Turkey Cooking Time Calculator
Enter your turkey's weight and whether it's stuffed to get the roasting time range from the USDA timetable for a 325°F oven, plus the safe internal temperature and rest time. Whole fresh or thawed turkeys of 8–24 lb only. The thermometer, not the clock, decides when it's done.
Units
Before you roast
- Start checking the temperature at the low end of the range. Push the thermometer into the thickest part of the inner thigh without touching bone, then check near the wing joint and in the thickest part of the breast. USDA's safe minimum is 165°F in all three.
- The timetable assumes a fresh or completely thawed bird and an oven set no lower than 325°F. A partly frozen turkey, an oven that wasn't preheated, or a crowded pan can all add time. Oven thermostats can be off too, so an oven thermometer helps.
- If you stuff the bird, stuff it loosely right before it goes in the oven. The center of the stuffing also has to reach 165°F. Cooking the stuffing separately in a dish is the safer and more even option.
- Let the turkey rest about 20 minutes before carving. It carves more cleanly, and that's the time to take the stuffing out.
How this is calculated
The calculator looks up your turkey's weight in the roasting timetable published by the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service for a fresh or thawed whole turkey in a 325°F oven. The table has two columns, unstuffed and stuffed, and weight bands from 8 to 24 lb, and each band gives a time range rather than minutes per pound. If you enter kilograms, the weight is converted to pounds (1 lb = 0.45359237 kg) to find the band, and the oven temperature is shown as 163°C. A weight exactly on a band boundary, such as 12 lb, uses the lighter band, so you start checking earlier. The times are estimates, as the USDA itself says: the turkey is done when a thermometer shows 165°F in the thigh, wing and breast (and in the center of the stuffing), not when the timer goes off.
Common questions
Why does it give a range instead of one exact time?
Because the USDA timetable does. The bird's shape, how cold it is when it goes in, the pan and the real temperature of your oven all change the time, so a single number would look more precise than the information behind it. Start checking with a thermometer at the low end of the range.
Is 165°F really done? Some charts say 180°F.
165°F is the USDA's minimum safe internal temperature for poultry, measured in the thigh, wing and breast. Older USDA guidance, some state health departments and turkey brands still give 180°F in the thigh, and Health Canada uses 82°C (180°F) for a whole bird. Many cooks prefer a hotter thigh for texture. 165°F is the floor for safety, not a limit you mustn't go past.
My turkey brand's chart gives different times. Which is right?
Producers publish their own charts, and they can differ from the USDA table by half an hour or more for the same weight. This calculator uses the USDA table because it's the official one. Whichever chart you follow, the thermometer reading is what tells you the turkey is done. Convection ovens usually cook faster, so check earlier if you use one.
Part of Kitchen Calculators