I have a real problem with telling ppl prices, I have two tier tiffany's cake to do but idk what price to tell her! My question is is the a grid or way to come up with a price for single or tiered cakes! I really tossed and turned abt this! I do understand abt 10" cakes to 6" cakes will be different and also cakes with fondant will cost more, but how do u come up with ur prices!? Plz advise I have a few tiered cakes to do and btw... This is my first time doing a tiered cake! TIA. Nikki

A tiered cake is a tiered cake no matter what the occasion it is for.
It get's wedding cake pricing........per serving, using the Wilton chart of servings. That means a 10 & 6 will serve 55 X your price per serving (no less than $3).
So tier size yield plus tier size yield x your price = total cost of cake.

Add up all of your costs -
ALL of them - from cardboards, electricity, food coloring, to the gas and time you spend buying your ingredients.
Add the time it takes to make the cakes and decorations - including making icing, cleanup, etc. From the time you start getting out the flour, to the time you put away the last clean pan. (Not counting the time you spend waiting for things to cool - unless you use that time for the 'cake stuff' .)

Sometimes a formula doesn't work for every situation. The truth of the matter is that pricing is different everywhere - depending on locale, cost of living and what you can get away with! Pricing is also different the more experienced you become. When you're just starting out, you can't get away with charging the same as you can after you've been doing it for years. Don't get me wrong, just because someone's been decorating for years, doesn't mean the quality is there, either! You also can't always base your price on how much time it takes ... some people are much slower and still can't decorate, so they shouldn't be able to charge more than a quicker, better cake decorator!

If you're any good at all, you should be charging more than grocery store/chain store prices, but maybe less then the high-end specialty bakeries or individuals that you might have in your area. I only say "less then" because you mentioned this is your first tiered cake which leads me to believe you're not as experienced.

I agree with a previous poster that a tiered cake for any occasion is still a tiered cake. whichever method you choose to set your prices, don't charge less for a tiered cake for a birthday, just because it isn't a wedding. It's still a tiered cake! (Along that same token, I only charge brides sheetcake prices if she's getting sheetcakes. I don't charge an arm and a leg just because it's a wedding.)

I know this doesn't exactly help with what to charge, but I don't know where you live, what the going rate is in your area, or how good or experienced you are. You need to make a few local calls and see what price range your area will support. When you've made a name for yourself, or when you really don't care if you get the order or not, you can raise your prices through the roof!

FYI - I start at $200 for a two-tiered cake... don't care how small the tiers are. (I don't care if I get the order and I'm definitely higher than the area can support!!) Good luck!