Pizza Catering Price per Person: How to Quote Weddings and Events
In the UK, pizza van catering for a wedding or private event typically costs £11 to £20 per head, with a minimum spend of £600 to £1,600 (plus VAT if the caterer is registered). Plan on 0.65–0.7 of a 12" pizza per adult when there are starters or dessert, and a whole pizza when it's the only course. Two people turn out 35–45 pizzas an hour, so 100 guests means close to a two-hour service.
How much does pizza catering cost per person?
Wedding listings for UK pizza vans cluster in a fairly tight band. What moves a quote from the bottom to the top is less the pizza than the minimum spend, the distance and what else is in the package.
| Offer | Price | What it usually covers |
|---|---|---|
| Entry-level van | From about £10–11 per head | Pizzas only, local travel |
| Typical wedding package | £15–20 per head | Pizzas, sides or garlic bread, staff |
| Minimum spend | £600–1,600 | Often 50+ covers, travel within a set radius |
| London weddings | Often £800–1,500 in total | Higher minimums, venue fees on top |
| Sit-down wedding caterer | Commonly £50–100+ per head | Three courses, waiting staff |
Pizza van figures: wedding supplier listings on Bridebook and AddToEvent, 2025–2026; some exclude VAT. Sit-down caterer figure is an indicative order of magnitude.
A typical package seen on those listings: an £850 minimum covering 50 pizzas or garlic breads, staff and travel within 45 miles. Next to a sit-down caterer, that is cheap, which is the point: pizza wins on price, so you don't need to win on price against the other pizza vans too. The vans charging £10 a head are usually quoting the food and forgetting the day.
Pizza's sweet spots at a wedding are the evening reception food (the 9pm slot when the day guests have had a three-course meal and the evening guests have had nothing), the welcome party the night before and the morning-after brunch. Birthdays, corporate summer parties and village fêtes follow the same logic with tighter budgets.
How many pizzas for 50 or 100 people?
Think in whole 12" (30 cm) pizzas, not slices. The ratios that hold up in practice:
- Pizza as the main, with starters or dessert: 0.65–0.7 pizza per adult, so 65–70 pizzas for 100 guests.
- Pizza as the whole meal: one 10–12" pizza per adult.
- Children: half a pizza.
- Evening reception after a wedding breakfast: 0.4–0.5 per guest. People are full; they want two slices and a dance.
| Guests | Pizza is the meal | With starters / dessert | Evening food |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | 25 | 17 | 10–12 |
| 50 | 50 | 33–35 | 20–25 |
| 75 | 75 | 49–53 | 30–38 |
| 100 | 100 | 65–70 | 40–50 |
| 150 | 150 | 98–105 | 60–75 |
Sharing service (pizzas cut into eight on boards, carried round or laid on a table) lowers the count and smooths the queue: everyone takes a slice of three pizzas instead of leaving half of one. For more than 60 guests it's the format we'd push for every time.
Can you actually bake that many on site?
Professional pizzaiolos report 5–8 pizzas per 15 minutes working alone and 9–11 with a helper. A wood-fired oven takes about five pizzas at a time at 60–90 seconds each, so the oven is rarely the bottleneck. Stretching and topping are.
Run the numbers before you sign: 100 guests × 0.7 = 70 pizzas. Alone that's more than two hours; with a helper, about 1 hour 45. If the couple wants everyone fed at once, you need a second pizzaiolo and a second prep bench, a service in waves (one table or board every five minutes), or a simpler product. Some operators par-bake bases and finish them in a hot holding cabinet, or switch to tray pizza (pizza al taglio), which only needs reheating and cutting.
How many pizzas an hour, alone or with help
How to build your quote
The rule: an event has to earn more than the evening you give up. Most underpriced quotes treat a wedding like a big takeaway order and forget the Saturday the van would otherwise have traded. Add up:
- Food cost per pizza × number of pizzas, plus sides, dessert and disposables (plates, napkins, boxes for leftovers).
- Labour for every person: dough and prep, travel, set-up, service, clean-down and the drive home. A two-hour service is easily 8–9 hours of work each.
- Travel: a radius included in the price (30–50 miles is common) and a per-mile or zone charge beyond it.
- Fuel: wood or gas. Build it into the per-head price rather than showing it as a line.
- Opportunity cost: the margin of the pitch or shop night you won't trade.
- Venue fees: many venues charge external caterers a pitch or concession fee, sometimes a percentage of your takings. Ask before quoting.
| Cost | Workings | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Food cost | 70 × £2.50 | £175 |
| Disposables | 100 × £0.25 | £25 |
| Labour | 2 × 9 h × £15 | £270 |
| Mileage | 60 miles × 55p | £33 |
| Gas or wood | £30 | |
| Total cost | ≈ £535 | |
| Sold at £15 a head (inc. VAT) | £1,500 → £1,250 ex VAT | Margin ≈ £715 |
| Sold at £10 a head (inc. VAT) | £1,000 → £833 ex VAT | Margin ≈ £300 |
Illustrative figures for a VAT-registered business. Swap in your own food cost and wage rate.
At £10 a head you've spent a whole Saturday for £300 between two people. If your pitch takes more than that on a normal Saturday, you're paying to work. Then present one all-inclusive price per head with a minimum spend, not ten line items. Take a 25–30% deposit to hold the date and final numbers 7–14 days before.
What to put in the offer
- A menu of 4–6 pizzas chosen in advance, with quantities per pizza. Less waste, faster prep.
- Dietary options: at least one vegetarian, and a gluten-free option in a fixed number, ordered ahead.
- Allergen information for every pizza, as in your shop or van (see our allergen guide).
- Timings: arrival, service start and finish.
- What the venue provides: flat, firm ground the van can reach, power (with the amperage you need), water, cover if it rains.
- Cancellation terms and what happens to the deposit.
Event enquiries mostly arrive as phone calls and Instagram DMs with no date and no guest count. An events page on your own site, with your packages, photos and an enquiry form (date, venue, guests, budget), turns "do you do weddings?" into enquiries you can price, while online ordering handles your normal nights.
VAT, alcohol, hygiene and insurance in the UK
- VAT: catering, including hot food served at events, is standard-rated at 20% (HMRC Notice 709/1). If you're registered, quote prices including VAT to private clients.
- Alcohol: selling drinks where there's no premises licence needs a Temporary Event Notice: £21, no more than 499 people at any time, submitted at least 10 clear working days before. Easier: let the venue or the couple handle the bar.
- Food business registration: register with the local authority at least 28 days before trading. A van is registered with the council where it's kept. Venues often ask for your food hygiene rating.
- Insurance: public and product liability. £5 million cover is the level most venues and event organisers ask to see.
Start a pizza van: the full guide
Is it worth it?
Yes for a van on a quiet weekday, or for a shop on its closing day. No on your busiest night unless it's priced for it. Track one number: margin per hour worked at the event, against the margin of a normal evening. If the event loses, raise the minimum next time or say no.
Frequently asked questions
How much does pizza catering cost per person?
UK pizza vans typically charge £11–20 per head, with minimum spends of £600–1,600. Distance, venue fees, staff hours and whether VAT is added move the price most.
How many pizzas for 50 people?
About 33–35 whole 12" pizzas if there's a starter or dessert, 45–50 if pizza is the whole meal, and 20–25 for evening food after a wedding breakfast. Children count as half.
How many pizzas can one pizzaiolo make an hour at an event?
Roughly 20–32 alone and 35–45 with a helper, because stretching and topping are the bottleneck, not the oven. For 100 guests, plan two stations or a two-hour service.
Should I charge travel separately?
Most vans include a radius (30–50 miles) and charge beyond it. Clients react better to one all-inclusive per-head price, so build travel, fuel and set-up into it and state a minimum spend.
Is an event worth closing my shop for?
Only if it earns more than a normal evening after travel, set-up and staff hours. If it's your busiest night, quote high or decline.
What should the client confirm before the event?
Final numbers 7–14 days before, the 4–6 pizzas chosen, allergies and dietary needs, access and flat ground for the van, power and water, timings, and the deposit.