Daily Dog Food Amounts: Cups and Grams Table
Food-agnostic dog feeding chart: cups and grams per day for 5 to 100+ lb dogs, adult through senior, any kibble — fine-tune it with the free calculator.
Dog Feeding Chart by Weight and Age
A dog feeding chart maps body weight and age to daily portions in kcal, cups and grams. The master chart below covers 5 to 100 lb and assumes a neutered adult on a 400 kcal-per-cup food, with grams at about 110 g per cup. Anchor rows: a 10 lb dog needs about 346 kcal, roughly 0.9 cup or 100 g; a 50 lb dog needs about 1,167 kcal, roughly 2.9 cups or 320 g; a 90 lb dog needs about 1,811 kcal, roughly 4.5 cups or 500 g.
This chart is derived from the RER and MER formulas: RER = 70 x (kg^0.75), multiplied by the neutered-adult factor of 1.6. Every cell is that math applied to one weight, so the chart carries a single number per row instead of a range. The portion calculator rebuilds this chart for your dog's exact weight, factor and food density.
| Dog weight | Daily kcal (neutered adult, 1.6 x RER) | Cups per day (400 kcal/cup) | Grams per day (~110 g/cup) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 lb (2.3 kg) | ~209 kcal | ~0.5 cup | ~55 g |
| 10 lb (4.5 kg) | ~346 kcal | ~0.9 cup | ~100 g |
| 20 lb (9.1 kg) | ~587 kcal | ~1.5 cups | ~160 g |
| 30 lb (13.6 kg) | ~793 kcal | ~2 cups | ~220 g |
| 40 lb (18.2 kg) | ~999 kcal | ~2.5 cups | ~275 g |
| 50 lb (22.7 kg) | ~1,167 kcal | ~2.9 cups | ~320 g |
| 60 lb (27.3 kg) | ~1,338 kcal | ~3.3 cups | ~370 g |
| 70 lb (31.8 kg) | ~1,499 kcal | ~3.7 cups | ~410 g |
| 80 lb (36.4 kg) | ~1,658 kcal | ~4.1 cups | ~455 g |
| 90 lb (40.9 kg) | ~1,811 kcal | ~4.5 cups | ~500 g |
| 100 lb (45.5 kg) | ~1,961 kcal | ~4.9 cups | ~540 g |
How to Read the Chart (Cups vs Grams)
One cup of kibble weighs about 110-120 grams, and gram measurement is more precise than cup measurement, so weigh the portion on a kitchen scale whenever accuracy matters. Cups leave room for scoop error; grams do not.
Cup amounts scale with the food's kcal per cup. If your food is not 400 kcal per cup, rescale the cup column with one division: cups = chart kcal / your label's kcal per cup. A 50 lb dog on a 500 kcal-per-cup food gets 1,167 / 500 = about 2.3 cups, not the 2.9 in the chart. The kcal column never changes; only the household measure moves.
Split the daily amount into 2 meals for adult dogs, morning and evening. The kibble cup-to-pound chart covers the related bag-yield conversions when you need to know how long a bag lasts.
Feeding Chart Adjustments by Age
Age changes the MER multiplier, not the formula. Adults run at 1.6 x RER, seniors at 1.4 and growing puppies at 2 to 3 times RER. In chart terms, senior dogs need about 12% less than the adult column: a 50 lb senior drops from about 1,167 kcal to about 1,021 kcal, roughly 2.6 cups instead of 2.9.
The practical rule: a dog aged 7 or older left on the adult column trends toward weight gain, because metabolism and activity fall while the portion stays flat. Move seniors to the reduced figure at the first sign of upward drift.
Puppies follow a separate growth chart entirely; their multipliers step down as they approach adult weight, and their meal counts differ. Use the portion chart for puppies rather than scaling this adult table down.
One more assumption sits inside every cell: the chart budgets 100% of calories to the bowl. Treats, chews and toppers come out of the same daily kcal, capped at 10%. A 30 lb dog on the 793 kcal row has a 79 kcal treat allowance; on treat-heavy days, remove the matching kcal from the bowl rather than stacking on top.
Wet Dog Food Feeding Chart
Wet dog food contains 250-400 kcal per 13-oz can, so can count equals daily kcal divided by kcal per can. At 350 kcal per large can, the chart converts directly: a 10 lb dog needs about 1 small 5.5-oz can plus a third of a large can's calories, roughly one large can at most; a 30 lb dog needs about 2.2 large cans; a 50 lb dog needs about 3.3 large cans.
Because wet food is mostly water, the volumes look large next to kibble, but the calorie math is identical. Check the exact kcal per can on your label before converting, since wet foods vary almost twofold in energy density. The full wet food cans-per-day table by weight, including small-can equivalents and mixed wet-and-dry feeding, lives in the canned food portion guide.
| Dog weight | Daily kcal | 13-oz cans per day (350 kcal/can) |
|---|---|---|
| 10 lb | ~346 kcal | ~1 can (or 2 x 5.5-oz cans) |
| 30 lb | ~793 kcal | ~2.2 cans |
| 50 lb | ~1,167 kcal | ~3.3 cans |
Why Brand Bag Charts Overfeed
Brand feeding charts assume intact, active adult dogs, which means a factor of 1.8 to 2.0. Most pet dogs in the US are neutered and run at 1.6, so bag chart ranges exceed neutered-dog needs by 15-25%. The chart on the bag is not wrong for the dog it models; it models a different dog than the one in most homes.
Bag charts also print wide ranges. A line that reads 2-3 cups spans a 50% spread, which is the difference between a lean dog and an overweight one within a year. A kcal-based chart replaces that guesswork with one number per weight, because it starts from the calorie requirement instead of a safety-margin range.
This chart is food-agnostic: it works with any brand once you enter that food's kcal per cup. The complete adult dog portion sizes guide explains the underlying factor choices, and breed-based portions map typical breed weights onto the correct rows.
Work one comparison to see the gap in kcal terms. A typical bag chart tells a 50 lb dog to eat 2.5 to 3.5 cups, which at 400 kcal per cup is 1,000 to 1,400 kcal per day. The neutered target for that dog is about 1,167 kcal, so the top of the printed range overfeeds by 20%, roughly a full cup per day. Fed at the top of the range for a year, that surplus is more than 80,000 excess kcal.
Printable Chart and Breed Notes
The feeding chart is available as a printable PDF; print the master table and tape it inside the food cupboard next to a marked measuring cup, then re-check the row after every vet weigh-in.
Breed determines the weight row to use, not the math. A Labrador at a typical 70 lb adult weight reads the 70 lb row, about 1,499 kcal and 3.7 cups; a Pug at 16 lb sits between the 10 and 20 lb rows at roughly 480 kcal, about 1.2 cups. The formula behind every cell is identical across breeds; only the input weight changes. For breed-typical weights and their portion ranges, use the feeding guide organized by breed.
Cat owners: feline energy math uses the same RER base with different factors, and the cat amounts by weight chart covers it. For a chart cell tuned to your exact dog and your exact bag, the portion calculator builds your dog's personal row in seconds.
Whatever row you start on, verify it with the scale. Weigh your dog every two weeks; steady weight at a body condition score of 4-5 out of 9 confirms the row, and a 10% portion change corrects any drift.
Frequently asked questions
- Is there a chart for how much food to feed a dog according to weight?
- Yes. The master chart above lists daily kcal, cups and grams for dogs from 5 to 100 lb. It is derived from RER = 70 x kg^0.75 multiplied by the neutered-adult factor of 1.6, at 400 kcal per cup.
- How much should I feed my dog per day by weight?
- A 10 lb dog needs about 346 kcal (0.9 cup), a 50 lb dog about 1,167 kcal (2.9 cups) and a 90 lb dog about 1,811 kcal (4.5 cups) on a 400 kcal-per-cup food. Rescale the cups if your food's kcal per cup differs.
- Are brand feeding charts accurate?
- No, not for most pets. Brand charts assume intact, active adults at a 1.8-2.0 factor, while most neutered pets need the 1.6 factor, so bag ranges overstate needs by 15-25%. A kcal-based chart gives one number instead of a wide range.