How much do you order for 10, 25 or 50 guests? Checklist for your party
,
by Verpakkingdeals.nl
6 min reading time
How many cups, straws, candles, and picks do you need if 10, 25, or 50 people are coming? A calculation list with rules of thumb, target prices, and articles in stock.
The question that always comes too late on the evening itself: do we have enough? Enough cups, enough straws, enough candles on the cake. At a party, it rarely goes wrong with the big things — the music is on, the drinks are there — but it often goes wrong with the small, consumable items. And those are precisely the things you can't quickly buy at eleven o'clock at night.
Below is not an inspiration list, but a calculation list. For each item, a rule of thumb, elaborated for 10, 25, and 50 guests, with products currently in stock in our webshop and their costs. Calculate along and adjust for your party.
Start with the number of glasses, not the number of guests
The most common mistake is buying one cup per guest. In practice, someone puts their cup down, loses it, and grabs a new one. For a standing party of three hours or longer, you can assume two to three cups per person. For a seated dinner or a reception of an hour and a half, one and a half per person is more realistic.
Calculate coffee and tea separately. The Coffee Cups 150ml 100 Pieces cost €14.95 and, with one hundred pieces per pack, are usually enough in one go, even for fifty guests who all drink coffee twice. For spirits or toast moments, the Shot Glasses Set of 6 - 60 ml at €3.00 are handy: six per set, so you buy in increments of six.
Item
10 guests
25 guests
50 guests
Cups (standing party, 2.5 per person)
25
63
125
Coffee cups (2 per person)
20
50
100
Straws (1.5 per person)
15
38
75
Napkins (3 per person)
30
75
150
Satay skewers for snacks (5 per person)
50
125
250
Straws: choose the material first, then the quantity
Straws are cheap, so the temptation is great to buy three bags and be done with it. However, it pays to first think about what you're serving. Paper straws become soft in a drink that sits for a long time; this is not a problem for a quick drink, but it is for an afternoon in the garden.
Decorations: one eye-catcher and the rest is dressing
For decorations, the logic is different from consumables. You don't need more decorations as more guests arrive — you need more as the space gets bigger. A living room with thirty people needs only one striking element. A hall or a barn requires repetition.
Therefore, work with one eye-catcher at the entrance or where the cake is placed. A Balloon Arch (excluding balloons) costs €30.00; note that balloons are not included and must be purchased separately. The LED Balloons 5 pieces - yellow or multicolor at €2.95 are great when it gets dark early outside: five pieces per package, so three packages give you fifteen light points for €8.85.
For the rest of the space, cordoning off and marking works better than hanging things everywhere. With the Barrier Tape with Funny Text - 25 meters for €2.95, you can cordon off a corner or direct people past the cloakroom in one go. And save one Red Petals Party Popper / Confetti Cannon 28cm (€6.95) for the moment you really want to use it — one bang that everyone sees is worth more than ten at once.
The small things you only miss when they're not there
Envelopes for cards. Those who frequently organize parties will benefit from the Greeting Card Envelopes 156x220 mm - 500 pieces at €2.95 — five hundred pieces in one box, so that will keep you busy for a while.
A mug that won't break. The Sports and Coffee Mug Hard PVC 500 ml for €9.95 is designed to stay put, for example, behind the bar or for the person serving drinks all evening.
How to create your own list in ten minutes
Write down three numbers: the number of guests, the number of hours the party will last, and the number of drinks per hour you expect. Multiply the latter two, and you have the number of drinks per person. This number determines cups and straws. For food, calculate with the number of snacks per person, not the number of guests.
Then consciously add a margin. Ten percent extra on consumables is not waste but insurance: what's left over you can use at the next party, what's missing you can no longer solve on the evening itself. For items that come in sets of five, six, or ten, simply round up — that's usually exactly that margin.
Finally, order well in advance. Leading up to autumn and the holidays, orders increase, and small items sell out faster than large ones. If you already know you're organizing something in November, this is the month to make your list.
Get started
All mentioned items can be found in our collections Party Supplies, Straws, Glasses, and Balloons. If you have doubts about quantities for a specific party, or want to know if something is available in larger quantities? Email your guest count and the date to info@verpakkingdeals.nl and we will help you calculate.
Choosing a USB hub for working from home: 2.0 or 3.0, how many ports, and with switches
· 3 min reading time
Choosing a USB hub for working from home: 2.0 or 3.0, how many ports and with switchesYour desk needs three USB devices, but your laptop only has two ports. Or...
Power outages in autumn: emergency supplies you'll actually use
· 2 min reading time
Autumn Power Outages: Emergency Supplies You'll Actually Use October to December. Heating isn't in full swing yet, but the nights are getting long and cold. If a power outage strikes...
Choosing a power bank: capacity, charging speed, and weight compared
· 2 min reading time
Choosing a Power Bank: Capacity, Charging Speed, and Weight Compared Your phone dies when you're out and about. The classic emergency solution is a power bank. But what capacity do...
