I have to give a price to a client for a wedding order.

The top tier is an 8" citrus /vanilla cake with buttercream, fondant lace pieces, silver dragees, with hand painted gumpaste roses and orchids on top. This is the one I need the pricing help for. Can you just give me a ballpark figure so I know where to start with this.

It just depends on the area you live in and your costs. It sounds like a lot of work...Personally I would charge between $80-$100 for the 8" plus the cost of flowers.

When pricing look at the costs of ingredients, your overhead, and also your labor charges to come up with your price. Good luck!

For me the cake part would be 3.50 X 24 = 84 and I had a standard charge of $40 for a topper.

But frankly, an 8" top tier is kinda big.

In reality, I don't think OUR prices are necessarily YOUR prices.

Do you have to buy a mold for the lace piece? Or are you piping it? Are you making the flowers or buying them? Are you using lots of fresh ingredients, or box mixes and pre packed filling? Lots of factors here.

The topcake is big because it is on top of a cupcake stand. The rest of the display is cupcakes and they wanted something a bit bigger than the 6". I already have a lace mold, the cake will be from scratch as will the buttercream, fondant and gumpaste. No filling in cake. I am also making the topper and handpainting/ dusting everything.

The topcake is big because it is on top of a cupcake stand. The rest of the display is cupcakes and they wanted something a bit bigger than the 6". I already have a lace mold, the cake will be from scratch as will the buttercream, fondant and gumpaste. No filling in cake. I am also making the topper and handpainting/ dusting everything.

No filling? That seems odd. So it just 4"of solid cake?

And I use 6" rounds on top of my cupcake tower all the time.

Cake with no filling is the norm in the caribbean. If filling is needed that would have to be specified. The client felt the 6" would be too small. Cupcake towers are not traditional here and I guess they still want the feel of a big wedding cake. I am just a home baker in my spare time so I am learning these things as I go.

Considering you will be making everything from scratch, you should factor this into pricing the cake. It is true, you have to consider the area you are in and what other places are charging but you should be fair and true to your work. First, figure out the cost of ingredients, then the work you are putting into making the flowers and all the other decor on the cake. I'd say between $2 to $4 per serving for the cake part alone, then a separate cost for the fondant covering and decor. I charge a standard $2 per serving, a flat fee ($10 to $25) per tier covered in fondant, and another fee for handmade topper. Hope this helps.

What country are you in? I'm in the Caribbean as well so may be able to give you a better price feel based on the average prices in the region .and yes you are spot on - many Caribbean people really hate fillings in cakes and prefer single layer cakes. I get requests for cakes with no filling all the time.

I'm not sure how people in other countries can help you price your product.