If you’ve attended many weddings in your lifetime, I’m sure that you’ve seen seen that wedding cakes come in all kinds of shapes sizes, and of course, designs. While you can find your dream wedding cake while browsing through numerous photo galleries (I did), that won’t help you a bit in determining how much that wedding cake will cost. So how much does a wedding cake cost anyway? Well, that actually depends on several different variables that go into creating a wedding cake. While the costs of creating a wedding cake will vary from bakery to bakery, it’s best to know what an average cost for wedding cakes are, as well as some definite factors that can raise the cost.
How Wedding Cakes are Priced
Wedding cake prices are not typically given out as a total cost per cake. Now I did look at some brochures for wedding cakes from some local grocery stores, and they did show a picture of a wedding cake and give a price for that cake as seen in the picture. That however, is not your average case. Most bakeries will charge you a “per slice” fee.
On average, wedding cakes cost between $2 and $6 per slice. Of course, that fee will vary drastically between different bakeries, so choose a bakery that you feel comfortable with and one that has a reputation for delivering great cakes. Personally, I found a lady in a small town nearby who had been making wedding cakes for 20 years or more on the side. She came highly recommended. The cake turned out beautifully (just like the picture I found), and it was one of the tastiest cakes I’d had.
Features that Affect Cost
The price that you may be quoted for a wedding cake is typically their basic wedding cake with no extra frills. But once you start adding some particular extras, you’ll find that the cost of your wedding cake will definitely increase. There are several factors that will increase the amount of money that you’ll pay for your wedding cake. Here is a quick rundown to help you out.
The Larger the Cake - Of course it works out to reason that the larger the wedding you’re going to have, the more slices of cake that you’ll need. A great way to save money here is to have a small to medium sized wedding cake and make up the difference in slices with a sheet cake, which can cost up to a dollar less a slice.
Tiers vs. Sheet Cake - As mentioned above, a sheet cake decorated like your wedding cake is much less costly than a tiered cake because they just aren’t as much work to create as a tiered wedding cake. Creating a lovely tiered wedding cake takes work and expertise, and it also creates a premium for your wedding cake prices as well.
Special Shapes and Designs - This goes especially for square wedding cakes or extravagant cakes with complicated fondant designs. These create a lot of extra work and experience for the bakery, and you’ll pay for it. Personally, my bakery created these beautiful little sugar flowers and stuck them in randomly around the cake. It didn’t cost any extra and was a great way to add personality to the cake.
Adding in the Extras - Many brides start looking at special fillings such as fruits, nuts and liquors, which will add great flavors to your wedding cake, but will also drive up the cost of your wedding cake.
Choosing Cake Types - I’m not talking about cake flavors here, but instead about cake types. If you’d rather have a red velvet wedding cake with cream cheese icing, you’re looking at paying much more per slice than otherwise. But perhaps the most expensive type of wedding cake would be the cheese cake. If you love cheesecake and are looking into the cost, be aware that a cheesecake type of wedding cake can drive up the per slice cost to over $6 per slice! Ouch!
I haven’t made this list to try and dissuade you from having your dream wedding cake. You just need to be aware of what kinds of options are available to you for your wedding cake. If you have a budget for your wedding cake, then check and see how much a basic wedding cake would cost. If you have plenty of money left over in your budget, then you can choose to start adding some little things to make it your own.
Tags: how much does a wedding cake cost, Wedding Cake, wedding cake prices, wedding cakes
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