52 Small Wedding Cakes with a Big Presence

Mini confections and one-tiered wedding cakes we could just eat up.

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Who says you need to cut into a massive wedding cake at your reception? If you're nervous about the idea of ordering and serving more cake than you and your guests can physically eat (or freeze!), you might want to consider downsizing. Small cakes in all of their forms—single-serving minis, petite one-tiers, Bundts, and beyond—can make just as big of an impression as super-sized confections. In fact, your guests might remember these little desserts more than they would the standard three-tier wedding cake.

Of course, this doesn't have to be an either/or decision. If you want to try out the small cake trend, order a petite version, like these pink drip cakes seen here, just for the head table. Topped with melty ganache, each of the these four-inch beauties serves two, and are meant to be shared. And when you think about it, splitting a dessert is a pretty symbolic way to kick off a new life together!

Ready to commit to the trend? Take personal cakes a step further by creating single-serving minis for each guest. Or, take a note from one of the brides featured here and place assorted one-tiered confections on every table—and then encourage guests to get up and mingle as they try each one. If you're looking for something tiny and nontraditional, try a cake made from hundreds of crepes, stuck together with Nutella. In short: if you have your heart set on something small, there's an option out there. We've made sure those options are beautiful—with gem-toned fondant, fresh flower toppers, playful textures and more, these little confections prove that bigger isn't always better.

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24 Karat

Kristin La Voie Photography

Click Here to Add a Pop of Metallic to Your Wedding

Tons of blue thistle flowers bring rich color contrast to this gold metallic confection.

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Quote Cake

Jenna Henderson Photography

Turn your cake into a tasty wedding sign by adding a favorite quote or verse.

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Watercolor and Gold

Meg Hamilton/Rodeo & Co.

Boho-Chic Wedding Ideas for Free-Spirited Brides and Grooms

Jewel-tone watercolor and lines of gold studs make this cake, by Jacques Fine European Pastries, perfect for a bohemian wedding.

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Cake for a Queen

Arte de Vie Photography

You Have to See This "Game of Thrones" Inspiration Shoot

This "crowned" wedding cake is fit for the Game of Thrones-obsessed bride.

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Mini Series

Justine Milton Photography

Topped with oversized peonies and roses, these sweet one- and two-tiered cakes look like they were plucked from a garden.

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Carved Cake

Kiera Lemonis Photography

This reimagined naked cake has the texture of an evergreen—perfect for "carving" in the lovebirds' initials.

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Stained Glass

Alyssa Ence Photography

A matte black three-tier gets a bejeweled-effect thanks to gem-toned fondant and gold lattice work.

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Individual Cakes with Buds

The Hendricks Photography

Barely-bloomed carnations make these personal wedding cakes even sweeter.

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Vintage Vibes

Elizabeth Fogarty Photography

Click Here to See More Vintage-Inspired Wedding Cakes

This tiny two-tier has a bit of vintage charm thanks to an elegant gold and floral crest.

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Baroque

Nadia Meli Photography

A spray of moody blooms dresses up this ornate gold and sapphire-blue beauty.

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Woven

Branco Prata

10 Ways to Make Your Wedding Extra Cozy

Bring a little coziness to the dessert table with a knit-inspired wedding cake.

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Cactus Cake

Tamara Grüner

This vanilla wedding cake from Addie Cakes is decorated with flowers and cacti, chosen specifically to match this couple's desert wedding décor.

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High Rise

Ace & Whim

This tiny Ruze House confection, decorated with a modern topper and bright posies, is the perfect compromise for a bride who didn't want a wedding cake. The cake stand—an upside down basket from Home Goods—gives the tiny cake some height.

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Little Floral Affair

Greg Finck

From the rose flavor to the fresh dahlias, roses, wax flower, and rice flower decorations, this narrow Synie confection is all about florals.

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Sugared Fruits

Patrick Moyer

More Fruit Cakes for the Berry-Obsessed Bride and Groom

Sugared grapes, pears, and figs bring an autumnal touch to this simple buttercream two-tier by Decadence Wedding Cakes.

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Green Scene

Rebecca Yale Photography

Creeping greens give this chocolate sponge wedding cake with Chantilly-cream frosting some drama.

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Flower Wallpaper

Jacqueline Campbell

Here's How to Make Your Own Paper Flower Cake Toppers

With a hand-painted base and paper flowers, this salted-caramel wedding cake is perfect for a small coastal California celebration.

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Tiered Berry Cake

Leo Patrone

Ringed with sugar flowers, greens, and blackberries, this simple cake brings a little bit of nature to a Washington, D.C., wedding.

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Apple Stack

Natalie Watson Photography

A mini apple stack cake, a traditional Appalachian dessert made with spiced cake and apple filling, pays homage to a bride's southern heritage. Plus, it looks adorable and festive.

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Cheese Cake

The De Jaureguis

More Wedding Cake Alternatives For the Nontraditional Couple

Interpret "cheesecake" literally and replace the groom's cake with a cheese tower topped with citrus.

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Fall Chocolate Bundt

Steve Cowell Photography

If you're planning a casual fall fête, opt for a less-formal Bundt cake—like this one, here, drizzled with a cream cheese glaze—adorned with rustic blooms.

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Abstract Jewel Tones

Abby Jiu Photography

With smudges of red and streaks of magenta, this cake is the perfect fit for a fashion-forward wedding.

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Nutella Crepe

Elizabeth Messina

This bride and turned your favorite food (Nutella crepes!) into the ultimate breakfast-inspired wedding cake.

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One-Tiered Surprise

Landon Jacob

See More Photos from Coleen and Brandon's Rustic Wedding

The flavor of this one-tier was a surprise not just for the guests, but also for the newlyweds, who waited until the reception to taste the raspberry crème and almond cake for the first time.

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Couture Cake

Gina Meola Photography

This two-tiered cake by Classic Cakes and Confections, was inspired by the bride's blush pink Monique Lhuillier gown.

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Momofuku Mini

Delbarr Moradi

Newlyweds Vanessa and Joe encouraged their guests to sample the Momofuku Milk Bar birthday cake and truffles before dinner even started—and to sample the offerings at the other tables, too.

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Art Deco Design

Mi Belle Photographers

This chocolate-ganache-and-whipped-cream combination shared center stage with two other Art Deco cakes: one carrot cake and the other Nutella hazelnut.

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Cookies-and-Cream

Laura Murray Photography

See More Unexpected Cake Toppers We're Loving Right Now

Blackberries and ivy accented a simple cookies-and-cream-flavored one-tiered cake by Tee and Cakes. The bride illustrated a cake topper to mimic herself and her groom.

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Eiffel Tower

Jose Villa

The next best thing to getting married in Paris? Cutting into an Eiffel-Tower-topped carrot cake.

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S'Mores

Jennifer Emerling

Heirloom LA delivered with a sinful s'mores concoction—a chocolate cake with marshmallow cream, graham cracker crust, and toasted marshmallow icing.

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Sparkle and Shine

Holland Photo Arts

Click for More Genius Dessert Bar Ideas

This couple originally planned to skip the traditional wedding cake in favor of a dessert bar, but changed their minds after spotting this cheeky wooden topper on Etsy. It ended up on a small gold fondant cake by Erica Fredericks of Design Cuisine, which rounded out a mini pie bar, a gelato cart, and a coffee-and-macaron station.

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Let Them (All!) Eat Cake

La Vie Photography

There was already a spread of options available on each table for dinner, so this couple decided to mix up the desserts as well. An all-white single-tiered cake from Lisa Dupar Catering was placed on each table, for those guests to share—the flavors varied from a shaved coconut cream to lemon chiffon and a chocolate mousse ganache.

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Itty-Bitty Buckwheat

Leila Brewster Photography

Since this couple already served lemongrass cotton cake and peanut cocoa nib meringues to their guests, they decided to make their cutting cake small and single-tiered. The couple went with a simple buckwheat cake with pickled blueberry and lemon cream from the Wythe Hotel caterers, Reynard. A handful of ranunculus dressed it up.

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Bundts, Six Ways

Natalie Neal

More DIY Wedding Ideas for the Creative Bride and Groom

At their colorful DIY wedding in Southern California, this couple decided that one cake wasn't enough. The couple had a friend make six differently flavored cakes using a variety of Bundt pans for the reception.

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Black and White

Max & Friends

To provide guests with options, this couple had both a chocolate and vanilla cake served at their reception. To be considerate of food allergies, both single-tiered treats from BabyCakes were gluten- and dairy-free.

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Tiny Triple-Layer

Elizabeth Messina Photography

A paper elephant created by Concarta topped this three-flavor A Touch of Magic dessert, which had layers of chocolate fudge, biscuit, and Baileys-spiked coffee cake.

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Pink Ombré

Sara & Rocky Photography

At a destination wedding in Mexico, ombré ruffles decorated this miniature coconut cake with ganache filling.

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Mini Cake Place Setting

Belathée Photography

See More Details from Hanna and Bret's Wedding

Each place at this Seatlle wedding was set with a mini cake (in all different flavors!) from The SweetSide so guests could "eat dessert first," said the bride.

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Wildflower Cake

Meg Smith Photography

This couple served The Scottish Bakehouse's small coconut cake with vanilla frosting and lemon curd, which was adorned with strawflowers and wild vetch.

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