How much is a Wedding Cake in Australia?
Cake by Butter. Photography by Salt Atelier
How much is a wedding cake in Australia? How long is a piece of string? If trying to stick to your budget is sending you into the fetal position on the floor - stop rocking back and forth! We’ll break everything down for you so you can find the right kind of cake that is, well, the icing on the cake of your wedding day!
Average Wedding Cake Price &Wedding Cake Costs in Australia
A wedding cake could set you back anywhere from $200 for a simple, smaller cake from someone just starting out or up to a few thousand for an intricate, multi-tiered bespoke wedding cake from a renowned designer. There are many surveys out there which say something along the lines of - the average cost of a wedding cake in Australia is $500 -$600. I honestly do not think these are helpful because what is average? Maybe the average wedding has half as many guests as you do. Maybe the average cake is semi naked and you want a fondant covered cake with handmade sugar flowers. I think its much more helpful to understand the factors that influence the cost of your wedding cake so you make informed decisions along the way when designing your dream cake.
Wedding Cake Price per Slice
Many (but not all) wedding cake designers use a price per slice as the basis for pricing their cakes. Typically this is the base cost for a simple, undecorated cake with additional design features like fresh or sugar flowers, gold leaf, fondant details being added on top.
For a professional cake designer you should expect a minimum price per serving of $8. Let me repeat that this should be the minimum with most experienced designers charging higher than this - anywhere from $10 to $20
Wedding Cake Serving Sizes
The above price per slice is for a “dessert” sized serving which is typically a 1x2inch slice of cake. Wedding cake is also often served in a smaller “coffee” sized portion which is half the size - 1x1inch slice. So you essentially get double the servings for the same price if you serve coffee portions instead of dessert portions.
Factors Influencing the Cost of Wedding Cakes
There are so many factors that will influence your final wedding cake price. These are the ones that will have the biggest impact
Wedding Cake Size
Obviously the bigger your cake the more it will cost. Multiple tiers will also cost more than a single large cake. If you’re trying to keep costs down the biggest thing to keep in mind is not oversizing your wedding cake. For all our best tips on choosing the best cake size for your wedding check out this post.
Wedding Cake Design
Handmade sugar flowers, intricate piping, gold leaf and other detailed designs can add significantly to the cost of your wedding cake as they require lots of time and skill on the part of your designer. These kind of finishes will give your cake a luxury look and can be tailored to perfectly suit your wedding theme. However a simple cake doesn’t have to be boring one! A minimalist design can be really effective.
This is a relatively simple cake design with only a few fresh flowers but it still very striking and makes an impact!
Cake and Photography by Butter
Wedding Cake Designer Experience
A more experienced and well known cake designer will charge more for their cakes as they reflect their level of skill and expertise. You can expect a higher level of finishing and more original designs from premium designers.
Wedding Cake Ingredients
A cake designer who uses high quality ingredients will charge more for their cakes as their expenses are higher. Trust me when I say you can absolutely taste the difference between a cake made with homebrand butter, imitation vanilla or cheap cocoa powder and one made with premium ingredients. Here are Butter some of the brands we use are Lurpak butter, Heilala Vanilla and Valrhona cocoa powder.
This style of wedding cake is becoming very popular but keep in mind that all that fruit adds up! Have you seen the price of raspberries at the supermarket lately!
Cake by Butter. Photography by Dear Fiore
Wedding Cake Flavours
No, your wedding cake doesnt have to be an old school fruit cake, or even the Australian standard mud cake! However more complex or unique flavour combinations will likely cost more than a simple vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream. You can ask your cake designer if they have tiered pricing for any of their flavour combinations. While you might look to save some money with a plain vanilla cake I’d definitely recommend keeping in mind what a guest might want to eat at the end of the night. You’re much more likely to have all your guests eat a piece if you serve them up a delicious cake that everyone is raving about!
Dietary Requirements for Wedding Cakes
Specialised dietary requirements are definitely more common these days but they do also tend to require more expensive ingredients like gluten free flour or vegan chocolate ganache.
Dietary cupcakes like these gorgeous vegan ones from Cakehouse by Katrina Allen can be a great way to cater to a few guests with special diets without having to change your whole cake.
Local Variations for Wedding Cake Pricing
As with most things the price of your wedding cake will likely vary depending on where you’re located. In big cities like Sydney and Melbourne you’ll have hundreds of cake designers to choose from all offering a different style and price point. Same goes for big wedding regions like the Hunter Valley (where Butter is based! If you’re getting married here be sure to check out our gallery and menu). In smaller areas you’ll likely have fewer options and less ability to shop around.
Cake by Butter. Photography by James Bennet
Cake by Butter
Both of these are beautiful cakes but are suited to different budgets!
Additional Wedding Cake Costs
We’ve covered most of the factors that might impact the cost of the cake itself but there’s a few extra items that could add to the total cost of purchasing a wedding cake
Wedding Cake Delivery and Set Up Fees
Your cake needs to be transported to your venue and put out on display. TRUST ME when I say you do not want to be picking up your wedding cake yourself or having a friend/family member do it for you. Transporting a multi-tiered heavy cake is not easy and there are so many things that can go wrong if you don’t know what you’re doing. Just leave it to the professional and save yourself the stress. Choosing a cake maker who is local to the area of your venue will help reduce the cost of delivery as they won’t have to travel as far.
Wedding Cake Tasting
Doing a cake tasting is an optional part of the wedding experience but it is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. Even if you know you love chocolate cake and are set on having it at your wedding what sounds bad about tasting lots of different cake!? Guaranteed it will be one of the most fun parts of planning your wedding. Some cake designers may include this in the their quoted cake prices (you’re still paying for it, it’s just bundled together)and some may charge an extra fee. Check out the details of Butter’s tasting boxes here to see all the goodness included as part of this experience.
Cake tasting is one of the most fun parts of planning a wedding!
Wedding Cake Stand Hire or Styling
Sometimes a wedding cake baker will have a range of cake stands that you can hire to display your beautiful cake on. If your cake designer doesn’t offer this service consider asking your wedding stylist, venue or furniture supplier if they have cake stands available for hire. Styling for your cake display area is an often overlooked area of wedding planning and can really elevate the look and feel of your event.
Cake by Butter. Photography by Muse Photography
With a bit of extra effort put into the styling around your cake it can be transformed into a central point of your wedding reception and a real WOW moment. We recommend talking to your florist, stylist or wedding planner about repurposing florals from your ceremony or other parts of your wedding to add a bit of extra impact to your cake table.
Wedding Cake Cost Calculator
Try out the handy calculator below to get an idea of what a wedding cake might cost you. This is meant to be a rough guide for the minimum cost of your cake from a professional wedding cake maker based on a recommended size for your number of guests. It does not take into account variations in portion sizes, additional decorations, delivery etc. It is not indicative of Butter’s own pricing.
Alternative Wedding Cake Options
Maybe you’re just not a big fan of cake and you’re wondering if you even want one for your wedding. There’s lots of alternatives to a traditional wedding cake that still have that wow factor and allow you to serve your guests a sweet treat at the end of the night. You could consider a croquembouche, a jumbo sized pavlova (like the one below from Caitlyn Cake Design), dessert table full of lots of different goodies, individual cannoli, jelly shots - you’re only limited by your imagination! If you don’t love sweets you could do a “cheese” cake of stacked cheese wheels for something different!
DIY and Budget Wedding Cake Options
At the end of the day weddings are expensive, everyone has different priorities and a cake be a wedding cost you just dont have the budget for. Maybe you have a friend who loves baking and cake decoration who has offered to make a cake for you as a wedding gift. You couldn’t get a cake more filled with love and meaning than that! Even if they’re not confident in making a big tiered cake having a range of smaller cakes laid out on a table with some beautiful cake stands looks amazing and gives your guests lots of flavour options! If you don’t know anyone who’s handy around a whisk and an oven try reaching out to your local bakery and seeing what large format cakes they offer. They might not be as finessed as a wedding cake specialist but they could offer a great deal on something simple like a naked style cake with a cake topper or some wedding cupcakes. These can be a good budget option as a simple cupcake will often be less per serve than a decorated wedding cake.
A variety of small homemade cakes can be a great DIY wedding cake option
You may have read that asking for fake tiers to display and then having a sheet cake to cut up and serve to guests can be a good way to have a more affordable wedding cake. I do not know who started this lie this but IT IS NOT TRUE. A fake tier takes just as long and requires just as much skill to decorate as a real cake. There is no time saving in either the decorating or baking as your cake baker still needs to make the sheet cakes. If anything this should be more expensive because you are adding in the cost of the styrofoam dummy on top of the cake ingredients.
Cake by Butter. Photography by Allume
Cake by Butter. Photography by Full Hearts
Cake by Butter. Photography by Wild Wattle Photography
Whatever you choose for your wedding cake make sure it is a reflection of both you and your partner and how you want to celebrate your day! The cake cutting is a moment that is ALWAYS photographed so your cake will be one of the elements of your wedding that you will have to look back on forever and you want to be able to associate it with only the best memories!
If you’re looking for someone to make your dream wedding cake in the Hunter Valley, Newcastle, Port Stephens or Central Coast Butter would love to chat to you!