While most people nowadays refer to crabs in terms of their weight or by the quantity of individual crabs, there are still states that regulate the amount of crabs you can have by the bushel. So maybe you and a group of your friends decided to have a crab fest, or maybe you all decided to go crabbing, it’s important to know how many crabs can you keep. A bushel basket (see photo below) will help you know your limit as it’s equal to 8 gallons when the lid is closed. So how many crabs are in a bushel anyways?
Crab Sizes
To determine the number of crabs in a bushel, it really depends on the size of the crabs. As an example, we’ll consider blue crabs. Below is a breakdown of the size of crabs. Keep in mind that the size of a crab is considered to be the measurement from the left side of the hard shell to the right side of the hard shell:
Crab Sizes
Small: 5 to 5.5 inches
Medium: 5.5 to 6 inches
Large: 6 to 6.5 inches
Jumbo: 6.5 to 7 inches
While the answer will depend in part on the size of the crab, if we are talking about a bushel of Medium sized crabs you should be able to fit about 6-7 dozen crabs (or 72-84 individual crabs) that measure approximately 5.5 to 6. Inches.
Also, keep in mind that some places also regulate down to the half bushel how many crabs you can keep. In this case, just simply divide the total number of crabs in a bushel by two. Using the example above, you can anticipate to have about 36-42 medium sized crabs in a half bushel.
I decided to answer this question for many of you who are looking for the answer but I also took the liberty to answer some other questions you may have as well. For example, you may now be wondering how many people will it take to eat a bushel of large crabs?
How many people does it take to eat a bushel of crabs?
Obviously the answer to this question will have a lot more variables? How big are the appetites of the people eating? Kids, athletes, etc.? How is it being served? Is it hot or cold day?
To try and give you some idea, I’ll make a few assumptions. Again, let’s say the crabs are medium sized and there’s 78 crabs in the bushel. I would anticipate that the average adult would probably eat 3 to 4. However, if assume that the eaters are large, physically active, and experienced crab eaters, I think you can expect each person to eat about 6 or maybe even more, especially if it’s at an all day crab fest event. On the flip side, inexperienced crab eaters who don’t really have the appetite for crabs will probably give up after 1 or 2 crabs. Therefore, it’s probably best to have some drinks and sides for the people not eating much if you might be planning for an all day event.
Anyways, assuming everyone eats around 3 to 4 crabs, the math says that it would take about 23 people to eat all those crabs.
Nomad Unlimited
Hopefully you are enjoying our content. Either way, if you could leave us a comment at the bottom of the page with what you do or do not like about our content, that would be great! Any content suggestions are also much appreciated. Also, I’m in the middle of putting together a guide all about crabbing. In the meantime, perhaps our guide on the best crab trap floats might interest you! And of course, feel free to check out some more of our beginner guides and buyer guides!
I’m from Md, just across the river from the eastern shore of Md. I have crabbed all my life and agree with what you have said, Totally. Love them. Thank you, and you must be a Marylander, and a crabber.