How Many Cashews Are in a Kilo? Understanding Cashew Size Grades

When you see a code like W320, the W stands for 'whole' and the number is roughly how many whole kernels it takes to make a pound. Bigger nuts mean fewer to the pound, so a lower number means a larger cashew. Our post on cashew grades introduces the idea. Here we turn the numbers into something you can picture.

According to the Global Cashew Council, common whole-kernel sizes work out roughly like this. A size 180 has about 180 kernels per pound, around 395 per kilogram. Size 210 gives about 465 per kilogram, size 240 around 530, size 320 about 706, size 450 about 990, and size 500 around 1,100 per kilogram. The trade uses sizes from about 150 to 500 per pound.

A 28 gram handful of a W320 cashew is roughly 20 nuts, while the same weight of a W180 is closer to 11. That's why people sometimes say a larger grade 'looks like more' in the hand, even when the weight is the same. For a standard serving, see how many cashews to eat a day.

Bigger kernels such as W180 and W210 are prized for gifting and for eating on their own, and they usually cost more. W240 and W320 are the everyday workhorses, popular for snacking and for roasting and flavouring. Smaller grades like W450 are common in mixes and cooking, where the nut gets chopped or blended anyway.

Not really. A small cashew and a large one taste the same. The difference is in the look, the bite and the price. Bigger nuts are harder to get out of the shell unbroken, which is part of why they cost more, as we explain in how a cashew is grown and processed.

You can work out a pack from the per-kilogram counts. A 500 gram pack holds half as many kernels as a kilo, and a 250 gram pack a quarter. For a size 320, which is about 706 per kilogram, that means roughly 353 in 500 grams and around 176 in 250 grams. For a larger size 180, at about 395 per kilogram, a 250 gram pack holds close to 100 cashews and a 500 gram pack close to 200. These are estimates, because the nuts in any batch vary a little in size.

If you want to know what you actually have, weigh out 100 grams on a kitchen scale and count the nuts, then multiply by ten for a rough count per kilo. Compare the result with the counts above to see which size you are close to. Expect some variation, since nuts are natural products and a few small or broken kernels will always shift the number.

Roasting drives off a little moisture, so a roasted cashew weighs slightly less than the same nut raw. The grade describes the size of the kernel, not an exact count in your pack, so treat the numbers above as a guide.

For snacking and gifting, the visible size is part of the pleasure, so larger kernels feel generous. For cooking, such as a creamy curry or a cashew paste, size hardly matters because the nuts are blended or ground, so smaller or broken kernels are a sensible way to save money. Our Cooking Cashew is made for exactly that. For a standard snack portion, see how many cashews to eat a day.

If you are ordering for an event or a large group and have a particular size in mind, tell us through the bulk orders page and we will talk it through.

If you're comparing prices, check the grade and whether the cashews are whole, split or pieces. A cheaper price can simply mean smaller or broken nuts. Our cashew price guide shows current prices for each pack size, and kaju prices in Sri Lanka explains what moves them.