What Is the Difference Between a Backstrap and a Tenderloin? Cuts, Cooking, and Cost

Located on opposite sides of the spine, the backstrap and tenderloin come from muscles that handle very different workloads during the animal’s life. The backstrap (the longissimus dorsi) runs along the top of the spine from shoulder to hip and carries more structural load, while the tenderloin (the psoas major) hides beneath the spine inside the belly cavity and barely works at all. That anatomical split explains why both cuts earn premium status yet behave so differently on the plate.

Below, we’ll walk through the anatomical split between the backstrap’s workhorse longissimus dorsi and the tucked-away psoas major tenderloin, untangle the butcher-counter terms that blur them, and match each cut to the right heat.

The Two Muscles Sitting on Either Side of the Spine

Picture the spinal column of a steer or a whitetail deer, and you’ll see two premium muscles practically hugging it from opposite directions. One rides on top, the other tucks underneath, and that single positional difference shapes almost everything that follows in the kitchen.

The Backstrap Rides the Top of the Spine

The backstrap is the longissimus dorsi, a long, strap-shaped muscle that runs from just behind the shoulder blade all the way to the hip along the dorsal (top) surface of the vertebrae. In a whole beef carcass it spans roughly 16 to 20 inches; in a whitetail deer it stretches nearly the full length of the back. It’s the same muscle that becomes the New York strip, the Kansas City strip, the porterhouse top half, and the loin eye on a butcher’s pricing sheet, so when you see those labels, you’re looking at the same tissue, just sliced and trimmed differently.

In a deer, the same dorsal muscle is what hunters field-dress out and carry back to camp. The term “backstrap” is almost universal among North American hunters, and it’s the muscle sitting between the spine and the loins, attached to the ribs and vertebrae on top.

The Tenderloin Hides Beneath the Spine

Flip to the underside of the spine and you’ll find the psoas major, the tenderloin. This muscle originates on the lumbar vertebrae and fans forward toward the ribs, sitting inside the abdominal cavity against the kidneys. It’s conical, tapering from a thicker rear end near the hip down to a thin pointed front near the ribs. A whole beef tenderloin runs about 18 to 24 inches long but only yields around 4 to 6 pounds once the chain muscle, silver skin, and fat are removed, which is why the cut commands such a high per-pound price.

In a deer, the psoas major is much smaller, usually under a pound of usable meat per animal, and it tucks tightly against the spine just below the kidneys. Most people don’t even realize deer carry a tenderloin until they’re shown where to look during processing.

Anatomy That Explains the Texture Gap

The answer hides inside the connective-tissue structure, the work each muscle performed, and a thin neighboring muscle most people never hear about.

Connective Tissue and Muscle Use

The psoas major is essentially a support and stabilizer muscle. It helps flex the hip and spine but never bears heavy load or contracts hard during locomotion. That means very little intramuscular collagen develops, so the meat stays tender even at higher internal temperatures. The longissimus dorsi, by contrast, helps extend and stabilize the spine, handles more postural work, and runs through areas of moderate strain, so it develops slightly more collagen that tightens up if you push past medium doneness.

The Spinalis Dorsi (Ribeye Cap) Factor

One detail most comparisons skip: a thin, highly marbled muscle called the spinalis dorsi wraps along part of the longissimus in beef. This is the prized “ribeye cap,” and when it’s left attached to the backstrap, it adds richness and intramuscular fat that the tenderloin never gets. The tenderloin has no equivalent fat cap, which is why it cooks faster, tastes milder, and tolerates almost no overcooking.

Butcher-Counter Language and Why It Causes Confusion

Both muscles have accumulated a small thicket of names over the decades, and the labels don’t line up between the hunting world and the retail meat counter, which is exactly where confusion sets in.

Hunter Vocabulary vs Butcher Vocabulary

Hunters almost always call the dorsal muscle the backstrap, and they may also say “loin” when talking about a deboned roast. Commercial butchers, on the other hand, label that same beef muscle the strip loin, the loin eye, the New York strip, or short loin depending on how it’s been sub-primaled. Walk up to a supermarket counter and ask for backstrap and you’ll likely get a polite blank stare; ask for a New York strip or a whole tenderloin and the conversation starts moving.

What “Tenderloin” Means on the Label

The tenderloin keeps a more consistent name across regions, but it appears on packaging in several forms. Whole tenderloin (sometimes called whole fillet) is the uncut muscle, usually 4 to 6 pounds in beef. PSMO stands for “peeled, silver skin removed,” meaning the chain muscle and surface membrane are trimmed off, ready to portion into steaks. Individual steaks from the tenderloin show up as filet mignon (center-cut medallions), chateaubriand (a thick roast from the center), or tournedos (small, evenly cut rounds from the thinner end).

“Tip: when in doubt at the counter, name the muscle (longissimus or psoas), the primal (loin), and the steak style (strip or filet). One of those three terms will always unlock the right cut.

Flavor, Size, and Fat: How They Compare on the Plate

Both cuts qualify as premium lean beef, but the eating experience diverges the moment you slice into them. Texture, fat distribution, and shape dictate what each cut does best once heat gets involved.

Flavor and Texture Differences

Backstrap delivers a deeper, beefier flavor with a bit more chew, especially when the spinalis cap is left intact. You’ll notice more pronounced mineral and savory notes, particularly in grass-fed beef and venison, where the lean profile concentrates the taste. Tenderloin, by contrast, offers a milder, almost buttery flavor with a uniform, ultra-fine texture. The trade-off is that tenderloin needs help from butter, sauces, or seasoning to feel as flavorful as a strip steak, while a properly cooked backstrap carries its own richness.

Size, Shape, and Serving Logistics

The backstrap’s long, thick shape makes it the natural choice for feeding a group or slicing into shared steaks. A whole beef strip loin can be cut into eight to twelve New York strips, and a whole venison backstrap typically serves four to six people when portioned into thick chops. The tenderloin is shorter and narrower, often portioned into individual medallions of 6 to 8 ounces. That smaller, tender profile is exactly why restaurants default to filet mignon for plated presentations.

Matching the Cooking Method to the Cut

Pick the wrong technique and even the most expensive cut turns tough and dry. Match the method to what each muscle can handle, and you get a consistent, juicy result every time.

Best Practices for Backstrap

Because the longissimus runs a bit denser and longer, it loves low-and-slow heat followed by a hot sear. A reverse-sear on a whole venison backstrap (250°F oven until 115°F internal, then a hard sear in a cast-iron skillet) produces even rosy slices from edge to edge. For beef strips, a hot grill over direct heat gives the Maillard crust the spinalis cap craves, while an internal target of 130°F to 135°F keeps the steak tender without squeezing out moisture.

Always slice across the grain at the end, which shortens the muscle fibers your teeth have to chew through. On a backstrap the grain runs lengthwise, so a perpendicular cut is the difference between a tender bite and a frustrating one.

Best Practices for Tenderloin

Tenderloin has almost no buffer for overcooking, so the rule is hot and fast. Sear 6-to-8-ounce medallions in a smoking-hot pan for roughly 2 to 3 minutes per side, then pull them at 125°F for medium-rare carry-over will land you in the 130°F sweet spot. Basting with butter, garlic, and thyme in the last minute adds the richness the cut lacks on its own.

“Warning: never cook tenderloin past 140°F internal. The lean muscle has so little fat that every degree past medium pushes moisture out and leaves the steak feeling dry.

What About Pork?

Pork doesn’t carry a true backstrap. The cuts called pork loin and pork tenderloin come from entirely different muscles, behave differently, and have different USDA safe-cooking requirements. Pork loin is a larger, less-tender muscle often brined or rubbed; pork tenderloin is the actual psoas-like muscle, smaller and faster-cooking. Treat them as separate categories rather than equivalents of their beef counterparts.

Price, Value, and When to Substitute One for the Other

Both cuts land in the premium tier, yet shoppers can easily pay double for one over the other, and a few smart substitutions keep dinner on the table without the splurge.

Why Tenderloin Costs More

A whole beef carcass yields only 4 to 6 pounds of usable tenderloin, compared with 12 to 16 pounds of strip loin. Combine that scarcity with relentless demand from steakhouses and wedding menus, and the price climbs well above any other primal. USDA Choice beef tenderloin routinely prices $15 to $25 per pound higher than a comparable strip, and premium dry-aged tenderloin can hit multiples of that.

When Backstrap Beats Tenderloin on Value

For kebabs, stir-fries, steak salads, fajitas, or any dish where uniform slices matter more than peak fork-tenderness, the backstrap delivers nearly identical visual appeal at a fraction of the cost. A 1-pound strip loin portioned into 12 to 16 cubes for skewers costs roughly half what the same volume of tenderloin would run. The same logic applies to venison: a whole backstrap processed into stew meat, roasts, and jerky stretches the yield far beyond what tenderloin alone could ever cover.

Recognizable Steaks and Their Origins

“Tip: when a porterhouse or T-bone hits the table, you’re actually eating both premium muscles at once, the strip side from the backstrap and the filet side from the tenderloin, divided by a single vertebra.

Choosing the Right Cut for Your Next Meal

Here’s a short checklist to walk through the next time the butcher counter is in front of you.

• ▸Choose tenderloin when searing individual medallions, plating a romantic centerpiece, or any recipe that explicitly calls for filet mignon.
• ▸Choose backstrap when grilling a thick steak to share, smoking a venison roast, or building a dish around bold beefy flavor.
• ▸Cook low and slow for backstrap roasts; sear hot and fast for tenderloin medallions.
• ▸Slice perpendicular to the grain on both cuts, especially backstrap, where the long fibers can fool you.
• ▸Carry a backup term (loin eye, strip, longissimus, psoas, filet) so the counter staff knows exactly what you need.

Buy based on the cooking method you trust, not the prestige of the label, and you’ll serve a meal that matches the cut’s strengths instead of fighting against them.

The Bottom Line

Backstrap and tenderloin share a reputation for premium quality, but they are two distinct muscles on opposite sides of the spine. The tenderloin wins on sheer fork-tenderness because it does almost no work during the animal’s life, while the backstrap delivers bigger portions, deeper flavor, and better per-serving value. Match the cut to the cooking method, learn the names your butcher uses, and you’ll spend your money exactly where it counts.

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