A sweet table and a party bag are not the same job. A sweet table is eaten under supervision, on the spot. A party bag goes home in someone else's car, and gets opened by someone else's child without you in the room — which changes what "suitable" actually means.
Individually wrapped beats loose, most of the time
Loose pick 'n' mix sweets work brilliantly for an in-house party where you control when and how they're eaten. For a bag going out the door, individually wrapped pieces are worth the small extra cost: they don't pick up smells from anything else in the bag, they're easier for another parent to check the ingredients on before handing them over, and they don't turn into a sticky mess in a child's coat pocket by the time anyone gets home.
Wrapped bubblegum, foil-wrapped chews and multipack lollies all do this well. Our Pocket Money and Multipacks & Cases collections are built around exactly this format — small, individually sealed pieces sold by the case.
Roughly 4-6 pieces per bag
Unlike catering a sweet table, where the working number is grams per person, party bags run on piece count. Four to six individually wrapped sweets is a sensible range for most ages — enough to feel generous without turning the bag into a sugar overload the other parents will remember you for.
A mix that works reliably: one chewy sweet, one fizzy sweet, and one novelty item with a bit of play value (a tongue painter, a bubblegum with a design to collect). Repeat the same three-item structure across every bag rather than trying to make each one different — it's faster to assemble and nobody compares bags at a party anyway.
The allergen point that's easy to miss
At your own party, you know what's in the room and can answer a question on the spot. A party bag leaves that context behind. Two easy fixes: keep sweets in their original individual wrappers rather than decanting a mixed bag of loose sweets, and print a small card listing what's included if you do mix things — most nut, egg and dairy concerns can be checked at a glance if the packaging or a list is there to check against.
Watch the age range
Hard boiled sweets and small lollipops carry a choking risk for younger children and are usually marked with an age guidance on the pack for that reason. If the party spans a wide age range, lean toward chewy and gummy formats over hard sweets, and check pack guidance before including anything borderline.
Working out the cost
Buying cases rather than assembling from a mixed pick 'n' mix tray usually works out cheaper per bag once you're filling more than a handful — a case of 12-20 individually wrapped pieces splits down to a predictable per-bag cost, and there's no wastage from opened-but-unused loose stock afterwards.
Frequently asked questions
How many sweets per party bag?
Around 4-6 individually wrapped pieces is a reasonable range for most children's parties.
Should I label allergens?
Yes, if bags are leaving with other people's children — either keep items in their original wrappers or add a short printed list of contents.
Loose or individually wrapped?
Individually wrapped travels better and is easier for another parent to check before their child eats it — the better default for anything leaving your house.