How Long to Cook a Turkey per Pound (and Why 165 °F Matters)
The short answer
At 325 °F, an unstuffed turkey of 14 to 18 lb takes 3¾ to 4¼ hours, which works out to roughly 14 to 16 minutes per pound for a 16 lb bird. Those times come from the roasting timetable in the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) guide Let’s Talk Turkey.
FSIS calls the times approximate. The turkey is safe to eat when a food thermometer reads 165 °F in the innermost part of the thigh and wing and the thickest part of the breast. Use the chart to plan the day, and the thermometer to decide when it comes out.
The USDA roasting timetable at 325 °F
| Turkey weight | Unstuffed | Stuffed |
|---|---|---|
| 4 to 6 lb (breast) | 1½ to 3¼ hours | Not usually applicable |
| 6 to 8 lb (breast) | 1½ to 3¼ hours | 2½ to 3½ hours |
| 8 to 12 lb | 2¾ to 3 hours | 3 to 3½ hours |
| 12 to 14 lb | 3 to 3¾ hours | 3½ to 4 hours |
| 14 to 18 lb | 3¾ to 4¼ hours | 4 to 4¼ hours |
| 18 to 20 lb | 4¼ to 4½ hours | 4¼ to 4¾ hours |
| 20 to 24 lb | 4½ to 5 hours | 4¾ to 5¼ hours |
FSIS lists the unstuffed time for 4 to 8 lb breasts as one band. These are oven times for a bird that has fully thawed. FSIS says a turkey cooked from frozen takes at least 50 percent longer.
What that means per pound
FSIS publishes a table by weight band, not a single minutes-per-pound figure. Dividing the times by a sample weight in each band shows why a flat rule does not fit:
| Example weight | Unstuffed time | Minutes per pound | Stuffed time | Minutes per pound |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 lb | 2¾ to 3 h | 16.5 to 18 | 3 to 3½ h | 18 to 21 |
| 13 lb | 3 to 3¾ h | 13.8 to 17.3 | 3½ to 4 h | 16.2 to 18.5 |
| 16 lb | 3¾ to 4¼ h | 14.1 to 15.9 | 4 to 4¼ h | 15 to 15.9 |
| 19 lb | 4¼ to 4½ h | 13.4 to 14.2 | 4¼ to 4¾ h | 13.4 to 15 |
| 22 lb | 4½ to 5 h | 12.3 to 13.6 | 4¾ to 5¼ h | 13 to 14.3 |
The minutes per pound drop as the turkey gets bigger. A 22 lb turkey does not take twice as long as an 11 lb one. Multiplying a big bird’s weight by a small bird’s rate overestimates the time, and doing the reverse underestimates it. Read your weight off the FSIS chart instead.
Why 165 °F, and where to measure
FSIS’s page on doneness versus safety explains the difference between food that looks done and food that is safe. Food is safely cooked when it is heated long enough and hot enough to kill the harmful bacteria that cause foodborne illness. Appearance, texture and juice color are not reliable signs of that. Only a food thermometer is.
For whole poultry, FSIS sets the safe minimum internal temperature at 165 °F. Check it in three places:
- The innermost part of the thigh.
- The innermost part of the wing.
- The thickest part of the breast.
All three should read at least 165 °F. FSIS adds that you may cook turkey hotter for personal preference, but 165 °F is the safety line.
Pop-up timers. If your turkey has a pop-up indicator, FSIS recommends also checking those three spots with a food thermometer.
Oven-safe thermometers. FSIS suggests putting one in the thickest part of the inner thigh at the start. Once the thigh reaches 165 °F, check the wing and the breast too.
Stuffing. If the turkey is stuffed, the center of the stuffing must also reach 165 °F. For optimum safety, FSIS says stuffing the turkey is not recommended, and suggests cooking the stuffing in a casserole outside the bird for more even cooking.
Worked example: a 15 lb turkey, dinner at 4 pm
The turkey is 15 lb, fully thawed and unstuffed. Dinner is at 4 pm.
- Rest. FSIS says to let the turkey stand 20 minutes before carving, so the juices set and it carves more easily. Allow 30 minutes with carving: out of the oven at 3:30 pm.
- Roast. 15 lb sits in the 14 to 18 lb band, 3¾ to 4¼ hours. Plan on the longer time, so it goes in at 11:15 am.
- Check. Start checking the temperature at the short end of the range: 11:15 am plus 3¾ hours is 3:00 pm.
- Decide. If the thigh, wing and breast all read 165 °F at 3:00, it comes out early and rests longer. If not, it keeps roasting past 3:30 until they do. The thermometer wins over the plan.
The same bird from frozen. At least 50% longer means 3¾ × 1.5 = 5⅝ hours to 4¼ × 1.5 = 6⅜ hours, so it would need to go in by about 9:05 am. Remove the giblet packages partway through with tongs or a fork.
The turkey thaw and cooking time calculator does this arithmetic for any weight and meal time, and prints the timeline.
Setting up the oven and pan
FSIS gives these basics for roasting:
- Set the oven no lower than 325 °F. The timetable is for a 325 °F oven; if you roast hotter, start checking the temperature earlier.
- Put the turkey on a rack in a shallow roasting pan.
- Optional hints from FSIS: tuck the wing tips under the shoulders, add ½ cup of water to the pan, and tent the bird with foil for the first 1 to 1½ hours if the pan has no lid.
- If you use an oven cooking bag, follow the maker’s directions.
- Wash hands, utensils, the sink and anything else that touched raw turkey or its juices with soap and water.
If you stuff the turkey
FSIS’s rules for a stuffed bird:
- Prepare the ingredients ahead if you like, but keep wet and dry ingredients apart and chill the wet ones.
- Mix them just before filling the cavities, and fill loosely.
- Cook the turkey immediately.
- Check that the center of the stuffing reaches 165 °F.
- Remove all the stuffing from the cavities after cooking.
Do not buy a fresh pre-stuffed turkey. FSIS says to buy pre-stuffed only if it is frozen and carries a USDA or State mark of inspection, and to cook it from frozen by the package directions.
Common mistakes
- Pulling the turkey when the timer ends. The chart is approximate. Measure.
- Measuring in only one place. FSIS asks for the thigh, the wing and the thickest part of the breast.
- Trusting clear juices or a golden skin. FSIS says color is not a reliable sign of safety.
- Using one rate per pound for every size. Read the band for your weight.
- Forgetting the frozen penalty. A turkey that is still frozen takes at least 50% longer.
- Leaving leftovers out. FSIS says to discard turkey, stuffing and gravy left at room temperature longer than 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90 °F.
Leftovers
Divide leftovers into smaller portions in shallow covered containers and refrigerate or freeze them. FSIS says to use refrigerated turkey, stuffing and gravy within 3 to 4 days, and frozen leftovers within 2 to 6 months for best quality. Reheat to 165 °F, checked with a food thermometer.
Related tools
- Still frozen? Our guide to how long to thaw a turkey has the start dates for Thanksgiving 2026, and the turkey calculator plans both steps.
- The calories in roast turkey breast page, from USDA data, shows 116 calories and 25.1 g of protein in 3 oz.
- The protein calculator shows how a plate of turkey fits a day’s protein target, and the food calorie lookup covers the sides.
All times and temperatures come from the FSIS pages in the sources, checked in October 2026.