The staff cost of an event is every hour your team works, from leaving your kitchen to getting back, plus their travel and meals, divided by the number of guests. The usual mistake is counting only service hours. A server who works a four-hour party is on the clock for seven or eight once you count the drive, the setup and the breakdown, and those hours get paid too.
Count the hours door to door
For each person on the team, write down five blocks:
- Drive out, loaded with hotel pans, chafing dishes and trays.
- Setup: laying out the buffet, reheating, plating starters, setting tables if that is part of the job.
- Service: the hours the client sees.
- Breakdown and cleanup: packing down, scraping and stacking dirty pans, counting rented plates.
- Drive back and unloading at your kitchen.
You and your kitchen assistant also have the prep hours before the event: chopping, marinating, baking the buns, portioning the slaw. Those hours can go here or into the food cost, but in one place only. Count them twice and your quote is too high; leave them out and you work for free. The guide on labour cost shows how to turn kitchen time into a cost per hour.
The staff costs that are not hours
- Travel home: if the party ends at midnight, servers get a cab or rideshare home. Either you pay it, or they ask for a higher hourly rate to cover it.
- Staff meals: nobody works eight hours without eating. A plate per person has a cost, even if it comes out of your own pans.
- Minimum shifts: if someone charges a minimum shift even when you need them for three hours, cost the full shift.
- Uniforms and laundry: if you supply them, spread the cost over the year's events.
How many people you need
There is no correct number of guests per server. It depends on the style (buffet, plated, passed canapés), the distance from kitchen to tables and whether there is a bar to run. Use your own records: after every event, note how many servers you brought, how many guests came and whether it was enough. After five or six events you will have your own table by service style, which is worth more than any rule of thumb.
Worked example: a 60-guest burger and salad buffet
A garden birthday party with a buffet of smash burgers, grilled chicken, two salads and brownies. Four hours of service. The team: you as lead cook and driver, one kitchen assistant and two servers. The rates are the ones you pay; your van's running cost goes under transport, not staff.
| Person | Total hours | Rate per hour | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| You (lead cook) | 10 | $25 | $250 |
| Kitchen assistant | 9 | $18 | $162 |
| 2 servers | 7 each | $16 | $224 |
| Hours subtotal | $636 |
The two servers: 2 × 7 × 16 = $224.
Then add:
- Rideshares home for the two servers: 2 × $20 = $40
- Staff meals: 4 people × $6 = $24
Total staff cost: 636 + 40 + 24 = $700
Staff cost per guest: 700 ÷ 60 = $11.67
Now the version many caterers quote: only the four service hours for each person.
- You: 4 × 25 = $100
- Assistant: 4 × 18 = $72
- Servers: 2 × 4 × 16 = $128
- Total: $300, which is 300 ÷ 60 = $5.00 per guest
The difference: 700 − 300 = $400 per event, $6.67 per guest. Quote at $5.00 and that $400 comes out of your margin or your own pay. Do three events like this in a month and it is $1,200.
Putting it into the quote
Staff cost goes into the per-person price together with food, disposables and transport. The guide on quoting catering per person puts the whole quote together, and the per-person catering quote tool gives you the price once you have each cost.
Two things change with the guest count:
- Staff goes up in steps. From 60 to 70 guests you may still manage with two servers; at 90 you need a third. When a client raises the number, check whether you crossed a step.
- Fewer guests, higher cost per guest. If the same team serves 40 people, it is 700 ÷ 40 = $17.50 per guest. That is why a minimum guest count or a fixed service charge makes sense.
Overtime
Work out what one more hour of the team that stays costs you. In the example, if all four stay: 25 + 18 + 2 × 16 = $75 an hour. Add your margin and write it in the quote as the overtime rate per hour. If late finishes push up the ride home, include that too.
Employment rules
This guide gives no minimum wage or employment-law figures. How to engage casual event staff, what you must pay and which taxes or contributions apply depend on where you work. Check your local rules or ask an accountant before setting your rates, because the answer changes your cost per hour.
To see how staff fits with the rest of an events business, read the catering and events guide, and for the other costs of the day, rentals, disposables and transport.
Do it with the calculator
Put the buffet recipes into the food cost calculator and add the staff as an event cost; it shows how much labour weighs in each plate and what price you need for your margin.
Frequently asked questions
How many servers do I need per guest?
It depends on the service style, the venue layout and whether drinks are being poured. Use what has worked at your own past events and write it down by service type: buffet, plated or passed canapés.
Should I include my own hours in staff cost?
Yes. Put your hours in at an hourly rate, like anyone else on the team. If you leave yourself out, the event looks profitable and your work ends up free.
What should I pay event staff?
Whatever you agree within your local employment rules. Check minimum pay, how to engage casual staff and any payroll obligations with your local labour authority or an accountant before you set your rates.
How do I charge when an event runs late?
Put an overtime rate per hour in the quote, based on the hourly cost of everyone who stays. The client then knows what an extra hour costs before asking for it.