Types of Cake: 17 Kinds of Cake and How to Package Them

Butter cakes and foam cakes

Bakers sort cakes by how they rise. Butter cakes start with fat, usually butter beaten with sugar or oil whisked into the batter, and rely on baking powder or baking soda for lift. Foam cakes get most of their rise from air whipped into eggs or egg whites, and use little or no fat.

How a cake is made decides how it should be packed. Light foam cakes crush easily, frosted layer cakes need headroom, and cakes made with cream cheese, whipped cream or ice cream have to stay cold.

Butter and oil cakes

• Butter cake (layer cake): butter and sugar are creamed together, then eggs, flour and milk are added. Yellow and white cakes are both butter cakes. They are usually baked in round pans, stacked in layers and frosted. Packaging: measure the finished height, including piped borders, and choose a box taller than that.
• Pound cake: originally a pound each of flour, butter, sugar and eggs, giving a dense, fine, buttery crumb. It is baked in a loaf or ring pan and often served plain or glazed. Packaging: a loaf box that fits snugly, so it doesn't slide.
• Chocolate cake: a broad family flavoured with cocoa or melted chocolate. Devil's food cake is a dark, rich version. Packaging: follow the shape; ganache and glossy frostings mark easily, so keep the lid clear.
• Red velvet cake: a buttermilk cake with a mild cocoa flavour and a deep red colour, usually from food colouring, finished with cream cheese frosting. Packaging: the frosting needs to stay chilled, and the white frosting shows every smudge from a box that is too small.
• Carrot cake: a moist, spiced cake made with grated carrot and oil, often with nuts or raisins, topped with cream cheese frosting. Packaging: keep it cold for the frosting and choose a box with room above the decoration.

Foam and sponge cakes

• Sponge cake: eggs and sugar are whipped until thick and pale, then flour is folded in. It is light and springy, and used for layered cakes, trifles and rolled cakes. Packaging: it compresses under weight, so never stack boxes on it.
• Genoise: a European sponge made by whipping whole eggs with sugar, then folding in flour and often melted butter. It is fairly dry on its own, so it is brushed with syrup and layered with cream or buttercream. Packaging: as for a layer cake, sized to the finished height.
• Chiffon cake: made with vegetable oil and egg yolks in the batter and whipped egg whites folded in, so it is both moist and very light. It is often baked in a tall tube pan. Packaging: needs a tall box and gentle handling.
• Angel food cake: made from whipped egg whites, sugar and flour, with no yolks or fat, giving a white, airy, slightly chewy crumb. It is baked in a tube pan and cooled upside down so it doesn't collapse. Packaging: a tall box with room on every side, since pressure leaves dents.
• Tres leches cake: a sponge or butter cake soaked in three kinds of milk, usually evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk and cream or whole milk, then topped with whipped cream. It is popular across Latin America. Packaging: it is wet and must stay cold, so it is usually sold in a lidded tray or pan, which then goes in a box or bag.

Cheesecakes, chilled, frozen and dense cakes

• Cheesecake: a creamy filling of cream cheese, eggs and sugar on a crust, often made from graham cracker crumbs in the US. New York-style cheesecake is baked and dense; no-bake versions set in the fridge. Packaging: keep it refrigerated, on a board, in a box that clears the topping.
• Flourless chocolate cake: made from chocolate, butter, eggs and sugar with no flour, so it bakes into a dense, fudgy, single layer. Packaging: a shallow box suits it, and it travels best chilled, when it is firm.
• Ice cream cake: layers of ice cream, often with a cake or cookie-crumb layer, finished with whipped topping. Packaging: it must stay frozen until it is served. A paperboard box doesn't insulate, and condensation can soften it, so keep pickup-to-freezer time short.
• Fruitcake: a dense cake packed with dried and candied fruit and nuts, sometimes soaked in spirits, and a holiday tradition in the US and UK. It keeps longer than most cakes. Packaging: a loaf box or gift box.

Cakes defined by their shape

• Bundt cake: named for the ring-shaped, fluted pan it is baked in rather than the batter, which is usually a butter or pound cake batter. It is often finished with a glaze. Packaging: a square box wider than the cake's diameter; let the glaze set before closing the lid.
• Sheet cake: a single layer baked in a large, shallow rectangular pan, frosted on top and cut into squares, which makes it the standard cake for parties and offices. Sizes are given as quarter, half and full sheet, though pans vary. Packaging: use a box made for sheet cakes, sized to your board.
• Cupcakes: single-serving cakes baked in paper liners in a muffin tin, in standard and mini sizes. Packaging: boxes with inserts, which have a cavity for each cupcake, stop them sliding and smearing their frosting.

Types of cake at a glance

For box dimensions to match each cake size, see the cake box sizes guide, which pairs 6, 8, 10 and 12 inch cakes with box bases and heights.

Printed cake boxes from Avco

Avco prints cake and pastry boxes with your logo in the USA, in 24 sizes from 5.5 x 2.75 x 4 inches up to 14 x 14 x 6 inches, plus half-sheet (19 x 14.5 x 5.5 inches) and quarter-sheet cake boxes. The tallest are 6 inches, so cakes taller than that, such as tiered cakes, need a purpose-made tall box.

Boxes come 50 or 100 to a bundle depending on size, with a 5-bundle minimum. Every order gets a free digital proof and a one-time $75 artwork setup, and production takes 7–10 business days after you approve the proof. Browse all custom bakery boxes, and use the bakery packaging checklist to plan the rest of your counter.

Frequently asked questions

What are the main types of cake?

Most cakes are either butter cakes, made with butter or oil and leavened with baking powder or soda, or foam cakes, which rise on whipped eggs. Cheesecake, ice cream cake and flourless chocolate cake are made differently again.

What is the difference between sponge cake and butter cake?

Butter cake starts with creamed butter and sugar and has a richer, moister crumb. Sponge cake rises on whipped eggs, uses little or no fat, and is lighter and springier.

What is the difference between chiffon and angel food cake?

Both are light foam cakes baked in tube pans. Chiffon contains oil and egg yolks, so it is moister and richer. Angel food uses only egg whites and no fat, so it is whiter and airier.

What size box do I need for a cake?

Choose a box 1 to 2 inches wider than the cake board and taller than the finished cake. The cake box sizes guide has a chart for common round and sheet cakes.