Most Canadian couples spend between about $1 and $6 per guest on favours, which usually lands between $275 and $800 for the whole wedding. Bridebook's Canadian guide puts the typical total around $275, and the gap between a $1 candy bag and a $6 personalized keepsake is where your own decisions matter. Below you will find the numbers, a simple way to calculate your own budget, and what handmade cake pop favours cost from our bakery in Dundas.
TL;DR
- Plan on roughly $1 to $6 per guest in Canada, or about $275 to $800 in total, depending on how personalized and how handmade the favour is.
- Order for 110 to 115 favours if 100 guests are coming, and base the final count on RSVPs, not the invitation list.
- Our cake pops start at $42 per dozen (Classic Drizzle), which works out to $3.50 each before delivery. Finishes with more colour work cost more, up to $66 per dozen.
- Handmade favours need lead time. Dates, designs, allergen suitability and delivery are confirmed before we accept an order.
- If the budget is tight, a favour for each guest is optional. A smaller, better treat often beats a larger, forgettable one.
Table of Contents
- What couples in Canada actually spend
- Do you need favours at all?
- How to work out your own favour budget
- What different kinds of favours cost
- What handmade cake pop favours cost
- Ways to keep the cost down without a worse favour
- Planning handmade favours: lead time, allergens and logistics
- Order wedding cake pop favours from London's Sweets
- FAQ
- Sources
What couples in Canada actually spend
Three figures show up again and again in Canadian sources, and they agree more than they disagree.
- About $275 total. This is the average Canadian couples spend on favours, according to Bridebook. The same page notes that costs climb quickly with custom, handmade favours or a guest list of 120 or more.
- $2 to $5 per person. WeddingWire Canada says most favours work out to around that range.
- $1 to $6 per item. This is the wider spread Canadian industry estimates give, with the top end reserved for personalized or bespoke pieces. Premium favours for 100 guests can pass $500 in total.
At the low end, a DIY project using supplies from Canadian retailers can come in at roughly $0.15 to $1.22 per guest, according to Bargain Moose's cost estimates. That price excludes your time, which is the real cost of DIY the week before the wedding.
Where favours sit in the full wedding budget
Favours are a small line. Bridebook describes the average Canadian wedding as costing upwards of $30,000, and Today's Bride cites a range of $30,000 to $42,000 for 2025. Against those totals, a $275 favour spend is roughly 1%, and even $800 is a small fraction.
So the useful question is not whether favours are expensive. It is whether they are worth anything to your guests, and what else that money could do for them, such as better food or a longer bar.
Do you need favours at all?
No. Plenty of couples skip them. Tangerine's wedding-gift piece notes that couples are moving toward experiences or away from physical favours altogether. It also says that if you do give them, personalization is what makes a modest token feel meaningful.
That is the practical test. A favour guests eat at the reception, or take home and enjoy, has done its job. A favour that ends up on the table at the end of the night has not.
Good reasons to give favours:
- You want a visible thank-you at each place setting or on a dessert table.
- You have a theme or colour palette that a treat can carry.
- Many guests are travelling, and a small gesture feels right.
Good reasons to skip them:
- Your budget is tight and the guest count is large.
- You are already serving a dessert course or a late-night snack.
- You would rather put the money toward food, music or photography.
How to work out your own favour budget
The maths is short. Do it in this order.
- Count confirmed guests. Use RSVPs. Favours are generally one per guest, not one per couple.
- Add a buffer. Planning guides suggest ordering 10 to 15% above your confirmed count for last-minute additions or breakage, so 100 guests means 110 to 115 favours (UseCalcPro). For handmade items that cannot be replaced overnight, the buffer matters more.
- Set a per-favour ceiling. Pick a number between $1 and $6 that you are comfortable with.
- Multiply, then add extras. Packaging, tags, display and delivery are real costs. UseCalcPro's favour calculator treats packaging as its own line in the total, and so should you.
- Check the total against your overall budget. If favours exceed 2 to 3% of your overall wedding budget, which is the share Canadian industry estimates suggest is typical, reconsider the type rather than the quality.
Worked examples
These use the $1 to $6 range from the Canadian estimates above, not any particular product.
| Confirmed guests | Order with 10% buffer | At $2 each | At $4 each | At $6 each |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | 55 | $110 | $220 | $330 |
| 100 | 110 | $220 | $440 | $660 |
| 150 | 165 | $330 | $660 | $990 |
Notice how fast the buffer and the per-item price compound. At 150 guests, the difference between $2 and $6 favours is $660.
What different kinds of favours cost
| Type | Typical cost per guest | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| DIY (candy bags, seed packets, simple tags) | About $0.15 to $1.22 | Cheapest in cash, most expensive in time |
| Bought in bulk, lightly personalized | About $1 to $3 | Easy to order, but easy to forget |
| Handmade, small-batch treats | Often $3 to $6 | Made for your date and colours, needs lead time |
| Fully bespoke keepsakes | Above $6 | Premium totals can exceed $500 for 100 guests |
Edible favours sit across this whole range. Some couples choose seed packets as a keepsake that is not a sweet, and bulk seed sellers such as this supplier of edible-fruit vine seeds show how wide the options are. Check the growing zone and any import rules before you hand plants or seeds to guests across Canada.
For a deeper look at formats and planning, our guide to practical modern wedding favours goes through ideas by guest count and setting.
What handmade cake pop favours cost
We are a home-based bakery in Dundas, Ontario, and every cake pop we make is handmade, individually wrapped and shaped as a rounded rectangle on a natural wood stick. Pricing is per dozen, and these are the published starting prices:
| Line | From (per dozen) | Works out to, per cake pop |
|---|---|---|
| Classic Drizzle | $42 | $3.50 |
| Celebration Sprinkles | $48 | $4.00 |
| Signature Mix | $54 | $4.50 |
| Custom Colour Theme | $66 | $5.50 |
The per-pop figures are simply the dozen price divided by twelve. They sit inside the $1 to $6 range Canadian couples report, toward the middle and upper part of it. That reflects what you are buying: small-batch, hand-dipped work and individual wrapping, not a bulk candy bag.
To help with your own maths, here is what the starting prices mean in whole dozens:
| Guests | Dozens to consider | Classic Drizzle | Custom Colour Theme |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | 5 dozen (60 pops) | $210 | $330 |
| 100 | 9 dozen (108 pops) | $378 | $594 |
| 100 | 10 dozen (120 pops) | $420 | $660 |
Because cake pops come by the dozen, you will often round up to a convenient number, and the rounding doubles as your buffer. These are starting prices only. Your final price depends on the finish you choose, and delivery is charged separately. For a broader picture of what cake pops cost across the country, see our guide to cake pop prices in Canada.
What the finishes look like
We describe only what we actually make: hand-dipped coating, simple drizzle, sugar crystals, ordinary sprinkles, simple colour blocking and small piped dots. Custom colours let you match your palette. If you want a favour that looks like it belongs to your wedding, colour is usually the lever that does it, and it explains why the Custom Colour Theme line costs more than a plain drizzle.
Delivery, pickup and fees
Paid delivery can be requested within approximately 100 km of Dundas. That is not a promise of service across the whole radius. We confirm the exact address, availability, timing and fee before we accept each order, and we do not publish a delivery price. The details are on our delivery page for the Hamilton area. Add whatever fee is quoted to your per-guest number so there are no surprises.
Ways to keep the cost down without a worse favour
A smaller budget does not have to mean a weaker gesture.
- Give favours to fewer people. Some couples serve one favour per household or per table. That is your call, and it is cheaper.
- Make the favour do double duty. A cake pop at each place setting can double as a dessert or part of a dessert table that replaces the cake, so you are not paying for a favour on top of a full dessert course.
- Choose the simpler finish. A plain drizzle in your colour is the lowest starting price and still looks deliberate.
- Order on a confirmed headcount. Use RSVPs and round up to the next dozen rather than ordering from the invitation list. RSVP declines can run 10 to 20%, according to the same planning guidance.
- Skip separate packaging. Individually wrapped favours do not need an extra box or bag. Our food-safe packaging guide explains what to consider if you do add your own.
- Spend where guests notice. Guests remember the dessert table far more often than a favour stuffed in a bag. Spend more there, less on extras.
Planning handmade favours: lead time, allergens and logistics
Handmade favours trade speed for quality. Small bakeries have limited capacity, so ask early. A home-based bakery works within the rules for its kind of food business, which Ontario summarizes in its guide to starting a home-based food business.
What to settle with any maker, us included:
- Date and time. Nothing is guaranteed until confirmed. Send your wedding date and guest count as soon as you have both.
- Delivery address. Confirm the exact address and the delivery window, since venues have load-in rules.
- Allergens. In Canada, packaged foods that contain priority allergens such as milk, egg, wheat, soy or tree nuts need them declared on the label, as the Canadian Food Inspection Agency explains. If any of your guests have allergies, tell us before you order. We do not assume suitability: allergen suitability is confirmed or declined for each order.
- Design. Share your colours, any photos you like and the finish you want. We confirm what is achievable before we accept the order.
Orders are reviewed personally. You request an order through the form on our website, and nothing is final until we reply and confirm.
Order wedding cake pop favours from London's Sweets
If you want a favour that is handmade and matched to your colours, our wedding cake pop favours page shows the finishes and explains how to request an order. Prices start at $42 per dozen, and you can see all four lines on our main page. Send the form with your date, guest count, colours and delivery address, and we will confirm what we can do.
FAQ
How much should wedding favours cost?
Most Canadian couples spend about $1 to $6 per guest. Bridebook gives a typical total of around $275, while WeddingWire Canada suggests $2 to $5 per person for most favours. Choose a ceiling you are comfortable with and multiply it by your guest count plus a buffer.
How many wedding favours do I need for 100 guests?
Plan for 110 to 115 if you give one per guest. The buffer covers late additions and damaged items. With cake pops sold by the dozen, 9 dozen gives you 108 and 10 dozen gives you 120, so choose based on your final RSVP count.
Are wedding favours still worth it?
They are optional. Some couples now choose experiences or skip favours entirely, as Tangerine notes. If you give them, a treat guests will really eat or use, with a personal touch such as your colours, tends to be worth more than a generic item.
What is the cheapest way to do favours?
DIY is the lowest cash cost, from roughly $0.15 to $1.22 per guest, but it takes time. Another route is giving fewer favours, such as one per table, or choosing a simple finish on a handmade treat. Compare the cash saved against your free time in the final weeks.
Can I order cake pop favours for a wedding outside Hamilton?
Paid delivery can be requested within approximately 100 km of Dundas, but it is not guaranteed. We confirm your exact address, the timing and the fee before accepting the order, so send your venue address with your request.
Sources
- How Much Do Wedding Favors Cost in Canada? (Bridebook)
- Giving Gifts and Wedding Favours (WeddingWire Canada)
- 7 DIY wedding favour ideas for Canadian couples (Bargain Moose)
- Wedding Budget Breakdown Canada 2025 (Today's Bride)
- Wedding gifts newlyweds actually want (Tangerine)
- UseCalcPro
- Party Favor Calculator (UseCalcPro)
- Guide to Starting a Home-based Food Business (Ontario)
- Food allergen labelling (Canadian Food Inspection Agency)