3 Month Emergency Food Supply for a Family of 2
Supply Plans · Targets follow FEMA and Ready.gov guidance · Prices checked July 2026
Quick answer
A family of 2 needs about 360,000 calories to cover three months, plus 28 gallons of stored water, which is the two week target rather than the 180 gallons three months would otherwise call for. The checklist below hits those targets with regular grocery store items for roughly $675 at current prices, and stores in about ten large totes.
Targets: 2,000 calories per person per day, and 1 gallon of water per person per day for two weeks
Every combination has its own page, so the numbers are always exact and the link you share always shows the right plan.
360,000
Calories to cover
28 gal
Water
≈ $675
Est. cost, July 2026
10 totes
Storage space
The shopping checklist
| Item | Quantity for 2 | ≈ Calories | Lasts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grains and staples | ||||
| White rice | 33 lb | 54,450 | 4 to 5 yrs | |
| Rolled oats | 17 lb | 28,900 | 1 to 2 yrs | |
| Pasta | 20 lb | 34,000 | 2 to 3 yrs | |
| Crackers | 13 boxes | 20,800 | 6 to 9 mo | |
| Proteins | ||||
| Canned chicken | 39 cans | 9,100 | 2 to 5 yrs | |
| Canned tuna | 26 cans | 4,900 | 2 to 5 yrs | |
| Canned beans | 52 cans | 20,150 | 2 to 5 yrs | |
| Peanut butter | 10 large jars | 66,000 | 1 to 2 yrs | |
| Fruits and vegetables | ||||
| Canned vegetables | 65 cans | 9,750 | 2 to 5 yrs | |
| Canned fruit | 39 cans | 11,700 | 1 to 2 yrs | |
| Dried fruit and nuts | 13 lb | 32,500 | 6 to 12 mo | |
| Fats, dairy, and extras | ||||
| Cooking oil | 7 qt | 53,900 | 1 to 2 yrs | |
| Shelf stable milk | 26 qt | 15,600 | 6 to 12 mo | |
| Honey and sugar | 13 lb | 22,450 | Indefinite | |
| Salt, spices, coffee, cocoa | 1 set | 6,450 | Varies | |
| Water: 28 gallons stored, the two week target | ||||
| Bottled water, 24 packs | 4 cases | n/a | 2 yrs | |
| 5 gallon jugs | 3 jugs | n/a | 1 to 2 yrs | |
Totals land slightly above the 360,000 calorie target on purpose: quantities are rounded up, and appetite goes up in a real emergency. Swap freely inside each category to match what your family actually eats. to take it shopping. No email required.
In the app
Turn this list into your family's number
Add these items once and Provision Planner counts it for you: how many days you are covered, what expires when, and what to restock. About 2 minutes, and the free plan is enough to start.
See how many days you haveDays covered
90 days
Peanut butter, 10 large jars
+16.5 days
White rice, 33 lb
+13.6 days
Cooking oil, 7 qt
+13.5 days
3 months goal reached · 17 items tracked · expiry warnings on
Ninety days changes how you shop
A three month supply is too big to buy in one trip and too small to need special equipment, which puts it in an awkward middle. The households that get here do it by buying two of something every week for a season rather than by making one enormous purchase, and the gradual version is both cheaper and easier to store.
Water is where this length stops being honest. A gallon per person per day for ninety days is more than most homes can physically hold, so the target here is two weeks stored plus a reliable way to keep producing more: a filter rated for pathogens, plain unscented bleach, and a source you could reach on foot.
Two is the size where sharing starts paying: large tins get finished, one pot feeds both of you, and bulk pricing begins to make sense. The trap is building for the average of two appetites. Averages do not eat. Size the plan for whoever eats more and the smaller eater is simply covered, which costs less than being short in the second week.
What three months actually looks like
Day 10
AM Oatmeal with dried fruit and honey
Noon Tuna and crackers
PM Rice and beans with canned vegetables
Day 45
AM Peanut butter on crackers, canned fruit
Noon Chicken and rice bowl
PM Pasta with canned vegetables and oil
Day 80
AM Oatmeal with peanut butter
Noon Bean and vegetable stew
PM Chicken, pasta, and canned fruit
Frequently asked questions
Is 2,000 calories per person per day enough?
It is the standard planning baseline, and it is what this page uses: 360,000 calories total for 2 people over three months. Young children need less, teenagers and adults doing physical work need more. If your household skews either way, size up or down one step with the selector above, or let Provision Planner calculate it per person.
Why only 28 gallons of water for three months?
Because a gallon per person per day over three months comes to 180 gallons, and that is 3 fifty-five gallon drums. Almost nobody has the floor for it, and stored water needs rotating anyway. So the honest target is two weeks stored, which is 28 gallons, plus a way to keep making more: a filter rated for pathogens, unscented bleach for chemical treatment, and a known source you can reach on foot. A plan this long is really a plan for a situation where the taps come back or you move.
How do I keep all this from expiring?
Buy foods your family already eats, store the newest purchases at the back, and eat from the front. The Lasts column above shows how long each item keeps. Provision Planner tracks the dates for you and warns you before anything expires.
The list is the easy half. Knowing what you already have is the other one.
Most households own more of this than they think and still miss one thing that matters. Provision Planner counts what is in your cupboards against this plan and tells you the days you genuinely cover, and what to buy next.
See how many days you coverRelated plans
Go deeper: The 3-Month Food Supply List · Long-Term Food Storage for Beginners
Calorie and water targets follow FEMA and Ready.gov emergency planning guidance. Cost estimate reflects typical U.S. grocery prices for July 2026 from our monthly price check. This is general planning guidance: adjust for allergies, medical needs, and what your household actually eats.