How many napkins per person?

For a sit-down meal, allow 1-2 napkins per person (round up for messy food like BBQ or lobster). For a buffet, allow 2-3 per person as guests return to the food station multiple times. For cocktail and canape receptions, allow 3-4 per person as they double up as small plates. Paper napkins go faster than cloth, so add 20-30% extra.

Paper or cloth napkins?

Cloth napkins are more elegant for formal events and weddings. UK linen-hire suppliers charge roughly £0.40-£0.80 each including professional laundry and pressing (white plain napkins commonly around £0.75-£0.79). Paper napkins cost £0.02-£0.10 each but you need more per person and they are single-use. For casual parties and kids events, paper is the practical choice. Selecting "Linen / Cloth" above models one reusable napkin per guest per course and prices it on a per-napkin hire basis.

What size napkins should I get?

Approximate square sizes: cocktail 15-23cm (6-9 in), luncheon/tea 41-46cm (16-18 in), dinner 46-51cm (18-20 in), and formal 51-56cm (20-22 in). For formal dinners the larger sizes are standard; for buffets and casual events smaller luncheon or cocktail napkins work well. Treat these as ranges, as suppliers vary by a couple of centimetres.

Should I have extra napkins out?

Always put out 20-30% more paper napkins than you think you need. Place them at the food station, bar area, and on tables. For cloth napkins, have about 10% spare for late arrivals and accidents. People always use more napkins than expected. The Waste Buffer option above adds this allowance for you (15% by default for paper, capped at 10% for cloth).

Napkin Calculator — Napkin Quantities

Estimate napkin quantities for your event based on guest count and meal type.

Number of Guests

Total number of people attending

Napkin TypePaper is single-use and bought in packs; cloth is reusable, hired per napkin, and needs fewer per guest

Napkins per Guest

1-2 for a sit-down meal, 2-3 for a buffet/BBQ, 3-4 for cocktail/canape receptions (used as small plates)

Napkins per Pack

How many napkins come in each pack you are buying (paper only; ignored for cloth hire)

Cost per Pack

Price of one pack of paper napkins, or the hire price per cloth napkin (~£0.40-£0.80 inc. laundry)

How We Calculate This

This calculator estimates how many napkins you need and what they will cost, based on guest count, meal type and courses served.

Formula

Adult napkins = adult guests × napkins per guest × courses served
Children's napkins = child guests × napkins per guest × 0.5 × courses served (children use about half)
Total (buffered) = round up (adult + child napkins) × (1 + waste buffer %)
Packs to buy = round up total ÷ napkins per pack (paper); cloth is hired per napkin
Total cost = packs × cost per pack (paper), or napkins × cost per napkin (cloth)

Choosing Linen / Cloth models one reusable napkin per guest per course (rather than several single-use paper ones) and caps the spare allowance at 10%.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Last updated: February 2026

All calculations are estimates. Adjust quantities based on your guests and event type.