Doughnut Order Form: 9 Fields, Deposit, and Pickup Date

On this page

1. The nine fields on a doughnut order form
2. The deposit rule that protects your pay
3. A worked example: one dozen glazed, costed
4. Mistakes that cost you money
5. Pickup date, pickup window, and no shows

A doughnut order form is the difference between a Saturday you control and a Saturday that controls you. You take the order once, in writing, with the money settled before you fry. The whole thing fits on one page you can copy into a notebook or keep on your phone.

The nine fields on a doughnut order form

Keep the form to one screen. She should be able to fill it in on her phone in the grocery line. If a field does not change what you make or when she picks it up, cut it. Nine fields covers a doughnut order without turning into a job application.

1. 1

   Name and phone

   One phone number you can text. That is how you confirm the order and how you reach her if the fryer dies on Friday night.

2. 2

   Pickup date and time

   Give a window, not a time. A 30 minute window on Saturday morning beats ‘sometime after 9’ every time.

3. 3

   Doughnut type

   Glazed, chocolate, filled, or a mix. Ask for the mix in dozens so you can plan one fryer run.

4. 4

   Count in dozens

   Half dozen, one dozen, two dozen. Dozens keep your costing simple and stop odd numbers that slow you down.

5. 5

   Deposit paid

   The amount and the date it landed. If it has not landed, the order is not on the list yet.

6. 6

   Balance due

   Price minus deposit, and how she pays it. Cash at pickup, or a card before she arrives.

7. 7

   Allergies and notes

   One line only. Nut fillings and gluten are the two that matter most for a doughnut order.

Leave off anything you will not act on. A field for ‘how did you hear about me’ is nice to know and useless on a Saturday. The same nine fields work for a baking order form if you sell more than doughnuts.

The deposit rule that protects your pay

Doughnuts are fried to order. If she cancels Friday night, you have already bought the oil and the filling. A deposit that covers your ingredients means a cancellation costs you time, not money.

Half up front is the common rule for custom orders. For a standing weekly order, take the first week as the deposit and bill the rest at pickup. Write the rule on the form so you never have to argue it later.

Take the deposit the way she already pays. Cash, Venmo, Cash App, and Zelle all work, and card payments can run through your own Stripe or Square account. The point is that the money lands before you start.

A worked example: one dozen glazed, costed

Say your numbers look like this for one dozen glazed rings. Ingredients come to $2.10. Boxes and liners add $0.90. You spend 45 minutes mixing, proofing, frying, and glazing, and you pay yourself $15 an hour, so labor is $11.25. Overhead, meaning your share of the oil, the power, and the delivery run, is $1.20. Total cost is $15.45. At $24 a dozen your margin is $8.55, about 36 percent.

Run the same math at $18 a dozen and the margin falls to $2.55. That is why the form asks for the count before you quote a price. You can see the margin before you say yes, and you can say no without guessing.

Three dozen in one run is where the math gets better. Ingredients and packaging triple to $9.00, but labor does not. The same 90 minutes covers three dozen, so labor per dozen drops. Overhead rises a little for the extra oil. Cost per dozen falls to about $11.30, and the margin per dozen rises to about $12.70.

Mistakes that cost you money

The first mistake is taking orders by text and losing track by Friday. The second is quoting a price before you know the count. The third is letting the pickup window slide to ‘whenever you can make it’.

Check three things before you commit. Can you fry that many inside the window you promised. Do you have the boxes and the filling on hand. And does the price still leave a margin after your time and your overhead.

Pickup date, pickup window, and no shows

Give a 30 minute window and say what happens if she misses it. Most home bakers hold the order for the window, then offer a second pickup the next day for a small fee. Put that sentence on the form so it reads as a rule, not a surprise.

If you also sell at a market, the same form takes preorders. She pays a deposit, you bring the box, and she skips the line. A bagel order form uses the same morning window idea if you sell both.

If you want the wider picture on deposits, pricing, and repeat customers, the selling guides hub collects them in one place. A pie order form is a good next read if you want to see the same nine fields on a different bake.

• Cupcake order form: 9 fields and a deposit
• Bagel order form: 6 fields and a pickup date
• Pie order form: 9 fields and a deposit rule

Common questions

How much deposit should I ask for on a doughnut order?

Half the total is the common rule, and it should at least cover your ingredients and boxes. For a standing weekly order, take the first week as the deposit and bill each pickup after that. Write the number on the form so it is not a negotiation.

Can I take doughnut orders by text instead of a form?

You can, but you will lose track by the third order. A form keeps the count, the pickup window, and the deposit in one place you can check on Saturday morning. If you prefer text, send the form as a link and let her fill it in.

What if she wants a number that is not a full dozen?

Quote a half dozen price and a dozen price, and let anything in between round up. Odd counts slow you down and cost you more per doughnut. A form that only offers half dozen and dozen keeps your fryer plan simple.

Do I need a deposit for a small order?

For one dozen picked up the same day, cash at pickup is fine. For anything you have to shop for, fill, or hold a slot for, take a deposit. The deposit is not about trust. It is about who carries the cost of a cancellation.

General information, not legal or tax advice. Deposit and home food rules vary by state, so check your own state's rules before you set a policy.