I would like to do a little survey of sorts. I'm wondering what most of you are charging per serving for your most simple cake. Say a sheet cake with BC frosting and some simple piped decorations. Also, when you figure serving size on this cake, are you figuring wedding serving size, party serving size or family serving size? And finally, what area are you in? Urban, small city or small town/rural?

I am Southeast, small town, but close to a big city. For simple 9x13 sheet cakes I usually go with 20 serving sizes (I have tested the math on this size cake I have taken for fun to work, several times and usually get 20 servings). I have been charging 1.25 per serving or $25.00 per 9x13 sheetcake. These are torted if that matters. If I layer the cake, then it is more...but that gets out of the simple equation.

Anyway, that is me and I am NO WAY an expert!! I have problems with charging anyway I seem to undercharge a lot and have been working on that.

I live in midwest Kansas, so we certainly aren't "up there" in charging in this area, but my bottom is $1.25 for something simple, 1 layer, no fillings, no decorations besides trim & writing. And if it's not a wedding I do account for larger servings.

I generally do NOT make sheet cakes...I usually make tiered cakes. For a tiered cake, with buttercream, I usually charge $2.25 per person, and for a tiered fondant cake $3.50 - $4.00 per person depending on the decorations, and how long it took me to make the cake. I always seem to discount those prices if it's someone I work with or someone I know...but if it's strangers, I try to stick to those prices. I live in a rural county in Maryland.

My ultimate bottom per serving price would be $2.60 and thats for simple party cakes that are 50 servings or over. A party cake that feeds 10 is $3.80 and theres a range in between. These are "party servings" of 12 cubic inches. My tiered cakes start at $6.50 a serving. I am in a 300,000 person city, but it is the largest in our state.

I start at $2.50, BUT I have a $40 order minimum charge for party cakes and $150 for wedding cakes, regardless of whether the cakes serves 8 or 80! My prices can go up to $10 per serving for very labour intensive and stressful cakes (see my Fairytale Castle wedding cake as an example of something I'd charge that much for!). I live in the 3rd major city in the country.

Sheet cakes (one layer, not torted, BC) are $1.50 each. Delivery not included in price. Serving size based on a 2x2x2 piece.

Wedding (i.e. Non-Sheet Cakes) are $3.00 each. Delivery included for weddings. I dont' deliver "birthday" cakes.

I use the Wilton Wedding cake chart to determine pricing for non-sheet cakes (and by the way, it's a good guide for number of servings, too.)

I'm in the 14th largest city in the country, BUT.......

My customer base is a radius of a 1-hour-drive. I'm located in the middle of Indiana and this one-hour radius will take me to the Ohio State line (and all small towns in between), so don't base my pricing on the fact that I'm in a large city. Small towns pay my price, too.

(and ergo my rant about "people in small towns have money; people in small towns buy Cadillacs and BMW's; people in small towns live in 4 bedroom, 3 bath homes; people in small towns are willing to pay a quality price for a quality product.)

I can't really get any more than $1.50 for BC and $2 for fondant. Doesn't matter how complex, people here just will not, and cannot, pay that much for a cake.

I have seen you say that before Indy. lol I definitely see your point, but I think it boils down to people's definition of "small town." I find most people refer to towns with 15,000 people in it as small, and in that case you'd be right about the homes and the cars and such. But in rural Oklahoma, "small town" often refers to towns like mine with a population of less than 300. Just sitting here reading your list I can honestly count the 4 bedroom houses in this town on one hand (with no thumb! ) and there are definitely no Cadillacs and BMWs. lol Many of our small towns are low income and people just can't afford $3 a serving for a cake. Not saying your small town rant is wrong, just sort of wondering out loud how much of it boils down to people's different ideas of a "small town" kwim?

Anya

copa, you're so right on how to define it. I had a "new" boss who came to town and called Indpls a "small town"!

I lived in one of those 300 people small towns. It's the one we used to call a one-horse town until the horse died. (No kidding ... our house was across the field from the horse and we used to walk over and feed it and pet it.) One gas station, one barbershop and one intersection. My home-county had basically one "big" town (pop between 35,000-40,000) but all of the little "burgs" around it shopped, worked, etc., in this one big town. So while they may have lived in a 300 person town, they had to work/shop in the "city" of 35,000, so whatever the pricing was there is what these people paid, too.

When I lived in that area, I always found it amazing that those who I classified as "with money" were the most .... shall we say "frugal" .... about what they spent on a wedding and those who I thought didn't have a pot to you-know-what-in, spent the money for a big reception. As I've moved along in life, I've found that description can apply no matter where I lived/worked.

I guess it's hard to assume what someone will spend ... so I don't assume they will only spend at the low end.

I'm in rural Oklahoma as well (way rural) my kids go to school 27 miles away from our home, and I charge $1 per serving for single layer sheet cakes, 1.50/serving for wedding cakes, $2/serving for fondant (something new for me!) I feel that those prices have been fair--however, I've been doing this for 3 years, gaining experience and skills and plan to increase my prices in Jan. I also charge extra for delivery (they are so willing to pay for convenience) and the farthest I have delivered cakes is 90 miles away. I'm also going to begin a minimum charge of $25 no matter how small the cake is, once again in Jan.

Yes, I guess I was using more the rural reference as a socioeconomic indicator. In Arkansas, if you're in a small town, you're generally in a low income area. BUT, it wasn't so much that the rural folks were going to charge less, but that the urban folks would need to charge MORE. I expect metropolitan folks would need to charge more because their rent is going to be a lot higher. My little bakery spot would probably rent for about $300 a month here. Maybe triple or quadruple that in a city setting. My brother and I had about the same size, age and type of house. Mine was in Arkansas, his in greater Los Angeles. We sold ours for $110,000. His market value is at least $500,000 more than ours! That's gotta affect what prices people charge for services, right?

i'm also in rural oklahoma...i charge 19.99 sor a 1/4 sheet, simply decorated...i need to go up, but i guess i got a mental block about breaking that 20.00 line for a 1/4 sheet.

i've done so many sheet cakes, i can do them pretty fast, i can make some pretty cute designs in about 12 minutes....i'm getting where i dread them comming in with a drawing for me to do on them though...think i'm getting old and tired of thinkin....i charge about 10 bucks more for a drawing.

Hmmm...maybe there's a pricing problem in Oklahoma...all of us Okies are coming out of the woodwork here!

Indy - What you said describes our town perfectly! Everyone here has to drive somewhere else to a job, we have no places to shop so that has to be done elsewhere, heck we even have to drive to another town to buy gas. But even in the towns surrounding us the prices are no higher. I really think, for me at least, it boils down to the fact that everyone is satisfied with Wal-Mart and grocery store cakes because that's what they're used to so they just aren't accustomed to spending more on cake. Thanks for making me think, as usual!

Alright ya'll, maybe we need to round up an Okie CC Posse and teach these people what real cake is...and how to pay for it! j/k

My bottom price for a basic flavor cake with basic directions is $1.25/serving.

You can see where I live
My prices are as follows
9x13 $25.00
11x15 $30.00
12x18 35.00
these are one layer if they want 2 layer add half again
cupcakes $1.00 each
jumbo cupcakes $2.00 each
Wedding cakes $2.00 serving based on Wilton's serving chart
tea cakes $3.00 each
Jibbies

Right now my prices are $15 for 9x13 & $25 for 12x18. The only two wedding cakes that I have been paid for I charged $1 per serving. However, the first of October I am changing my prices to be the same as Jibbies has posted.
I live in a rural county in KY. I'm just a little ways outside of the largest city (seems ridiculous to call it that with 2,500 people) in the county.

Hi Jen9936
I am originally from Kentucky. I lived in Boone county then we moved to Bell county when I was a teenager. Where do you live?
Jibbies

Copacabanya--I'm with you--OKIES need to go up on their prices--It's only because of CC that I even considered going up on my prices in January, but you are also right in that people kind of expect to pay for Wal-Mart and grocery store-type cakes here. Another obstacle that I run into with pricing higher is that there are darn good cooks here that are also extremely creative and they then have the "Heck, Grandma can make a tractor cake for little Bubba so why should I pay you that much?"

9 x 13=$20
11 x 15=$30
These are sheet cakes with BC and basic decorations. I charge add'l for fondant figures, bows or 3D items on the cake(such as the StarBucks coffe cup)
Stacked cakes start at $2.00 for BC / $3.50 for Fondant & carved cakes

Again I charge add'l for fondant on BC, figures, etc on stacked cakes.

I try not to do cupcakes--I think they are a pain, and I DO NOT DO COOKIES mostly for the same reason but also my niece just bought the local franchise of Cookies By Design ! I am sooo excited for her! But I tease her telling her if I had found out about it being for sale first--she wouldn't have it now!!

I live on the NH Seacost..

I am just beginning my business.. but this will be my prices when I open shop (and by shop I mean out of my home )

Basic celebration cake.. 4" tall filled and frosted with BC border and few piped decoration $2.00 per serving

Fillings range from $0.25-0.75 extra per serving and fondant is $1.00 per serving. Premium cake flavors add $1.00 per serving as well.

Wedding cakes.. 4" tall frosted with BC with your choice of 1 non-premium filling simply frosted with a satin ribbon to coordinate with your wedding $3.00 per serving.

The same upcharges from the celebration cakes apply.

3-D carved cakes start at $4.50 per serving iced and filled with BC. Fondant adds $1.00 per serving and degree of difficulty.

Basic Cupcakes.. chocolate or vanilla cake frosted with BC with rainbow sprinkles $1.50 each. Detailed decoration is extra.

Fancy Cupcakes.. any flavor cake and filled with any filling topped with your choice of frosting starting at $2.50 each depending on your choices. detailed decoration is extra.

I have a feeling that I will raise my prices though.. It's all in the marketing. I don't plan on offering sheet cakes. I hate them.

I have yet to actually get paid for a cake, so I can't respond to the survey question. However, I find this to be very interesting in what I could have been charging (if all the cakes I've done hadn't been for family.) The comment about people being satisfied or used to Wal-Mart and grocery store quality/pricing is so true! My poor daughters are so used to me making their cakes that they came home from a friend's birthday party and commented on the cake saying "I don't think his mom made the cake or anything, she must have bought it somewhere." They seemed surprised to be told that that's what most people do.