Camping Trip Food Calculator

About this calculator

Planning food for a camping trip starts with a daily calorie target per person — commonly 2,500–3,000 calories for car camping and 3,500–4,500+ for strenuous backpacking, where extra exertion and cold both raise energy needs — multiplied by group size and trip length in days to get a total calorie budget, plus a separate water target (a widely used baseline is about 2–4 liters per person per day, more in heat or at altitude).

This calculator takes your group size, trip length, and daily calorie target and converts them into total food, water, and an estimated budget, so you're not guessing at grocery quantities the night before you leave. Backpackers, scout leaders, and family campers use it to avoid the two classic camping mistakes — running out of food on a longer trip, or hauling far more weight and water than the trip actually needs.