Guides / Events
Buffet vs plated: which is actually cheaper for a wedding?
Buffets need more food and fewer servers. Plated needs less food and more servers. Which wins depends on the guest count.
Skip the reading. The tool does this maths for you, free, as you type.
Compare both for your guest countEveryone assumes buffet is the cheap option. It is cheaper on staff, because guests serve themselves, and dearer on food, because a buffet has to look full until the last guest sits down. Plated is the opposite. For the same guests the two totals are often closer than either side expects.
The formula
Food = per head × guests × (1 + waste). Servers = guests ÷ ratio, rounded up. Labour = servers × hours × wage. Add chafers and station rentals to the buffet. Compare the two totals.
What a good number looks like
More than $3 a head apart. Let the price decide unless the couple has a strong preference.
A wash. Pick on style and the room, not the money.
What to do about it
- Buffet waste runs 10 to 20%. Plated runs under 5%. Use your caterer's real numbers if they have them.
- 1 server per 40 for buffet, 1 per 20 for plated, 1 per 16 for a formal service.
- Family style sits between the two on both food and staff.
Now do it with your numbers.
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Compare both for your guest count