How much pasta per person
For a main course, 80 g of dried pasta per person is the standard portion, and 100 g feeds a hungry table. The serving on a US pasta box is smaller, 2 ounces or 56 g. Fresh pasta holds more water, so a portion weighs more: 100 g, and 125 g when it is filled.
| Portion | 1 person | 2 people | 4 people | 6 people |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dried pasta, standard portion | 80 g | 160 g | 320 g | 480 g |
| Dried pasta, generous portion | 100 g | 200 g | 400 g | 600 g |
| Dried pasta, US label serving | 56 g | 112 g | 224 g | 336 g |
| Fresh pasta | 100 g | 200 g | 400 g | 600 g |
| Filled pasta, such as ravioli | 125 g | 250 g | 500 g | 750 g |
Why the box says 2 ounces
The serving size on a US label is not a recommendation for dinner. It comes from the reference amounts in US food labeling rules, which set the amount for plain pasta at 55 g dry, labeled as 2 ounces. It is a fair portion for a first course or a side, and small for a main.
The Italian portion
Italy’s reference portions, the LARN tables of the Italian Society of Human Nutrition, set the standard portion of dried pasta at 80 g, weighed raw, of fresh pasta at 100 g and of filled pasta such as ravioli or tortellini at 125 g. That is the default in this calculator.
How many people a box feeds
| Portion | From a 1 lb box | From a 500 g pack |
|---|---|---|
| Dried pasta, standard portion | 5.7 | 6.2 |
| Dried pasta, generous portion | 4.5 | 5 |
| Dried pasta, US label serving | 8.1 | 8.9 |
How much it weighs once cooked
Pasta more than doubles in weight in the pot. The US labeling rules pair 55 g of dry pasta with 140 g cooked, about two and a half times as much. So 320 g of dried pasta for four people becomes roughly 800 g on the table.
If you have the pasta and not the number
The calculator works both ways. Type the weight you have in the second field, in grams, ounces or pounds, and it tells you how many portions it makes.
