Cake and dessert quantities?

I would not serve mini/cup cakes as an additional alternative. Either have more cake available and skip the cupcakes (they are the same thing but cupcakes are messier all around) or skip the cake and serve cookies only. Many people go to weddings intending to eat cake and they will have seconds if it’s good so you won’t have to deal with leftovers. But make sure that any dessert you do have there is enough for everyone. Nothing is worse than the couple or the couple plus bridesmaids/groomsmen getting a fancier food/beverage choice on display while it’s not available to guests. Or someone says “the cheesecake bars are great!” and there’s none to be had because they were not ordered for everyone. Have 1-2 servings per guest of anything you are serving.


Guests will figure out how to cleanup leftovers so you don’t need to worry about that.

View Quoted Comment Gotcha! I definitely wouldn’t want people to think that there’s different desserts for us/bridal party and the guests. That’s definitely not the case, I want everyone to be able to enjoy everything! Sounds like more is better, thanks for the input!

I'd either make the tiered cake smaller or skip the extra desserts - we had 100 guests attend our wedding and ordered 100 servings of cake and still had tons leftover, at least 1/3 of the cake. I read somewhere that suggested ordering enough cake (if it's the only dessert) for 75% of your guest list and wish I listened to that advice

I like Marianne's estimate - I think getting enough cake to cover 75-80% of your guest list is a good call!!

For mini desserts the rule of thumb is 3-4 desserts per guest, or 1-2 desserts per guest if you're also serving cake.

So to be safe I'd recommend ordering a cake to feed 80, and 150 mini desserts!

View Quoted Comment Thanks Marianne and Lynnie, I like that idea. That’s what I was worried about; I don’t want to overdue it and have too much, but I want to make sure I have enough for everyone. I’d also like to not spend more money than I have to, although I know it’s not a huge difference. Appreciate the help!!