The complete Thanksgiving grocery list, scalable from 6 to 20+ guests
Thanksgiving grocery shopping fails when it's done without a plan: produce bought too early wilts, specialty items sell out, and items get forgotten requiring a last-minute Wednesday grocery run. This list is organized by category, with per-person quantities for everything that scales, and a shopping timeline that tells you what to buy when.
The core math: 1.25 lb raw turkey per adult (for moderate leftovers), 0.5 lb raw potato per person, 0.25 lb stuffing bread per person, and 1 pie per 8 guests. Everything else scales similarly. Use the quantities in this list for 10 guests and multiply or divide for your specific count.
Protein (the anchor purchase)
Turkey: at 1.25 lb per adult, 10 guests = 12.5 lb → buy 14 lb. 12 guests = 15 lb → buy 16 lb. 16 guests = 20 lb → buy two 10-lb birds (two smaller birds cook more evenly and give you twice as many wings and drumsticks). Buy frozen 2 weeks ahead or fresh 2-3 days ahead.
Optional protein additions: 1 lb Italian sausage (for stuffing), 1 lb bacon (for Brussels sprouts or a breakfast-style stuffing), extra chicken thighs if you want to make extra turkey-adjacent gravy practice on Wednesday.
Produce (buy in two trips)
Buy T-7 (shelf-stable produce):
- Yellow onions: 3 medium (for stuffing + gravy + sides)
- Garlic: 1 bulb
- Shallots: 2-3 (for gravy)
Buy T-2 to T-1 (fresh produce):
- Russet potatoes: 5 lb for 10 guests (½ lb raw/person)
- Sweet potatoes: 3.5 lb for 10 guests (⅓ lb/person)
- Celery: 1 bunch (for stuffing and soup)
- Carrots: 1 lb (for stuffing and garnish)
- Green beans: 2.5 lb for 10 guests (¼ lb/person)
- Brussels sprouts (optional): 2 lb (¼ lb/person for a popular side)
- Fresh thyme: 1 large bunch
- Fresh sage: 1 large bunch
- Fresh rosemary: 1 small bunch
- Italian flat-leaf parsley: 1 large bunch
- Lemons: 4 (always buy more than you think)
- Orange: 1 (for cranberry sauce)
- Fresh cranberries: 12 oz per 8-10 guests (for homemade sauce)
- Apples: 4-6 (2 for an apple pie + the rest for a cheese board)
Dairy (buy T-5 to T-3)
- Unsalted butter: 2 lb for 10 guests, 3 lb for 16+ (turkey basting, mashed potatoes, stuffing, rolls, pie dough). Always buy 1 lb more than you think. Butter stores fine in the fridge for 2-3 weeks.
- Heavy cream: 1 pint (for mashed potatoes, possibly pie). Use in mashed potatoes for richness.
- Whole milk: ½ gallon (for pumpkin pie custard, mashed potatoes, gravy)
- Sour cream: 8 oz (for mashed potatoes — add 2-4 tbsp for tangy richness)
- Cream cheese: 8 oz (optional — some mashed potato recipes and some desserts)
- Eggs: 1 dozen minimum (pie custard needs 3-4 eggs per pie, plus morning of cooking)
Dry goods and pantry (buy T-7)
- All-purpose flour: 2 lb (pie dough + gravy thickener + rolls if making)
- Granulated sugar: 2 lb (cranberry sauce + pie filling)
- Brown sugar (light): 1 lb (sweet potato casserole, pecan pie)
- Powdered sugar: ½ lb (optional, for some desserts)
- Cornstarch: 1 box (gravy thickener alternative)
- Baking powder and baking soda: check your current stock; replace if over 1 year old
- Kosher salt: 1 large box (you'll use 3-4 tbsp just for the brine)
- Black pepper: replenish if your grinder is running low
Baking-specific (for pies)
- Vanilla extract: 1 bottle (2 oz minimum)
- Ground cinnamon: 1 jar
- Ground nutmeg: 1 whole nutmeg or fresh jar
- Ground ginger: 1 jar
- Ground cloves: 1 jar
- Pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling): 1 can per pie
- Evaporated milk: 1 can per pumpkin pie
- Corn syrup (light or dark): for pecan pie
- Pecans: 2 cups per pecan pie
Bread (buy T-2)
- Bread for stuffing: 1 large sourdough loaf or 2 French baguettes per 10 guests. Buy 2-3 days before Thanksgiving for it to dry slightly. Tear or cut into cubes, then oven-dry for best stuffing.
- Dinner rolls: 12 for 10 guests (buy or make). Brown-and-serve rolls are reliable; serve with butter at room temperature.
Beverages (buy T-7 for wine, T-2 for perishables)
- White wine: 2 bottles per 8 adults (recommend: Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc)
- Red wine: 2 bottles per 8 adults (recommend: Pinot Noir, Côtes du Rhône)
- Sparkling wine or Champagne: 1 bottle per 6-8 adults (for arrival toast)
- Non-alcoholic sparkling cider or sparkling water: 2-3 bottles (always have elegant non-alcoholic options)
- Coffee: 1 lb ground or whole bean
- Cream and sugar for coffee
Scaling formulas for any guest count
- Turkey pounds = guests × 1.25, rounded up to next available size
- Russet potatoes (raw) = guests × 0.5 lb
- Sweet potatoes (raw) = guests × 0.33 lb
- Green beans (raw) = guests × 0.25 lb
- Unsalted butter = (guests ÷ 5) lb + 1 extra lb for baking
- Dinner rolls = guests × 1.25 (rounds for seconds)
- Pies = guests ÷ 8, rounded up (minimum 2 for 10+ guests)
- Wine bottles = (adults × 1.5 glasses/hour × hours) ÷ 5 (glasses per bottle)
Shopping timeline
T-14 days: frozen turkey. Specialty orders (heritage bird, kosher, etc.).
T-7 days: shelf-stable pantry items, wine, dry goods, onions and garlic, butter (can be frozen), evaporated milk and canned pumpkin.
T-3 days: dairy (cream, milk, eggs), remaining refrigerated items. Start thawing turkey if not already started.
T-2 days: fresh produce and herbs. The only things that should be bought this close to Thanksgiving.
T-0 (day-of emergency): Extra butter (always), lemons (always), fresh herbs (if you forgot), ice, paper towels, aluminum foil. Have a grocery run person designated for Thursday morning emergencies.
The emergency backup list
These are the items most commonly forgotten or that run out faster than expected — stock extras of all of them:
- Butter: buy 1 extra lb beyond your calculation. Always.
- Lemons: buy 2 extra. You'll need them.
- Fresh herbs: buy 1 extra bunch of thyme and sage.
- Heavy cream: buy 1 extra pint. Splashes happen.
- Ice: buy 10-15 lb of bagged ice. Home freezer ice never covers a party.
- Aluminum foil: buy the heavy-duty kind for tenting the turkey.
- Paper towels: 2 rolls minimum. Wet brining, drying turkey, kitchen cleanup.
- Trash bags: 6-8 large. You will fill them.
Frequently asked questions
How much flour do I need total? For 10 guests making pie dough (2 crusts = 2.5 cups flour), gravy (¼ cup), and rolls from scratch (3 cups): about 2 lb all-purpose flour covers it. If buying rolls, reduce to 1 lb.
Fresh cranberries vs. canned cranberry sauce? Fresh cranberries produce dramatically better sauce — brighter color, more complex flavor, and you control the sweetness. 12 oz of fresh cranberries serves 8-10 guests. Canned whole-berry sauce is an acceptable backup; canned jellied sauce is a last resort.
Heavy cream vs. whipping cream? Heavy cream (36%+ butterfat) whips to stable peaks and holds longer after whipping. Whipping cream (30-35% butterfat) whips but deflates faster. Both work for mashed potatoes and sauces. For whipped cream topping: use heavy cream.
Whole milk vs. 2%? Whole milk for pumpkin pie custard (fat carries flavor and helps the custard set properly) and for the richest mashed potatoes. 2% is fine everywhere else.
Is organic worth the premium? Yes for the turkey — organic and pasture-raised birds have better flavor and texture. Yes for fresh herbs and thin-skinned produce. Not meaningfully different for canned pumpkin, sugar, flour, or shelf-stable goods.
Related: prep checklist, turkey scaler, holiday planner, pantry checklist.