About 46 million turkeys are eaten each Thanksgiving in the United States, according to estimates from the National Turkey Federation and U.S. agriculture sources. This has been a fairly consistent ballpark figure in recent years, even as prices and travel patterns change.

Quick Scoop

  • An estimated 46 million turkeys are eaten on Thanksgiving in the U.S. each year.
  • That’s roughly about half of all turkeys sold in the country annually.
  • Nearly 9 in 10 Americans include turkey in their Thanksgiving meal in some form.

A Bit More Context

Most of these birds are whole turkeys served as the centerpiece of family dinners, with an average cooked bird weighing around 16 pounds. In total, that adds up to more than 700 million pounds of turkey eaten on Thanksgiving alone in some years.

Why The Number Stays High

Even as some people switch to alternatives like ham, plant-based roasts, or nontraditional menus, turkey still dominates because it is deeply tied to the modern Thanksgiving tradition. Marketing by producers and cultural expectations (like “Turkey Day” nicknames and holiday ads) keep demand strong year after year.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.