Catering Pricing Per Person: A Restaurant Owner's Guide

Per-person pricing is one of the most common ways to price catering. The customer knows how many guests they have, you quote a price for each one, and the total follows.

It is simple for customers to understand. It can also lead to underpricing if you are not clear about what the price includes, how portions work, and when the model does not fit.

This guide explains how per-person pricing works, what to include, when it works well, when it does not, and walks through a hypothetical example.

What Per-Person Pricing Means

With per-person pricing, you charge a set amount for each guest, usually for a defined meal or package.

For example, a lunch package might include an entrée, a side, and a dessert for each guest at one price per person. For 25 guests, the customer pays 25 times that price, plus any delivery or add-ons.

It contrasts with:

• Package pricing for a fixed group size, such as "Feeds 10"
• À la carte pricing, where each tray or item is priced individually

Many restaurants combine them: per-person packages with à la carte add-ons.

What Should Be Included

Be specific about what the per-person price covers. Ambiguity leads to awkward conversations and lost margin.

Consider stating clearly whether the price includes:

• The specific items and choices in the package
• Portion sizes
• Disposable plates, cutlery, and napkins
• Serving utensils
• Packaging
• Delivery, or whether it is charged separately
• Setup
• Beverages

A per-person price that "includes everything" must have all of those costs built in.

How Portions Affect Price

Portions are the biggest driver of per-person cost.

• A light breakfast and a hearty dinner should not cost the same per person
• Small changes in protein portions add up across a large order
• Choice-based packages need a realistic average portion, not the most expensive option

Define portion guides for each package and stick to them. Your per-person price is only as accurate as your portioning.

Different Guest Types

Not every guest eats the same amount.

Adults and Children

For family gatherings and events with children, some restaurants offer a lower per-person price for children with smaller portions. If you do, define the age range and portion clearly.

Meal Context

A working lunch often calls for lighter portions than an evening celebration. You may need different packages, or different portion guides, for different occasions.

Groups With Big Appetites

Some groups, such as sports teams, often eat more than average. A heartier package or adjusted portions can prevent running out.

Packages and Choices

Per-person pricing works best with clear package structures:

• Choose 2 entrées from a short list
• Choose 1 side
• Choose 1 dessert

The customer picks from a small set of choices within each group, rather than receiving every item.

If one choice costs much more than the others, such as a premium protein, price it as an upgrade so it does not quietly erode the margin on the whole package.

For package structures, see catering package ideas for restaurants.

Beverages

Beverages can be:

• Included in the per-person price
• Offered as a per-person add-on
• Priced à la carte, such as by the bottle or by the gallon

If included, build their cost into the per-person price. If not, make it obvious that drinks are extra.

Delivery

Delivery is usually best priced separately, as a flat fee or by distance. Including it in the per-person price makes small orders unprofitable and large orders overpriced.

If you do include delivery, consider a minimum guest count.

Service

On-site service, such as staff serving a buffet, is usually priced separately, often by staff hours. Rolling it into the per-person price makes it hard to quote events of different lengths accurately.

Add-Ons

Add-ons let customers customize without making the core package complicated:

• Extra sides
• Desserts
• Beverages
• Premium upgrades
• Appetizers

Price add-ons individually, either per person or per tray.

A Hypothetical Example

The numbers below are hypothetical and for illustration only. They are not a market benchmark, a typical cost, or a recommended price.

Imagine a lunch package: choose two entrées, one side, and one dessert.

Per-guest costs:

• Food (average across choices): $6.50
• Packaging and disposables: $1.25
• Labor at a typical order size: $3.00
• Share of overhead: $2.00

Total cost per guest: $12.75

If this hypothetical restaurant decided it needed $5.00 of profit per guest for the order to be worthwhile, its per-person price would be about $17.75, which it might round to $18.

Then it would check that price against comparable catering options locally, adjust if needed, and charge delivery separately.

Your numbers will be different. The point is the method: start from real costs, add a profit target you have chosen deliberately, then check against your market.

When Per-Person Pricing Works Well

• Office lunches and meetings with a known headcount
• Buffets and packages with defined portions
• Events where the customer wants a simple, predictable total
• Repeat corporate orders

When It Does Not Work as Well

• Very small orders, where fixed effort is high relative to the total
• Orders with highly custom menus
• Events with uncertain guest counts
• Grazing tables or receptions where consumption is unpredictable

In these cases, package pricing for fixed group sizes, à la carte pricing, or a minimum order total may work better.

How to Avoid Underpricing

• Include every cost: food, packaging, labor, and overhead
• Use realistic average portions for choice-based packages
• Price premium choices as upgrades
• Charge for delivery and service separately
• Set a minimum guest count
• Review prices when costs change
• Avoid competing on price alone

Related Reading

• How much should a restaurant charge for catering?
• How to price a catering menu

Where Caterly Helps

Caterly helps you build per-person packages with clear choices, suggests prices aimed at the middle of your local market, and explains its reasoning so you can set the final price with confidence.

Explore more in Catering Pricing.