Betsy is the creator, head judge, and host of the widely popular television show Bake Week. Known publicly as "America's Grandmother," she carefully curates an image of domestic warmth and gracious hospitality. She lives at Grafton Manor, her sprawling childhood home in Vermont, where the competition is filmed. Accustomed to total authority over the production, she deeply resents the network's decision to add a co-host for the show's tenth season.

Stella is a former journalist who left her career following a traumatic incident with a past employer. She turned to baking to manage her severe anxiety and applied to Bake Week on a dare. As a former foster child, she finds a sense of stability in Betsy Martin's old cookbooks and views the competition as a chance to connect with her idol. The pressure of the cameras and the labyrinthine halls of Grafton Manor frequently trigger her panic attacks.

Hannah is a twenty-one-year-old server at a diner in Eden Lake, Minnesota. Desperate to escape her small-town life, she views Bake Week as a stepping stone to independence and a lucrative career. She approaches the competition with fierce ambition, carefully curating her reactions for the television cameras to maximize her screen time. Her desire for success makes her vulnerable to the influence of powerful figures in the industry.

Pradyumna is a wealthy former technology entrepreneur who sold his company for a fortune at a young age. He enters Bake Week lacking the competitive drive of his peers, using the experience primarily as a distraction from his underlying depression and boredom. He approaches baking loosely, preferring to experiment with ingredients rather than follow strict instructions.

Lottie is a retired nurse in her sixties who learned traditional baking techniques from her mother. She projects a calm, maternal energy that grounds the more anxious contestants. Unlike the others, she applies to Bake Week with an ulterior motive: she lived at Grafton Manor as a child and wishes to investigate the sudden disappearance of her mother fifty years prior.

Gerald is a high school math teacher from the Bronx who approaches baking as a precise scientific equation. Raised by an immigrant mother who ran her own bakery, he values discipline, exact measurements, and locally sourced ingredients. The chaotic environment of reality television severely frustrates his structured methods, especially when producers interrupt his process for better footage.

Archie is a renowned celebrity baker and the former host of the competition show Cutting Board. Brought in to co-host the tenth season of Bake Week, he introduces a harsher judging style and a brash, charismatic energy that clashes with the show's traditional tone. He uses his fame and influence to push boundaries, casually breaking set rules and inviting certain contestants into restricted areas.

Peter is an architectural restoration specialist who bakes as a way to show love for his family. He lacks the cutthroat ambition of his competitors, spending much of his time missing his husband and young daughter. His professional background makes him highly observant of Grafton Manor's Victorian-era design, allowing him to quickly deduce the locations of hidden spaces within the house.

Melanie is the lead coordinator for Bake Week. Over her tenure with the show, she has transformed from a novice assistant into a polished, highly ambitious producer. She manages the intense logistics of filming while increasingly attempting to wrestle creative control away from Betsy in the pursuit of higher ratings.

Graham is a cameraman assigned to film the contestants during Bake Week. He observes the tense dynamics of the set from behind the lens and holds a cynical view of the production environment, particularly regarding Betsy's overbearing management style.

Agnes is Lottie's mother, who worked as a cook and housekeeper for the Grafton family fifty years ago. A kind and gentle woman, she passed down her traditional baking skills to her daughter before vanishing abruptly when Lottie was a child.

Richard Grafton is Betsy's father and the former patriarch of Grafton Manor. He employed staff to maintain the sprawling estate and heavily enforced the separation between his family and the household help.

Francis is Betsy Martin's talent agent. He travels directly to Vermont to manage her career trajectory when leaked footage and network disputes threaten her position as the sole face of Bake Week.

Ben is Hannah's boyfriend who remains in their small town of Eden Lake, Minnesota. He supports her baking endeavors but fails to fully grasp the intensity of her ambition to escape their current lifestyle.