Amount of rub?

The one top left has no rub, the bottom one has about what I normally use, the one on the right has a lot of rub, so much you can barely see the meat. The sage even turned parts of it green.



This is how much I usually use.



I typically rub beef cuts so hard that I can handle them and not get anything on my hands but dry rub. For ribs, I use very little, just a light dusting. If you use extra pepper, it helps to put it on before the rub.

I use enough to coat the meat but still let you see it thru the rub. I don't have any pics here sorry. (all on the work puter)
the excteption being my ribs... now that a secret lol

There's no magic answer...

It's primarily a mix of

personal preference/habit (some people feel every inch needs to be covered... "just to be sure")

formulation of the rub - if you know a rub has a lot of heat, salt etc and you don't want it to overpower, you'll apply with more caution

Trial and error is best.. start lighter and increase as you go until you find a coating thickness that produces results you like.

What Vinny said. It is a personal thing. I use less, you can definitely see the meat.

My rub has only a small amount of salt in it and no sugar(s). I use the same rub on
chicken, pork, ribs, and brisket, except that I add quite a bit of additional black pepper
on the brisket. That being said, I use only a small amount on chicken, medium on the
ribs (I'll sauce these a little at the end), and then quite a bit (heavy) on both brisket
and pork. For what it's worth, we really like the bark 'round here.

Then again, I'm a cajun heritage GA boy who married a damned Texan...
We tend to like our spices.

I liberally sprinkle rub all over both sides of the meat.
What doesn't fall off when i flip it over is the right amount, and that gets rubbed in.