TruthfulPaws Dog Food Cost Calculator
Two bags of dog food can carry the same price tag and cost very different amounts to feed. Calorie-dense food means smaller daily portions, so a pricier bag often works out cheaper by the month. Enter your dog's breed, weight, and age below to see how much to feed and what 200+ foods cost per month, with prices pulled live from Amazon.
How much should I feed my dog?
Your dog needs a set number of calories a day, not a set number of cups. We work that out from your dog's weight using the resting energy requirement vets rely on (RER = 70 × bodyweightkg0.75), then adjust for age and activity, since a growing puppy burns far more per pound than a senior. Set the weight and life stage, and the calculator shows grams per day for every food, which matters because calorie density varies widely from one bag to the next.
How much should I feed a puppy?
Puppies need far more than adult dogs, often close to double the calories per pound while they're growing, and across more frequent meals. Set the life stage to Puppy and enter your puppy's current weight, and the calculator adjusts the daily calories and grams per day for each food. Update the weight as your puppy grows and the numbers follow.
Dog feeding chart by weight
Daily calorie targets for a typical adult dog at a moderate activity level, taken straight from the RER formula above. Cups depend on the food (most dry dog foods run 350–450 kcal per cup), so the last column assumes about 360 kcal per cup, so use the calculator for an exact figure on any specific food.
| Dog weight | Calories per day | Dry food (≈360 kcal/cup) |
|---|---|---|
| 10 lb | ~350 kcal | ~1 cup |
| 20 lb | ~585 kcal | ~1⅔ cups |
| 30 lb | ~795 kcal | ~2¼ cups |
| 40 lb | ~985 kcal | ~2¾ cups |
| 50 lb | ~1,165 kcal | ~3¼ cups |
| 60 lb | ~1,335 kcal | ~3¾ cups |
| 70 lb | ~1,500 kcal | ~4 cups |
| 80 lb | ~1,655 kcal | ~4½ cups |
| 90 lb | ~1,810 kcal | ~5 cups |
| 100 lb | ~1,960 kcal | ~5½ cups |
Growing puppies need close to double these calories; seniors and very inactive dogs need roughly 15–25% less. Set the life stage and activity level in the calculator to adjust.
How much does it cost to feed a dog per month?
Price per bag barely tells you anything on its own. Price per calorie does. We divide each food's price by its calorie density and multiply by your dog's daily need, so the monthly figure reflects what you'll really spend. A cheap bag you pour by the cupful can run more than a premium one you feed half as much of.
Where do the numbers come from?
Prices come from the Amazon Product Advertising API and refresh on their own, so they're current when you load the page. Calorie density comes from each manufacturer's published metabolizable-energy figure (kcal/kg), looked up for every food rather than estimated. This is a planning tool, not veterinary advice, so confirm portions with your vet. Our methodology covers how we score the foods themselves.
Feeding a cat too? The cat food calculator runs the same cost-per-calorie math for wet and dry cat food.