Getting married can be an expensive endeavor, with the average wedding costing over $30,000 in the United States. One of the biggest expenses is often the wedding cake, which can cost $500 or more from a traditional bakery. However, there are plenty of ways to save money on your wedding cake without sacrificing taste or beauty.
Check Local Grocery Store Bakeries
One of the best places to find affordable wedding cakes is your local grocery store’s bakery section. Many grocery stores have expanded their bakeries in recent years and now offer specialty cakes for all occasions. The best part is that since these grocery store bakeries produce high volumes of baked goods, their prices tend to be lower than standalone bakeries.
Stores like Safeway, Albertsons, Ralphs, Kroger, Publix, HEB, and Winn Dixie all have bakeries that do wedding cakes. A two-tier cake to serve 50 guests would likely cost between $100-250. You can also find great prices at warehouse clubs like Costco, Sam’s Club, and BJ’s Wholesale Club.
Benefits of Grocery Store Bakery Cakes
- Significantly lower prices than standalone bakeries
- Wide variety of flavors and fillings
- Flexible sizing from small to large cakes
- Option to mix and match cake flavors
- Freshly baked
- Can deliver to venue
Check Local Community or Culinary Schools
Another budget-friendly option is to order your wedding cake from a local culinary or baking and pastry school. Students at these schools need real-world practice making specialty cakes for graduations and events. Ordering your cake through a school gives students experience, while giving you a delicious and affordable cake.
Community colleges, vocational schools, and universities with hospitality programs often have public bakeries and restaurants where their students can sell cakes and other items to customers at reduced prices. A 3-tier wedding cake for 100 people might cost just $150-300 from one of these student-run bakeries.
Benefits of Community and Culinary School Cakes
- Very low prices for the quality
- Unique, custom designs
- Students work under experienced chef instructors
- Support future hospitality professionals
Order Sheet Cakes from the Grocery Store
If you really want to save money, consider ordering sheet cakes rather than a tiered or sculpted cake. Sheet cakes are simple frosted cakes baked in large rectangular pans, which are then cut into squares for serving.
You can order sheet cakes right from your local grocery store bakery in a variety of flavors with buttercream frosting for just $15-30 each. To serve 100 guests, you may only need four to five sheet cakes at less than $150 total. The downside is that sheet cakes look more casual than an elegant multi-tier cake, but you can dress them up by adding fresh flowers.
Benefits of Sheet Cakes
- Very inexpensive
- Can serve large numbers of guests
- Easy to transport
- Can combine different flavors
Buy a Display Cake and Sheet Cakes
One way to have an elegant cake presentation while still saving money is to buy a small decorative cake for display and cutting, along with sheet cakes to serve the guests. For example, you could order a simple two-tier cake for under $200 and then supplement that with $50 worth of sheet cakes to feed all your guests.
This allows you to have that visual focal point in your cake table presentation while serving your guests from sheet cakes in the back. Just cut the display cake and take photos before bringing out the sheet cakes to actually serve.
Benefits of a Display Cake plus Sheet Cakes
- Beautiful cake for photos and display
- Lower cost than buying a full tiered cake for all guests
- Less waste since sheet cakes have more servings
- Get the best of both worlds
Cupcakes and Dessert Bars
For the most budget-friendly option, consider swapping out the traditional cake with cupcakes or assorted dessert bars. Most grocery store bakeries sell packages of a dozen cupcakes for around $10. Or you could even bake them yourself and decorate with your own custom toppers.
Another affordable idea is to set up a dessert bar with different types of bars, brownies, cookies and other bite-size options for guests who want something sweet after dinner. This allows you to provide a variety of desserts to please everyone.
Benefits of Cupcakes and Dessert Bars
- Very low cost per guest
- Fun, informal vibe
- Self-serve option
- Easy to transport
- Reduced waste
Order Online
In addition to local grocery store bakeries, there are now many online retailers that ship wedding cakes directly to you. These cakes are made from scratch and can still be very high quality, but without the expensive overhead costs of a retail bakery. Online wedding cake companies include Just Cake It, The Cake Bake Shoppe, Wedding Cakes for Less and others.
Ordering online often allows complete customization over flavors, designs, toppers and other decorations at significant cost savings. A multi-tier wedding cake for 100 people may only be $300-400, including delivery fees. Just make sure to order early enough to allow for shipping.
Benefits of Online Wedding Cakes
- Very affordable prices
- Ships frozen to your door
- Full customization options
- Convenient ordering process
Do-It-Yourself Wedding Cake
If you really want to trim costs and don’t mind putting in some extra effort, bake and decorate the wedding cake yourself. Home wedding cakes have become very popular, especially with all the baking shows on TV for inspiration. You can decorate a beautiful cake with some creativity.
Start practicing your cake recipes and decorating techniques well in advance so you feel confident by the wedding day. And enlist help from crafty family and friends so you don’t take all the work on yourself. When people ask who made the gorgeous cake, you can proudly say you did!
Benefits of Baking Your Own Wedding Cake
- Total control over flavors and designs
- Deeply personal homemade touch
- Very affordable
- A meaningful keepsake
