Cake pricing calculator: price per slice, takeaway and eat-in
A slice of cake has two prices in the UK. Taken away cold, cake is zero-rated, so there is no VAT on it. Eaten in the café, it is catering and carries 20% VAT. Charge the same for both and you make a different GP on each. This calculator shows both prices from one costing, and what a single shelf price really earns you.
Want it as an Excel workbook? See the Cake Pricing Calculator template, which also prices whole celebration cakes with your hours, decorations and overheads.
Enter the cost of the cake and the number of slices.
Why takeaway and eat-in prices differ
Cakes are food, and cold food to take away is zero-rated, so a takeaway slice has no VAT in its price. Once the customer sits down, the same slice is a supply in the course of catering, which is standard-rated at 20%. HMRC treats chocolate-covered cakes as cakes, so they stay zero-rated to take away; chocolate-covered biscuits do not, and they are standard-rated either way. (HMRC VAT notices 701/14 on food and 709/1 on catering are the detail.)
That 20% comes straight out of your margin if the board shows one price. At a £3.50 slice, takeaway brings in £3.50 but eat-in brings in £3.50 ÷ 1.2 = £2.92. If the slice costs 50p to make, that is 86% GP to go and 83% in; on a cheaper slice or a tighter price, the gap is wider.
Worked example: a victoria sponge
Our costed victoria sponge comes to £4.42 for the whole cake, or £0.37 a slice in 12. At 70% GP, a takeaway slice with 12p of packaging is £1.63, and an eat-in slice is £1.47 with the VAT on. Most cafés charge more than either, because 70% GP on a cake that cheap to make leaves little cash per slice; the calculator shows the cash margin as well, so you can price on that.
| Costed cake | Whole cake | Slices | Per slice | Eat-in at 70% GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victoria sponge | £4.42 | 12 | £0.37 | £1.47 |
| Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting | £7.79 | 16 | £0.49 | £1.95 |
| Chocolate brownies | £5.23 | 16 | £0.33 | £1.31 |
| Scones with jam and clotted cream | £9.64 | 12 | £0.80 | £3.21 |
Pricing a whole cake
Whole cakes sold to take away are zero-rated as well. Price them on the slice price times the slices, less something for the customer doing the cutting and taking the whole thing: 10–15% off the slice total is common, and it still clears your GP because there is no plate, no table and no wash-up. Celebration cakes are different again: the decoration time is the cost that matters, so price the hours as well as the ingredients.
Questions people ask
Do I charge VAT on cake?
Only if you are VAT-registered, and then only on cake eaten on your premises (20%). Cake sold cold to take away is zero-rated. If your turnover is under the VAT registration threshold and you are not registered, there is no VAT on either.
Can I charge the same price for takeaway and eat-in?
Yes; many cafés do, to keep the board simple. You just make less on the eat-in slice, because a sixth of the price is VAT. Set the shelf price box above to see the GP on both.
What GP should cakes make?
Cakes are usually one of the higher-margin lines in a café, often 70% GP or more, because the ingredients are cheap per slice. Watch the cash per slice as well as the percentage.
What should the cost include?
Every ingredient in the whole cake (sponge, filling, icing, decoration), divided by the slices you actually cut. For takeaway, add the box, bag or napkin per slice. Use the recipe cost calculator to cost the cake line by line.
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