Egg Size Chart

Egg sizes are weight classes, not measurements. This chart gives the six US classes in ounces and grams, the Canadian, EU and UK and Australian systems beside them, how to swap sizes in a recipe, how egg size changes as a hen ages, and how a hen egg compares with the eggs of seven other birds.

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Egg Size Chart poster: six eggs on a linen towel from Peewee to Jumbo with ounces per dozen and grams per egg, US, Canadian, EU and Australian size bands, a Large egg cut open, egg weight by hen age, bird eggs to scale, recipe swaps, size factors and value per dozen — **Figure 1.** The Egg Size Chart poster gives the six US weight classes with eggs to scale, the Canadian, EU and Australian bands, recipe swaps, egg weight by hen age and bird eggs from quail to ostrich. Select it to open full size, then zoom in.

Contents

1Six US weight classes
2Weigh an egg to find its size
3Four countries, four sets of labels
4Swapping egg sizes in recipes
5Eggs grow as the hen ages
6What sets egg size in a flock
7Bird eggs at true relative size
8Value per ounce, grade and double yolks
Sources and notes

1.Six US weight classes

US egg sizes are set by the USDA as a minimum net weight for a dozen eggs. Each class steps up by 3 oz a dozen, so each egg in the next class up weighs about a quarter of an ounce (7 g) more. Size says nothing about quality: grades AA, A and B describe the shell, white and yolk, and any grade can come in any size.

Six brown and white hen eggs lying in a row on a striped linen towel, from a small Peewee egg on the left to a Jumbo egg on the right, each sized to its class average — **Figure 2.** Peewee to Jumbo, each egg sized to its class average weight. The step from one class to the next is small: Jumbo eggs are only about 8% longer than Large ones.

US weight classes for consumer grades (USDA AMS 56)
Size	Per dozen, minimum	Average egg	Lightest single egg	30 dozen, minimum
Jumbo	30 oz (850 g)	70.9 g, 2.50 oz	68.5 g	56 lb
Extra Large	27 oz (765 g)	63.8 g, 2.25 oz	61.4 g	50½ lb
Large	24 oz (680 g)	56.7 g, 2.00 oz	54.3 g	45 lb
Medium	21 oz (595 g)	49.6 g, 1.75 oz	47.2 g	39½ lb
Small	18 oz (510 g)	42.5 g, 1.50 oz	40.2 g	34 lb
Peewee	15 oz (425 g)	35.4 g, 1.25 oz	none set	28 lb

The lightest single egg is the USDA rate per dozen for individual eggs (29 oz a dozen for Jumbo, for example) shown per egg. A lot may hold up to 3.3% eggs from the next lower class, with no single case over 5%.

2.Weigh an egg to find its size

Put an egg on a kitchen scale and enter its weight. The table shows the size it matches in each of the four systems. For a fair answer, weigh a dozen and divide by twelve: US sizes are set for the dozen, not the single egg.

Egg weight

US Large60.0 g is 2.12 oz; a dozen like it weighs 25.4 oz.

The same egg in four systems
USA	Large
Canada	Large
EU and UK	Medium (M)
Australia	700 g dozen pack

A Large hen egg on a linen towel, shown at the same scale as the other classes — **Figure 3.** A US Large egg (class average 56.7 g), shown at the same scale for every class.

3.Four countries, four sets of labels

The same egg can carry different names. US and Canadian sizes share their names, but Canada grades each egg by its own weight. The EU and UK use four bands, so their Medium is about the weight of an American Large. Australian packers sell by the weight of the dozen pack, and the names on the carton are their own.

USAdozen minimum, per egg

PeeweeSmallMediumLargeX-LargeJumbo

Canadasingle egg, Canada A

PeeweeSmallMediumLargeX-LargeJumbo

EU and UKsingle egg

SMLXL

Australiadozen pack

500 g600 g700 g800 g860 g

Bands run from 35 to 80 g per egg. The dashed line follows the weight entered in section 2.

Australian dozen packs (Australian Eggs)
Pack	Egg weights	Average egg	Edible part
500 g	41.7–49.9 g	43 g	37 g
600 g	50.0–58.2 g	52 g	45 g
700 g	58.3–66.6 g	60 g	52 g
800 g	66.7–71.6 g	68 g	59 g
860 g	71.7–78.0 g	73 g	64 g

4.Swapping egg sizes in recipes

Cookbooks in the US and Canada write for Large eggs. One Large egg gives about 3 tablespoons of beaten egg: 2 of white and 1 of yolk. For one or two eggs the size hardly matters; in cakes, custards and pasta dough calling for four or more, swap by the table or by weight.

Large eggs in the recipe

Eggs I have

Use 5 Medium eggs4 Large eggs are about 202 g of beaten egg (12 tbsp); 5 Medium give about 221 g.

Equivalents for Large eggs (American Egg Board)
Large	Jumbo	Extra Large	Medium	Small
1	1	1	1	1
2	2	2	2	3
3	2	3	3	4
4	3	4	5	5
5	4	4	6	7
6	5	5	7	8

A Large brown egg cracked into a pale green stoneware bowl, the yolk sitting in the white, with the two shell halves and a whole egg beside it on a linen towel — **Figure 4.** One Large egg out of its shell: about 50 g, or 3 tablespoons.

Beaten egg per egg, by size
Size	Beaten egg	About
Jumbo	63 g	3¾ tbsp
Extra Large	57 g	3½ tbsp
Large	50 g	3 tbsp
Medium	44 g	2¾ tbsp
Small	38 g	2¼ tbsp
Peewee	32 g	2 tbsp

Beaten egg is taken as 89% of the class average weight (the shell is about 11%). One cup holds about 5 Large eggs, 7 whites or 14 yolks.

5.Eggs grow as the hen ages

A pullet's first eggs are Peewee and Small. Egg weight climbs quickly over the first ten weeks of lay, then creeps up for the rest of the laying year, and most modern strains reach Large to Jumbo by about 40 weeks of age. Move the slider to see the average for a commercial white-egg layer.

Hen age40 weeks

About 60.9 g an eggA flock average around US Large and EU Medium (M); 25.8 oz a dozen.

Hy-Line W-36 performance standards (2020), average egg weight. Brown-egg strains and small flocks run their own curves; heavier pullets and richer feed early in lay give bigger eggs sooner.

20 wk45.9 g

25 wk53.7 g

30 wk57.6 g

40 wk60.9 g

50 wk62.3 g

60 wk63.0 g

70 wk63.3 g

80 wk63.5 g

6.What sets egg size in a flock

Age matters most, but a flock keeper can move egg size a little with how pullets are grown and fed. Figures are from Manitoba Agriculture and Alberta Agriculture.

Hen age▲ older, biggerPullets lay Peewee and Small eggs; most strains reach Large to Jumbo by about 40 weeks.
Age at first egg▼ early, smallerPullets brought into lay young lay smaller eggs all through their first year. Ten hours of light or less until 19 weeks delays the start of lay.
Body weight▲ heavier, biggerPullets weighing 1,100 g and 1,380 g at 18 weeks laid eggs averaging 46.6 g and 49.7 g; aim for at least 1.35 kg at the first egg.
Breed and strain▲▼ bred inBantams lay eggs about two-thirds standard size; commercial strains are selected for egg weight.
Protein and methionine▲ more, biggerAn 18–20% protein ration in the first months of lay raises egg size, with about 360 mg methionine a day at peak. Dropping to 15–17% after 36 weeks slows the rise.
Feed energy▼ too low, smallerFeeds below about 2,800 kcal/kg cost egg size before anything else.
Heat, crowding and water▼ smallerAnything that cuts feed intake, such as heat stress, crowding or a poor water supply, cuts egg size too.

7.Bird eggs at true relative size

A hen's egg sits in the middle of the range. Ostrich eggs are the largest laid by any living bird; a quail egg is about a fifth the weight of a Large hen egg.

Eight bird eggs on a linen towel at true relative size: a large ivory ostrich egg, a dark green emu egg, a white goose egg, a speckled turkey egg, a pale duck egg, a brown hen egg, a cream bantam egg and a small speckled quail egg — **Figure 5.** Ostrich, emu, goose, turkey, duck, hen, bantam and quail eggs, sized from typical egg weight.

Ostrichabout 1,500 gabout 3 lb; the largest egg of any living bird; 26.3 Large hen eggs

Emu600–700 gdark green, granular shell; 11.4 Large hen eggs

Goose140–150 gwhite, thick shell; 2.5 Large hen eggs

Turkey90–100 gcream with brown speckles; 1.7 Large hen eggs

Duck70–80 gwhite to pale blue-green; 1.3 Large hen eggs

Chicken50–60 ga Large egg is about 57 g; 0.96 Large hen eggs

Bantam35–47 g15–20 oz a dozen, about two-thirds standard size; 0.72 Large hen eggs

Quail10–12 gCoturnix, mottled brown on cream; 0.19 Large hen eggs

One egg of

equals how many eggs of

27 chicken eggsOne ostrich egg, about 1,500 g, against 55 g for a chicken egg.

By weight, using the middle of each range. Egg weights from UC ANR, Rutgers Cooperative Extension and NCR Extension Publication 209 (bantams).

8.Value per ounce, grade and double yolks

Because each US class is a fixed weight per dozen, the better buy is easy to work out: divide the price by the ounces in the dozen. Moving up one size gives 11–20% more egg, so the bigger size wins whenever it costs less than that much more.

Extra Large is the better buyLarge 12.5¢ an ounce, Extra Large 12.2¢ an ounce. At $3.00 for Large, Extra Large breaks even at $3.38.

Stepping up one size
Step	More egg
Extra Large to Jumbo	+11.1%
Large to Extra Large	+12.5%
Medium to Large	+14.3%
Small to Medium	+16.7%
Peewee to Small	+20.0%

A double-yolk egg cracked into a pale green stoneware bowl, two orange yolks side by side in the white, with shell halves and a whole brown egg on a linen towel — **Figure 6.** A double-yolk egg: two yolks released together, usually by a young pullet.

Grade is not size

AA, A and B grades describe the shell, the air cell, the white and the yolk. Any grade can be any size.

Double yolks

Two yolks released almost together, most often by young pullets whose laying cycle has not settled. In one study they made up 5–12% of eggs at the start of lay in meat-type hens and 1–2% over a whole laying cycle, and averaged 80 g against 55 g for single-yolk eggs: Jumbo size.

Mixed sizes in a carton

US classes allow a little spread: a lot may hold up to 3.3% eggs from the next lower class, so the odd egg in a Large carton can weigh less than its neighbours.

Sources and notes

US classes are the minimum net weights per dozen for consumer grades; the per-egg figures on this page are those weights divided by twelve. Canadian, EU and UK classes apply to single eggs. Australian pack names are set by sellers. Species weights are typical ranges; individual eggs vary widely.

USDA Agricultural Marketing Service: United States Standards, Grades, and Weight Classes for Shell Eggs (AMS 56)
USDA Agricultural Marketing Service: Egg-Grading Manual, Agricultural Handbook 75
Commission Regulation (EC) No 589/2008: Article 4, weight grading of eggs
British Egg Information Service: Egg sizes
Canadian Food Inspection Agency: Canadian Grade Compendium: Volume 5, Eggs
Utah State University Extension: Egg quality, safety and flock health, Small Acreage Livestock series (extension.usu.edu)
Australian Eggs: Egg types and labels
Australian Eggs: Collecting, grading and sizing eggs
Manitoba Agriculture: Egg Size and Your Small Flock of Laying Hens
Alberta Agriculture: Enhancing Early Egg Size and Maintaining Shell Quality in Layers
Hy-Line International: W-36 Commercial Layers, performance standards (2020)
What's Cooking America, after the American Egg Board: Egg Size Equivalents
UC Agriculture and Natural Resources: Poultry, Small Acreage Landowners
Rutgers Cooperative Extension: Ostrich, Emu, and Rhea Production (FS886)
J. L. Skinner, NCR Extension Publication 209: Bantams
Drabik et al., Animals 14:1568 (2024): Quality and chemical composition of double-yolked eggs