How Many Layers Should A Cake Have

This cake portion guide is exactly what you demand if yous're making a cake for an outcome or a wedding. While the cake flavour and ornamentation are important components of a block, ane of the most central aspects of a cake is its size!

When making a cake from scratch for an of import consequence, it's crucial that it has the right number of servings.

You want to make sure every invitee gets a slice. That'southward where this cake portion guide comes into play.

image of a wedding cake sized out using a cake portion guide to determine how many servings and what size of cake needed to be made

What Is Considered A Serving Of Block??

Throughout this post I refer to a serving of cake.

By and large, I hateful a slice of block that is 4 inches tall, ane inch wide, and 2 inches in length. This is the standard size of a slice of wedding block.

This post isn't merely about wedding cakes though. It's besides for cakes to be served at parties or events.

image of properly cut slices of wedding cake, in the standard size of 4 inches tall, 1 inch wide, 2 inches deep.

Strangely enough, the size of a cake serving for a wedding ceremony is smaller than a party cake serving! Cakes cut for parties are usually one.5 inches wide.

While this is a small difference in size, it'due south important to annotation that a piece of cake at a party is bigger.

This can impact the number of servings included below. To be consistent, I'm going to be referring to nuptials cake portions throughout this postal service.

Impact Of Cake Top On Number of Servings

The standard size of a cake slice is definitely the gilt standard.

However, my vanilla cake recipe makes a vii inch layer cake that is way taller than 4 inches. In full general, tall layer cakes have increased in popularity and are quite common nowadays.

This can make cutting and serving a cake a lot more than challenging. The height of a cake tin be influenced past a lot of factors.

It's based on the number of cake layers used, the superlative of the block layers, and the corporeality of buttercream between each layer.

assembled semi-naked tiered wedding cake

If I brand a cake taller than vii inches, I cutting information technology into thin slices (about one inch broad).

Then I cut each slice in half, horizontally. This means that out of each slice I make, I create 2 servings.

For tall cakes, I double the servings shown beneath, since those are based on a shorter cake (4 inches).

When trying to determine the correct size of block to brand based on the numbers below, please refer to the far right cavalcade.

image of assembling a tiered cake made as part of a cake portion guide to show how many people this cake will feed

Standard Layer Cake Servings

One time y'all know the number of servings y'all need, yous tin can offset to recall almost what size of cake yous should make.

If y'all don't plan to brand a tiered block, things are quite a flake easier.

image of funfetti cake slices, cut and surrounded by pink frosting and rainbow sprinkles

A single-tiered layer cake has a set number of servings. Still, this can vary based on the shape of the cake.

For example, a square 8 inch cake will have more than servings than a round viii inch block.

Round and foursquare cakes are by far the most common shapes. With that in mind, I chose to focus on these shapes in the diagram below. It includes the number of portions, based on the cake layer diameter:

image of cake portion guide for square and round cakes

If you desire to make a cake that is a dissimilar shape, Wilton has a corking chart that shares the serving sizes of a variety of shaped cakes.

Tiered Cake Servings

If you need to feed a large number of people, you may demand to make a tiered cake. Tiered cakes have a lot more multifariousness and flexibility in their number of servings.

Dissimilar sized tiers vary in serving size, and you lot tin can combine them in a ton of means.

Photo of four tiered Tropical Inspired floral wedding cake

In the past, I've fabricated a tiered block with 10 inch, eight inch, half dozen inch, and 4 inch tiers that fed 84 people.

I've too made a cake with 12 inch, 9 inch, and 6 inch tiers that fed 100 people.

While we're on the topic of unlike sized tiers, I have a wonderful cake batter calculator that helps you know exactly how much batter y'all need for unlike sized cake layers and tiers.

Office of picking the right size of cake comes down to having the right number of servings, just other factors can come into play. This decision can likewise be influenced by the look you're after.

Some people want a specific number of tiers, or a cake design that requires extra space betwixt each tier to add together decorations.

Photo of a three tiered semi naked wedding cake

For example, sometimes I add fresh flowers to my tiered wedding cakes. When doing this, I like to accept at least a iii-inch variance in the size of each tier (i.e. 12 inch, 9 inch, 6 inch).

This creates a 1.v inch ledge between the tiers, which leaves me enough room to position and secure the flowers onto the cake.

Cake Portion Guide – Different Sized Tier Combinations

To figure out what size of tiers you should use for a big consequence or nuptials, I highly recommend reviewing a block portion guide, similar the i below! It shares the number of servings of different sized tiered cakes.

This cake portion guide also shows combinations of different sized tiers, which is extremely helpful.

Information technology'll help you see what options y'all have for however many people you need to feed. This volition also assist you determine what makes the nearly sense with the cake design you programme to make.

Keep in heed there are tons of other options for tiered cakes that aren't included hither, so don't feel limited by this chart! These are merely the nigh common sized tiered cakes.

photo of chelsey white with her wedding cake sharing how many people it feed in her cake portion guide

Let Me Know What Y'all Think of This Cake Portion Guide

If you are making a tiered cake for the start time, I promise this block portion guide is helpful. I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below!

Delight allow me know if y'all accept whatever questions I didn't cover, or if you have any other tips or advice that would be helpful.