How many appetizers per person?
Pieces of passed hors d'oeuvres for your guest count and cocktail hour, split across the kinds you're serving, in dozens.
How the math works
Pieces: 3 to 4 pieces per guest per hour of passed hors d'oeuvres. That is the house number from a former country-club banquet captain. We recommend 4. A one-hour cocktail hour for 100 guests is 400 pieces; 300 is the floor.
Why the top of the range: appetizers and desserts are what hosts most often run out of. Guests arrive hungry, and a cocktail hour after a ceremony is the hungriest hour of the night. Order more if the cocktail hour runs long or you're serving many kinds, since guests try one of each.
Kinds: we split the pieces evenly and round up to whole dozens, which is how most caterers sell them. If one item is a known favorite, shift some count toward it.
No dinner after? This calculator is for appetizers before a meal. If appetizers are the meal, plan much more, and talk to your caterer about heavier items.
Questions people ask
How many appetizers per person for a cocktail hour?
3 to 4 pieces per guest per hour. We recommend 4, so 100 guests for one hour need about 400 pieces.
How many appetizers for 150 guests?
For a one-hour cocktail hour, 600 pieces at 4 per guest; 450 is the minimum. Across 6 kinds, that is 100 of each, or 9 dozen.
How many kinds of appetizers should I serve?
Four to six kinds is typical for a cocktail hour before dinner. More kinds means guests take more pieces in total, so lean toward the higher count.
What runs out first at a party?
Appetizers and desserts. Under-ordering them is the most common host mistake a banquet captain sees.
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