How Many Wedding Favors to Order Depends on These Factors
Trying to estimate the number of wedding favors you need to prepare without having too many extras go to waste can be quite tricky. Such wastage would indicate you’ve overspent.
Equally, only finding out on the wedding day that you’ve underestimated the number of favors you prepared is quite an embarrassing situation you’d try your best to avoid.
However, there are ways to estimate how many wedding favors to order that’s as close as possible to the actual number of favors needed on the wedding day. In other words, you can minimize the number of favors that you over-provide or under-provide.
Depending on the methods discussed in the following parts of the article, the general rule of thumb is to provide 10% more of the number you’ve estimated as a contingency.
How Many Wedding Favors To Order – The General Rule of Thumb
How many wedding favors do you need? How many wedding favors per table?
When you dive into further details, the general rule of thumb of 10% may not be practical in all situations.
In another one of our other articles where we break down the average cost of wedding favors, the additional 10% as contingency would be a better application for the total estimated number of favors of 200 units or less.
Say you have estimated the total number of guests attending your wedding to be 150. An extra of 15 units would seem reasonable to cover for any likely increase of guests beyond the estimated 150.
For any total number of estimated favors more than 200 units, an extra of 5% as contingency would be more reasonable.
Say the estimated total number of guests attending is 500 (Yes, it’s a big number but not entirely inconceivable for some large weddings). Then an extra of 25 units (5%) to match an increase of 25 guests out of the estimated 500 would seem like a reasonable quantity.
Unless of course, your initial estimated total number of 500 guests is wildly off the mark, in which case the extra 25 may not be sufficient to cover any increase.
On the same example of 5% contingency based on 500 guests, should there be a shortfall in the number of guests that attend the wedding day you won’t be left with a monstrous amount of leftover favors to take home.
So as a quick summary:
- Total estimated guests < 200, provide extra 10% contingency.
- Total estimated guests > 200, provide extra 5% contingency.
One important thing to note is the term “guests”, for the purpose of estimating the total number of wedding favors to prepare, should include your family members as well. They are technically not guests.
You may also wish to extend such a distinction to cover people you hire to run aspects of your wedding day, such as the serving crew and the photographers.
In this linked article, we try to define the various segments of people who’d be at your wedding that you’d want to prepare a favor for.
Where to Place Wedding Favors
Where (or how) you decide to distribute the favors can affect the number of favors you prepare.
Presently, wedding couples either do it one way or the other. It’s either, placing the favors where the guests are seated or have all the favors displayed at a central point where the guests can take one should they desire.
Placing One Favor at Each Seat
Placing favors at the guests would be seated makes estimating the number of favors a more straightforward exercise.
When one favor is placed at each seat, every guest would expect to keep one favor. When a guest expects one, you know you have to give one.
From the total number of seats you’ve prepared, multiply it by 110% and you should get your total number of favors with contingency built-in.
Such a seating arrangement though does mean that you generally need to have more favors prepared, compared to if you place all favors centrally. So it’s something you may want to consider.
Placing All Favors Centrally
This method does generally mean that you do not have to prepare one favor for each guest, thus saving you a little.
However, it actually makes estimating the total number of favors potentially wildly inaccurate. Of course, you’ll only be bothered by that if you want all guests to return home happy knowing they’ve gotten the desirable favor you’ve prepared for them.
Displaying the favors centrally can lead to 2 scenarios:
- The guests aren’t sure if they can take one, or rather, shy to take one. It’s normal and it happens. Therefore you end up with lots to take home with you.
- The edible favors you prepared are so inviting and tasty some guests take more than one, and some guests take more than the others. A worse scenario would be kids gobbling up the sweet chocolates you prepared as favors. No amount of chocolate can satisfy their ravenous appetite! So be forewarned!
Should you decide to place the favors centrally, the final estimated number becomes highly subjective depending on what you’re getting. As such, it’ll be entirely up to you. But as long as you carefully consider the factors, you won’t be far off.
Aside from the two places mentioned above, there are perhaps even more creative ways to display wedding favors you may wish to consider as they could potentially affect how many wedding favors to get.
What Types of Favors Are Most Practical
The possibilities are endless when you’re looking for something you can buy as favors for your wedding.
It is when you try to think of what you can get that the guests would actually want, keep or use, that it starts to require a bit more of imagination on your part.
In the other article discussing whether you should just give wedding favors, or give both favors and welcome gifts to your out-of-town guests, we touched on some examples of favors you can prepare for your guests.
Edible & Drink Wedding Favors
Edible favors and drink favors are universally the trends now. And for good reasons. These favors are surefire a way to ensure that almost none get left behind at the end of the wedding.
Well, almost…
The caveat here is that the food or drink is tasty. Or looks desirable enough that the guests would take home with them to consume at a later time.
Besides being practical for the obvious reason, the selection of edible or drink favors tend to be more easily customizable to match the wedding theme.
Take for instance, tea wedding favors provides an excellent level of customization due to the presence of various colors, flavors, and appearance combinations to match the wedding theme.
This is especially true when you think of the wide variety of exotic tea blends one can choose from.
These wedding favors can then be further complemented with a subtle touch of personalization via ribbons or custom wedding favor tags. Such a level of customization and personalization can accomplish a very exquisite look for your wedding favors that is sure to dazzle your guests.
All that without breaking the bank!
If these types of favors pique your interest, read this article on some of the best drink wedding favors, or this one on edible wedding favors that are sure to make your wedding truly unforgettable for your guests.
Non-edible Wedding Favors
That said, non-food items can work if the wedding favor idea is one which carried with it a recognizable significance that the guests can immediately identify with.
Certainly easier said than done!
That is why wedding couples nowadays think more along the lines of edible or drink favors. They simply are safer practical choices as chances that the guests would consume them are relatively higher.
However, if indeed you still want to get some ideas of non-edible wedding favors for your wedding check out our list of affordable wedding favors that won’t hurt your wallet!
Other Things To Keep In Mind
Planning for your wedding is an exciting time for you and your partner. It’s a once a lifetime event that would remain in the memory for a long time. Through good times and the not-so-good ones as well.
As much as it is exciting, caution and moderation shall be exercised so as not to overspend beyond what’s comfortable for both of you.
It’s important to keep in mind that the wedding is only the start of a life-long journey for a newly-wed couple. You certainly do not want to start that journey by putting yourself in a less than favorable situation financially. Putting that sort of unnecessary stress so early on in a marriage is never going to be healthy.
Splashing out on the wedding can feel exhilarating, but the pain thereafter could be even more excruciating if you don’t exercise care to spend within your means.
As such, budget and spend wisely for the wedding and you’ll be sure to enjoy it more with less stress.
