Free Food Safety Log Templates for Restaurants

Quick answer: most full-service kitchens keep six food safety logs: refrigerator and freezer temperatures, hot and cold holding, cooling, receiving, sanitizer strength, and thermometer calibration. This free PDF set has all six, each on one printable page with the FDA Food Code rule at the bottom, such as 41°F or below for cold holding. No signup is needed.

These are the six logs a restaurant kitchen uses to show that food safety checks actually happen: refrigerator and freezer temperatures, hot and cold holding, cooling, receiving, sanitizer strength, and thermometer calibration. Each one is a single printable page with the FDA Food Code rule printed at the bottom, so whoever fills it in knows what number they're looking for. They're free to print and copy, with no signup and no email.

• Gear GuidesRefrigerator and Freezer Temperature Log (Free Printable PDF)A month of twice-daily cooler and freezer checks on one page, with the 41°F rule and what to do when a unit runs warm.7 min read
• Gear GuidesHot and Cold Holding Temperature Log (Free Printable PDF)For steam tables, salad bars, and prep rails: the 135°F and 41°F rules, how often to check, and what to do when food falls out of range.6 min read
• Gear GuidesFood Cooling Log (Free Printable PDF): The 2-Hour and 6-Hour RuleTrack cooked food from 135°F to 70°F in 2 hours and 41°F in 6, with the approved cooling methods and what to do when a batch misses.6 min read
• Gear GuidesFood Receiving Log (Free Printable PDF): What to Check on Every DeliveryDelivery temperatures, package checks, shellfish tags, and when to reject a delivery, on one sheet for the back door.5 min read
• Gear GuidesCleaning and Sanitizer Log (Free Printable PDF): Test Strips, ppm, and Water TemperatureRecord sanitizer strength and water temperature for the three-compartment sink, wiping-cloth buckets, and the dish machine, with the FDA ranges on the sheet.6 min read
• Gear GuidesThermometer Calibration Log (Free Printable PDF)Record ice-point checks, adjustments, and replacements for every kitchen thermometer, with the FDA accuracy rule on the sheet.5 min read

Which Logs Do You Need?

Each log tracks one of the checks the Food Code makes the person in charge responsible for (§2-103.11). Start with the ones that match what your kitchen does:

A kitchen that cooks and cools food in advance needs all six. A coffee shop or a bar that serves prepackaged food may only need the refrigerator and sanitizer logs. If your health department or HACCP plan requires specific logs, its version wins.

Are Food Safety Logs Required?

The honest answer: monitoring is required everywhere, and written logs usually aren't, at least not by the FDA Food Code. The Food Code makes the person in charge responsible for daily oversight of cooking, cooling, holding, receiving, and sanitizing (§2-103.11), but FDA's own inspection guidance notes that "with a few exceptions, maintaining formal records at retail is not required." The exceptions include shellfish tags (§3-203.12), HACCP plans for special processes, and written procedures when time is used instead of temperature control.

That's changing in two ways:

• Your state or county may already require them. Health departments can be stricter than the Food Code, and many ask for cooling and temperature logs, especially after a violation.
• The 2026 Food Code requires a written food safety management system within four years of a state adopting it (§8-201.15). It defines that system as including "written procedures, training plans, and monitoring records." Logs like these are the monitoring records. Our summary of the 2026 Food Code changes covers the rest of what's new.

Even where they aren't required, logs are the easiest way to prove to an inspector that checks happen. An inspector who arrives at 8 a.m. can't watch last night's chili cool, but they can read the cooling log. Our health inspection checklist covers everything else they check.

How to Make Logs Work

• Put each log where the check happens: the fridge log on the cooler door, the sanitizer log by the three-compartment sink, the receiving log on a clipboard at the back door.
• Write numbers, not checkmarks. "38" is evidence; "OK" isn't.
• Use the last column. Every log has a space for what you did when a reading was out of range. A log with no problems ever written on it looks less believable than one showing problems that got fixed.
• Review them weekly. FDA's guide for operators describes a manager checking the cooling log once a week, and reviewing receiving logs weekly or even daily for high-volume kitchens.
• Keep the completed sheets. The Food Code doesn't set a period for these logs; keep them as long as your health department asks, and at least through your next inspection.

Need more than the logs? Our paid Food Safety Plan Kit adds editable Word versions of these logs and the rest of a written food safety management system: written procedures for every risk factor, an employee illness policy, a clean-up procedure, and training records.

What You Need to Fill Them In

The logs are free; the checks need a few inexpensive tools. Product links are Amazon affiliate links, marked “(paid link).”

A fast probe thermometer for the holding, cooling, and receiving logs. Best for: the person doing temperature rounds.

A dial thermometer to hang in the warmest spot of each cooler and freezer for the fridge log. Best for: every unit.

Chlorine and quat test strips for the sanitizer log; the Food Code requires a test kit wherever chemical sanitizer is used. Best for: the three-compartment sink and sanitizer buckets.

Date labels for the 7-day rule are in our food date labels guide, and wall charts for staff are in our food safety posters guide.

Logs record the checks; a plan says which checks to do, who does them, and what to do when one fails. Our free food safety plan template ties each log to its step.

Two Records These Logs Don't Cover

Employee illness. The Food Code requires food employees to report certain symptoms and diagnoses, such as vomiting, diarrhea, jaundice, or a diagnosis of norovirus or Salmonella, to the person in charge (§2-201.11). Rather than a log, FDA publishes ready-made forms for this: Form 1-A (employee interview), Form 1-B (reporting agreement), and Form 1-C (medical referral), in Annex 7 of the Food Code and in its Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Handbook. Keep completed forms confidential.

Date marking. Ready-to-eat TCS food kept more than 24 hours has to be labeled with the day it must be used or thrown out, no more than 7 days at 41°F counting the day it was made as day 1 (§3-501.17). That record lives on the container label, not a log sheet.

The Person in Charge Needs a Certificate, Too

Logs show monitoring; the Food Code also asks the person in charge to know the rules behind it. Under §2-102.12, the person in charge has to be a certified food protection manager, someone who has passed an accredited exam, except in places the health department rates as low risk. States and counties apply the rule differently, so check yours. If you're the person in charge and aren't certified yet, our food manager certification guide explains the exams.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are these food safety logs free to use?

Yes. Print and copy them as often as you like for your own kitchen, with no signup. Each one is a single page in a standard letter-size PDF.

What food safety logs does a restaurant need?

Most full-service kitchens keep refrigerator temperature, hot and cold holding, cooling, receiving, sanitizer, and thermometer calibration logs. Smaller operations may need only a few. Your health department or HACCP plan may require specific ones.

Does the FDA require temperature logs?

Not in most cases. The FDA Food Code requires monitoring, not written logs, apart from a few records such as shellfish tags and HACCP plans. The 2026 Food Code adds a written food safety management system, including monitoring records, within four years of adoption.

How long should a restaurant keep food safety logs?

The Food Code doesn't set a period for temperature logs. Shellfish tags must be kept 90 days after the last shellfish is served. Many operators keep other logs for a year; follow your health department if it sets a period.

Can I keep these logs digitally?

Usually, yes, as long as the records are complete and you can show them to an inspector. Ask your health department if you're unsure. Paper logs on the cooler door and the sink have one advantage: people actually fill them in.

Bottom Line

Download the set, print the logs that match your kitchen, and put each one where the check happens. Write the number, fix anything out of range, and have someone review them each week. Want the numbers on one page for training? Our one-page cheat sheet has every one of them.

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