Cups & calories, minus the guesswork
How much should I feed my dog?
Bag charts run generous, and every food packs a different number of calories into a cup. This calculator starts from the formula vets use — resting calories from body weight, times a life-stage factor — and turns it into scoops of your actual food.
Be honest — portions come from your dog's estimated ideal weight, not the number on the scale.
Printed on the bag, usually near the guaranteed analysis — look for "kcal ME/cup." Typical dry foods run 300–450 kcal per cup.
For weight-loss feeding plans, work the numbers with your vet — this calculator only estimates maintenance.
Puppy portions have a short shelf life — growth spurts shift calorie needs every few weeks, so treat this as a snapshot and let your vet recalibrate at each visit. The puppy vaccine schedule visits line up nicely with portion check-ins.
Show the math
Resting energy requirement (RER) = 70 × (ideal weight in kg) raised to the 0.75 power, in kcal per day. Daily calories multiply RER by a published life-stage factor, and portions divide the low end of that range by your food's kcal per cup — always stepping down to the nearest 1/8 cup, because with dogs a little under beats a little over.
More dog math while you're here
Growing pup on a feeding schedule? The puppy vaccine schedule turns a birth date into a dated checklist to carry to the clinic. Got a counter-surfer? The chocolate toxicity calculator is the bookmark you want before you need it. And the dog age converter explains why your two-year-old is not "fourteen."
Frequently asked questions
How many cups should a dog eat per day?
There's no single number — it depends on your dog's weight, life stage, and how calorie-dense your food is, which is why two bags of kibble can mean very different scoops. For a feel of scale: a 30 lb neutered adult works out to roughly 694–794 kcal a day, and at 375 kcal per cup that's about 1 3/4 cups — around 7/8 cup at each of two meals. Run your own dog through the calculator above, then let your vet fine-tune from body condition at the next visit.
Why does my dog food bag say to feed more than this?
Bag charts have to cover the hungriest dog in a wide weight band — often an intact, very active adult — so they tend to run generous, and no food company worries much about you scooping extra. The veterinary maintenance formula starts lower, and this calculator leads with the low end of the range on purpose: slow, creeping weight gain is the feeding problem vets see most. If your dog seems genuinely hungry or is losing weight on numbers like these, that's worth a call to your vet rather than waiting for the next checkup.
How do I know the kcal per cup of my dog's food?
It's printed on the bag, usually near the guaranteed analysis or the feeding chart — look for a line like "kcal ME/cup," which is the metabolizable energy in one standard measuring cup. Most dry foods land between 300 and 450 kcal per cup; canned foods list kcal per can instead. If your bag only shows kcal per kilogram, the brand's website almost always lists the per-cup number, and your vet's office can look it up in seconds.
Should I feed once or twice a day?
Most adult dogs do best on two meals about twelve hours apart — steadier energy, a happier stomach, and less counter-surfing between feedings — which is why the calculator splits the day's cups into two bowls. Puppies usually need three or four smaller meals while they're growing (their vaccine visits make a handy rhythm for portion check-ins). And for deep-chested breeds, meal size and timing deserve a bloat conversation with your vet.