Soup Quantity Calculator
Choose how you are serving the soup and how many people.
Counted at just over half an adult portion.
Answer
1.5 litres of soup
What to make
Next step
Worth knowing
- A small bowl before a main course.
- Use a pan of at least 2 litres so it does not boil over.
- Soup thickens as it stands and reduces as it simmers. Keep a little stock back to loosen it before serving.
- Soup freezes well, so cooking extra is rarely wasted. Cool it quickly and freeze in portions.
Source: Standard UK catering and home-cooking portion guidance · Reviewed 2026-09-10 · Guidance version 1.0.0
Reference and detail
A starter is half a main
Around 250ml is right for a starter; a main course bowl is closer to 400ml with bread. Serving main-sized portions before a roast is why nobody finishes the beef.
Check the pan actually holds it
Soup for ten is a lot of liquid, and it needs room to bubble without going over the sides. The pan size here allows for that.
Soup is worth making in a batch
Most soups freeze well in portions, so making double costs you nothing extra in time. Cool it quickly and freeze it within two hours of cooking.
Questions and answers
Questions about soup quantities
How much soup do I need per person?
Enter your guest numbers and the role soup is playing above. A starter needs a smaller bowl than a light lunch, and a soup served as the whole meal needs the most, with bread on the side.
How much bread do I need to serve with soup?
Enter your guest numbers above for a total. Allow a similar amount whether soup is a starter or a main course, bread is there to mop up and fill in the gaps either way.
How do children change soup quantities?
Children eat noticeably less soup than adults, so count them at roughly half an adult portion rather than a full bowl.
Can soup replace a full meal?
A generous bowl of a substantial soup with bread and perhaps cheese can work as a full light meal, particularly for lunch, but a thin starter-style soup will not fill anyone up on its own.
How much stock do I need to make a batch of soup?
Use the stock dilution calculator alongside this one to work out how much concentrate or how many stock cubes you need for the volume of soup you are making.