catering portion and tray.
• I know my cost per portion, including packaging.
• I picked a target food cost and used the formula.
• Delivery, staff and rentals are separate lines.
• My quote shows deposit, headcount deadline and change cut-off.
• I checked the full order still leaves money after labor.

Office lunches are often the steadiest catering business. See office lunch group orders for how to win them, and restaurant profit and loss statement for how catering shows up in your monthly numbers.

How WhatsTable helps

WhatsTable catering starts from what the guest knows: how many people and what budget. It turns that into tray plans, and you send a quote with a deposit. Once the order is booked, WhatsTable builds a kitchen production plan so your team knows what to cook and when. You also get custom and group packages, and guests get a “catering booked” email. Card payments go to your own Clover account. WhatsTable costs $0 a month plus 5–10% of sales through WhatsTable. Book a demo to see a catering quote built from your menu.