A catch weight item is sold by its actual weight. The vendor quotes a price per pound and an expected case weight. When your order is packed, each case is weighed, and the invoice charges the real weight times the price per pound. That is why a catch weight line on your invoice rarely matches your order to the penny.
The difference is normal. It is also an easy place for a mistake to slip through, because the total changes every week. You can check any catch weight line with one multiplication and the label on the case.
What catch weight means
Most of what you buy is fixed weight. A case of 4/5 lb shredded cheese always holds 20 lb, and the case price is the price you pay.
Some food can't be packed to an exact weight. Every brisket is a different size, and so is every salmon side. The vendor packs a case, weighs it and bills you for what is in it. That is catch weight. You may also see it called random weight or variable weight. On an invoice they mean the same thing.
Items often sold by catch weight:
- Whole-muscle meat (large cuts that haven't been portioned): briskets, pork butts, strip loins, ribeye rolls, tenderloins, whole turkeys.
- Fish and seafood: whole fish, and fresh fillets or sides packed by the case.
- Cheese: wheels, and large blocks cut to order.
- Some produce, when a vendor sells it by the pound instead of by the case.
Plenty of meat is fixed weight too. Portion-cut steaks (for example, 20 x 8 oz) and ground beef in 10 lb rolls are usually billed by the case.
How to tell an item is catch weight
Vendors mark it in different ways. Look for any of these on the order screen, the invoice or the case label:
- "CW", "catch wt" or "random wt" in the description or the pack column.
- "AVG" or "#AVG" after a weight, as in "4/AVG 15 LB".
- A weight range, as in "1/55-65 LB".
- A price per LB on an item you order by the case.
- A weight column on the invoice with a number like 63.40.
When in doubt, ask your rep which items on your order guide (your list of usual items) are billed by actual weight.
How to read a catch weight line on your invoice
A catch weight line has more columns than a normal line. Here is one from a made-up vendor, Prairie Meats:
| Item | Cases | Pack | Weight | Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pork butt, bone-in | 2 | 8/AVG 9 LB | 147.60 LB | $2.15 / LB | $317.34 |
| Column | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Cases | How many cases (or pieces) shipped. |
| Pack | The listed or average case weight. Here, 8 pieces of about 9 lb each, so a case of about 72 lb. This is what the vendor expected before weighing. |
| Weight | The actual weight shipped for the whole line. Some invoices also print each case's weight on its own row, such as 71.80 and 75.80. |
| Price | The price per pound. Some invoices put "LB" in a separate unit column. |
| Extended | The extended price, which is the line total: actual weight times price per pound. |
To check the line, multiply:
Actual weight × price per lb = extended price
147.60 lb × $2.15 = $317.34. The line is right.
If an invoice shows only the weight and the total, divide to get the price per pound:
Extended price ÷ actual weight = price per lb
$317.34 ÷ 147.60 lb = $2.15 per lb. Compare that with the price you were quoted and the price you paid last time.
Convert ounces and kilograms first
Labels and invoices don't always use decimal pounds. Convert before you multiply.
- Pounds and ounces: divide the ounces by 16. 63 lb 6 oz is 63 + (6 ÷ 16) = 63.375 lb.
- Kilograms: multiply by 2.2046. A case labeled 28.75 kg is 63.38 lb.
Why your order total and your invoice don't match
When you place an order, nobody has weighed your case yet. So the order screen shows an estimate: the average case weight times the price per pound.
For the pork butts above, the order screen showed 2 cases × 72 lb × $2.15 = $309.60. The two cases that arrived weighed 147.60 lb, so the invoice says $317.34. That is $7.74 more. All of it is the extra 3.6 lb of pork at $2.15 a pound. Your price per pound did not change. You received more meat.
Next week the cases might come in light, and the invoice will be lower than the order. If your cases come in heavy week after week, your real cost per case is higher than the order screen says. For food cost, use the price per pound and the weight you were billed. The case price on the order screen is only an estimate. Our guide to costing a recipe shows where that price goes.
Other things can change the total too, and catch weight doesn't explain them:
- The price per pound changed between your order and the delivery. Meat and seafood prices can move week to week.
- A case was short or substituted.
- A fuel or delivery fee was added.
A catch weight difference is fine when the price per pound matches and the billed weight matches the case labels. Anything else deserves a question.
Compare catch weight items per pound, never per case
The case price of a catch weight item is the vendor's average weight times its price per pound. Two vendors can use different average weights, so their case prices don't line up.
Here is choice whole brisket from two made-up vendors:
| Vendor | Price per lb | Average case weight | Estimated case price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heartland Foodservice | $5.20 | 60 lb | $312.00 |
| Prairie Meats | $5.40 | 52 lb | $280.80 |
Prairie Meats' case looks $31.20 cheaper. Every pound costs 20 cents more. If your kitchen uses about 120 lb of brisket a week, Prairie Meats costs you $24 more a week, which is about $1,250 a year.
Three habits keep the comparison fair:
- Use each vendor's own price per pound. If a vendor shows a case price and an average weight, divide the price by the weight to get the per-pound price it is quoting on. Then check that against your last invoice (extended price ÷ weight).
- Compare the same spec. Spec means the exact product: the grade (choice or select), bone-in or boneless, fresh or frozen, and how closely it is trimmed.
- Think about yield. Yield is the share you can use after trimming. A cheaper brisket with more fat to cut off can cost more per usable pound. The formula is price per lb ÷ yield, and our guide to comparing vendor prices walks through it.
How to check catch weight items at the door
Most catch weight cases carry a printed label with the net weight, meaning the weight of the food without the box. That label is your proof. Check it before the driver leaves, while a mistake is still easy to fix.
- Find each catch weight line on the invoice.
- Read the net weight on each case label and add them up for the line.
- Compare the total with the weight on the invoice. If the invoice lists each case, match them one by one.
- Now and then, weigh a case on your receiving scale. The scale also counts the box and packing, so subtract the weight of an empty box (this is called the tare). The result should be close to the label.
- Check the price per pound against your quote or your last invoice.
- Check the spec: the grade you ordered, bone-in or boneless, fresh or frozen.
- Write any difference on the invoice with the label weights, and have the driver note it. Ask each vendor how they want weight problems reported, because each one handles credits its own way.
A quick example of step 4. A case labeled 71.80 lb reads 74.10 lb on your scale. An empty box from that vendor weighs 2.40 lb. 74.10 − 2.40 = 71.70 lb, a tenth of a pound off the label. That case is fine.
A receiving log you can copy
Keep a sheet like this on a clipboard by the scale:
| Date | Vendor | Item | Label weights | Billed weight | Difference | Billed price per lb | Quoted price per lb | Checked by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-09 | Prairie Meats | Pork butt, bone-in | 71.80 + 75.80 = 147.60 | 147.60 | 0.00 | $2.15 | $2.15 | JM |
After a month you will know which vendors' weights always match. Spot-check those less and watch the others more closely.
Signs something is wrong
- The billed weight is higher than the case labels add up to.
- The billed weight matches the gross weight (food plus box) printed on the label instead of the net weight.
- The price per pound is higher than you were quoted, and nobody told you.
- The weight is far outside the pack range, such as 90 lb on a "1/55-65 LB" case. That often means an extra case was billed or a number was typed wrong.
Small price changes on catch weight items are easy to miss because the total moves every week anyway. Our guide on spotting supplier price increases shows how to track the price per pound over time.
Common questions
Is catch weight the same as random weight? Yes. Catch weight, random weight and variable weight all mean the item is billed on the weight that shipped.
Should I pay for the weight of the box? Billing is normally on net weight, the food without the box. If your billed weights match the gross weight on the labels, ask your vendor about it.
Why is the case price on the order screen different from the invoice? The order screen multiplies an average case weight by the price per pound. The invoice uses the weight of the case you actually received.
How RestaurantMate handles catch weight
RestaurantMate compares prices for the items you buy across all your vendors, per pound, per ounce or per each. The RestaurantMate device, a small box in your restaurant, signs in to your website vendors overnight with your own logins and re-checks your prices. You see your account's prices, including any contract pricing.
For a catch weight item, a vendor's website usually shows a case price and a price per pound, without a fixed case weight. RestaurantMate uses the vendor's own price per pound. It divides the case price by that price to find the weight the vendor priced the case on. A case listed at $403.09 at $5.42 per lb was priced on 74.37 lb, so the item shows at $5.42 per lb next to your other vendors. It only does this when the vendor shows both numbers.
If a vendor gives a case price with no weight and no price per pound, the price reads Missing unit. You type the case weight once, for example the average from the pack, and the per-pound price appears everywhere that product shows. RestaurantMate never guesses a weight. AI is used to match the same product across vendors, and it never sets or estimates a price.
Each price also keeps its history. Click a price to open Price history, which shows two kinds of points. Advertised is the price on the vendor's website, checked every night. Delivered is what your invoices charged. You can see at a glance when what you paid moved away from what the vendor advertised.
When a weight or price is wrong, open the purchase and click the + in the Marks column on that line. Pick Short or Price mismatch, add how many and a note. The mark records who added it and when. RestaurantMate keeps the record and does not contact the vendor, so you still ask for the credit. How price comparison works has the details.
At Miguel's restaurant in Los Angeles, RestaurantMate has cut food purchases by about 10%, and by 20 to 30% on some items where he switched vendors, and his manager gets back 4 to 5 hours a week.
Get started: 60 days free, then $99 a month per location. No card required. The RestaurantMate device has a $300 refundable deposit, and one device covers up to two locations. If a vendor you use is not connected yet, we build the connection for you, usually within days. You can also try the live demo first.