How Much To Spend On A Wedding Cake

Cakes are a big deal at weddings. They are the focal point of the reception and they can be a symbol of love and unity. The cake can also be an expensive part of the wedding, with prices ranging widely. But how do you know what to spend on your cake?  Some will want a fancy cake, others will prefer one made by a family member.  You can even buy from a supermarket and save money with a shop bought cake.  M&S do some lovely plain, iced fruit cakes to which you can add some decoration to make them seem more special and individual.  But the sky is the limit on how much you can spend.

With wedding season in full swing, celebrity nuptials are always a feast for the eyes. And, whether it’s a simple sponge cake or grand multi-tiered extravaganza, the wedding cake is often the cherry on top of the celebrations.  It’s often a centre point for photograph opportunities.

The cake experts at Jackandbeyond.com analysed some of the most extravagant celebrity wedding cakes in order to estimate their prices and offer us a few tips on how to add some celeb-inspired glamour to your own cake for a fraction of the price. So, how much are celebrities willing to pay for a perfect wedding cake?

The most expensive celebrity wedding cakes

Rank	Celebrity Couple	Estimated Cake Price	Wedding Location
1	Priyanka Chopra & Nick Jonas	£15,000	Jodhpur, India
2	Grace Kelly & Rainier III	£10,000	Monaco
3	Kaley Cuoco & Ryan Sweeting	£9,000	California, US
4	Princess Eugenie & Jack Brooksbank	£6,500	Windsor, UK
5	Sofia Vergara & Joe Manganiello	£6,000	Florida, US
=6	Chiara Ferragni & Fedez	£5,600	Noto, Italy
=6	George Clooney & Amal Alamuddin	£5,600	Venice, Italy
7	Olivia Buckland and Alex Bowen	£3,500	Essex, UK
8	Meghan Markle & Prince Harry	£2,900	Windsor, UK
9	Idris Elba & Sabrina Dhowre	£1,900	Marrakesh, Morocco
10	Gwyneth Paltrow and Brad Falchuk	£1,500	New York, US
11	Penn Badgely & Domino Kirke	£1,350	New York, US
12	Zoe Kravitz & Karl Glusman	£1,200	Paris, France
13	John Legend & Chrissy Teigen	£1,100	Lake Como, Italy
14	Hillary Duff & Matthew Koma	£500	California, US

 

Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas top the table, with an elaborate 18-foot tall tiered cake that cost an impressive estimated £15,000. The cake, which features tiny windows and golden Baroque detailing, took pride of place at the 2018 three-day wedding in Jodhpur, India. To top off the spectacle, the couple cut the cake with a sword.

 

Following in second is the cake from the infamous 1956 wedding between Hollywood actress Grace Kelly and Rainier III, Prince of Monaco. With no expense spared, the six-tier cake was also cut with the Prince’s sword, and featured intricate detailing, a working music box, and a cage from which two turtle doves were released. More artwork than cake, Jackandbeyond.com believes it cost the couple around £10,000.

 

The Royal family also features in fourth place on the list with Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank’s £6,500 colourful leafy autumn-inspired creation blurring the lines between traditional and contemporary.

 

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s unconventional deconstructed cake also came in at around £2,900, with simple floral decoration on a cascading collection of smaller cakes. This is estimated to be the ninth most expensive cake analysed.

 

TV royalty Olivia Buckland and Alex Bowen also made it to the top 10 list, with their eight-tier traditional cake with golden paint and handmade edible flowers estimated at £3,500 – ranking as eighth most expensive. 

 

Getting a celebrity cake for less

Jackandbeyond’s bespoke cake consultant Sophia Zimmer had the following tips for those who want a spectacular wedding cake but don’t have a celebrity budget:

• “When it comes to wedding cakes, the taller the cake, the higher the price. Having double tiers or many layers will bring up the cost.
•  If you are worried that a smaller cake might not feed all your guests, you can get around this by ordering some additional cutting cakes of the same flavour. You can even go for individual cakes only and get a beautiful cake stand to display them. 
• Frosting is your friend! Frosted or half naked tiers are often more moderately priced than the equivalent covered in Sugar Paste or Marzipan. Frosting can also easily be textured to play with the effect. 
• Another tip if you want a gorgeous cake but you’re on a budget is to keep it simple. The more (handmade) decorative elements you add to the cake, the more it will cost. 
• You can create very elegant looking cakes with relatively simple elements. Fresh flowers for example, even just a few, always look great and can be matched to your table decorations or theme for the wedding. 
• Look for a bakery that offers a Wedding Cake Consultation Service. A good Wedding Cake Consultant will be able to design a cake with you that matches your budget, looks great and is unique to you and your wedding. Feel free to bring in colour samples or ideas for inspiration, but be realistic, not everything you can find on the internet actually works on a real cake.”