Average wedding $27,852!!??!?!?!?

[luckystar112]

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Is that a sticker shock or what! Or maybe not, after all this is pricescope. With that being the "average" is it possible to have a semi-decent wedding with 100 guests for 10-15k??? Or should I get a second job?

 

[robbie3982]

I think it depends where you live. I''m getting married around Pittsburgh, PA and we''re having about 150 with a budget of about $13k and I don''t feel like I''m having to sacrifice a lot.

 

[luckystar112]

Well I know when I get married we''ll be having the reception at a beautiful lakehouse in the middle of nowhere, Virginia. And apparently my boyfriend''s grandmother is going to do all the flowers...so hopefully that''ll save a few grand!

 

[musey]

I'm a little surprised... and I would guess the study was primarily conducted among larger-city dwellers (they are the most accessible, after all) who are subject to hiked pricing.

We're trying to do it for $20k (100ish guests) in Los Angeles and that's a struggle, but only because we're being a little too picky on our reception venue and catering setup. If we didn't want fabulous food and an open bar, were instead willing to settle for merely "good" food and a cash bar, we could probably pull it off for under $15k (and this is in one of THE most expensive areas in the country!).

My cousin, on the other hand, got married on a beach in Florida with a restaurant reception for $6,000.

I think that the U.S. has cultivated a "spending society," and these $27,000 weddings are not out of necessity--they are simply what the bride & groom want. People could do it for less, they just don't want to! (of course, with the exception of probably New York City!!)

 

[musey]

Date: 3/7/2007 8:50:42 PM
Author: musey
these $27,000 weddings are not out of necessity--they are simply what the bride & groom want. People could do it for less, they just don''t want to!

I wanted to add that I, of course, don''t think there''s anything wrong with that

(provided it doesn''t drive you into debt!!)

 

[Jas12]

i think the average in canada (where i am from) is around 20k. We are spending around 30 for a resort-style wedding and we could have done it for a lot less, but not get exactly what we wanted...it''s insane for one day...and i wonder if i will feel that it was worth it...

 

[Scooba]

check out this site, it tells you the average for your area, it used to tell you by specific city and now it just does it by area, which is not as cool at all

http://www.costofwedding.com/?gclid=CPuik96g5IoCFQi9VAodTRtV2A

 

[cara]

Until I see some sampling methodology I''m not going to entirely believe the costofwedding numbers - there are just too many people that do some non-traditional method of getting married for me to believe it, as part of the WIC they have no motivation to do proper sampling, and for any one sided distribution (ie, you can''t spend a negative amount) you probably want to look at mode not mean or some other metric. However, I do think it is a reasonable guideline (on the upper-middle end) about what you would pay for "traditional" weddings with all the trappings, and the relative costs between different regions probably has meaning.. Kind of like Rap sheet is a high cash asking price in NYC, yes the number has meaning but its not exactly the average sale price.

 

[cara]

Of course its possible to have a semi-decent wedding on that amount. Whats not possible is to have a formal sit down meal for a 100+ people on a summer Saturday night at a nice place with a beautiful outdoor space for the ceremony and a private indoor space that can hold everyone in one room with reasonably priced lodging and airport access but still in the expensive area of the country where I live now. You have to do what Mara did - have a lovely destination wedding for 30 ppl in Maui - or make some other scheme change - gorgeous Sunday brunch or more casual beach bash or something. Or have it in rural hometown X.

You have to figure out what you want and start pricing things in your area. The knot budgeters are a good place to start in that if you punch in $15k they''ll give you a breakdown of how much you should plan on spending on each thing. Of course you don''t have to follow it. If you want to wear a $100 dress, put that $ somewhere else. But when you start getting price quotes on big items, and they are WAY over what the budget sheet says you can spend, then you need to make a scheme change. Cut back people, change day, time, location, decide to elope on beautiful beach, etc.

 

[Mara]

most of our friends that have gotten married in the last 5 years have spent about $35-75k on their weddings. some of it was paid for by them, some paid for by parents, some was a mix, etc. some were not even THAT nice really and some really did seem worth it (if you can afford it)!

if we had ours locally here in SF Bay it would have probably ended up at around $25k and that would have been skimping on stuff big time....to have about 85 guests.

instead we had a destination wedding in Hawaii, where amazingly enough stuff was much cheaper than locally...and we had everything we wanted all for about $15k. plus it was a smaller group of 30, the most important people in our lives.

totally no regrets for not having the local wedding and spending the extra $10k!

 

[E B]

According to the website Diamonds Are Hot posted, people in my area (well, the area I'm getting married in) will spend an average $31,000. And that isn't Los Angeles....it's Texas, y'all!

Our budget is a solid $15k, and we're not skimping on anything. Please, don't fret....beautiful weddings can be had on any budget.

 

[bee*]

we had a study done on this in Ireland and the average over here is €34000 which is about $38500. We get ripped off over here for everything!

 

[eleguin]

According to that website: "On average, couples will spend $36,830 for their wedding in New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island NY-NJ-PA." We are having ours in Long Island and that number sounds about right. The contracts we''ve already signed for vendors total up to just about $35k and there will be some more for additional stuff. I think we are spending about $50k altogether with the honeymoon. I do feel like it''s kind of hard to have a nice formal sitdown wedding for 150 people on a Sat evening for much less than that unless you cut out a lot of things. The quality of the reception venues were fairly on par with the price.

 

[basil]

I could easily easily spend that much without trying very hard or being particularly extravagant. Especially if you include the wedding bands, bridesmaid''s dresses, etc. Tables, chairs, linens, place settings, glassware, taxes, gratuity. Eek. Hopefully I won''t.

 

[ephemery1]

Date: 3/8/2007 8:55:15 AM
Author: eleguin
According to that website: ''On average, couples will spend $36,830 for their wedding in New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island NY-NJ-PA.'' We are having ours in Long Island and that number sounds about right. The contracts we''ve already signed for vendors total up to just about $35k and there will be some more for additional stuff. I think we are spending about $50k altogether with the honeymoon. I do feel like it''s kind of hard to have a nice formal sitdown wedding for 150 people on a Sat evening for much less than that unless you cut out a lot of things. The quality of the reception venues were fairly on par with the price.

We are in PA, and our total costs will be in Eleguin''s range too. The most expensive part for us is the reception site and food/alcohol... at $170/head for 200 guests... that''s already $35k. I would have preferred to keep it smaller (and the costs down), but our families are inviting a lot of friends/acquaintances... and since they''re the ones paying, it''s kind of hard to argue.

 

[Jas12]

just thinking about this a little more...in addition to less than perfect sampling methods, there is also the issue of what people include as part of their wedding budget...when i stated that i am spending around 30k, i am including nearly everything in that quote....tips for vendors, breakfast food on the morning of the wedding, gas to get the the resort, fake eyelashes, spanx pants etc. the list is extensive

...all these extras add up to thousands in some cases and are often just absorbed during the months of lead-up to the wedding...i wonder if this is accounted for?

 

[Pandora II]

Average cost of a wedding in the UK in 2006 was ... £18,490!! Yes that is GBP not US$, so at todays exchange rate we are talking: $35,653.53

Frightening.

I''m hoping to come in at around £14k GBP maximum - that does not include my e-ring or the honeymoon.

For that amount, we are inviting 120 guests, I am bringing all the alcohol over from Italy, we are having the cheapest menu option which is a buffet with ham, poached salmon and turkey followed by strawberries and cream. The flowers will all be done by my mother''s cleaning lady, 2 of my mothers friends and me, the cake will cost £50 from Marks & Spencer for 3 tiers, I''m making my BM''s dresses and I don''t need any cars or transport.

I''m budgeting 1k max for my dress, and all my printing/stationery should come in at around £200.

I''m desperate to keep costs down, but my venue was £3,300 just to hire it, then corkage is £8 a bottle and the menu is £25 a head.

I''m hugely lucky that my father is paying for most of it - I''m paying for my dress, shoes etc, the BM''s dresses etc and all the favours and extra bits and pieces.

FI thinks his father may well pay for our honeymoon which would be amazing. My father is very traditional and believes in paying for his daughters weddings (3 of us - poor man!), so I hope my brother marries someone whose father feels the same as my father won''t be helping out.

 

[chickflick]

That seems high to me but what do I know? Our wedding and reception were $3K for 55 people and we''re just as happily married as if we''d spent ten times that, plus our guests are still talking about how nice and fun our wedding was so I don''t think we missed out on much. I do understand that our kind of wedding isn''t for everyone and it all depends on your priorities but sheesh, that''s a lot of money.

 

[janinegirly]

it is a lot, but def makes sense.
if you have a traditional sit down dinner, the average is usually $100 a head (at least on e.coast). That''s 10K for 80 guests includ tax, gratuity, etc, etc.

3K is considered a bargain here for photographer, band, and in some cases flower. That''s another 9K.

Then there''s incidentals (but all necessary): limo, bridal party gifts, DRESS , rings, priest fees, invitations, hair, makeup, and if you''re very lucky and do a lot of bargaining you might come in under 30K, but pretty darn difficult. and that''s if you opt out of videographer, favors, cocktail hour music!

it''s crazy..if i''d known all of this, not sure if i would have opted for the traditional wedding!

 

[JCJD]

Ha! We spent 20,000 LESS than the "average" for 100 guests, including our 2K honeymoon! If we were to add in the rehearsal dinner (dh''s dad paid) and the BM dresses and GM tuxes (which they paid for themselves), the total cost MIGHT come to about $10,000.

 

[Blenheim]

According to the website that Diamonds are Hot posted, the average for the DC area is about $40,000. We''re having ours for a lot less than that. I think that the key is to throw out all ideas of what you "have to have" -- band, limo, favors, etc -- and to think about is actually important to you. For example, we''re hiring a bagpiper to play during the ceremony (about $300) and we''re either having the restaurant we''re having the reception in play their normal jazz music (free) or we''re using some jazz cds we already own (cost is already sunk, so essentially free). That''s about 10% of the cost that Janine was giving for a band. Also, if you want to have the typical sit-down meal, keep all of the incidentals in mind when shopping around for venues and caterers. We discovered that having the reception at a restaurant that our family loves and that often does weddings was less expensive than having a similar reception elsewhere, because there''s no site charge and they supply all of the linens, chairs, etc. (We could have done the reception for much less, but the food was one of the things that''s really important to us.)

 

[janinegirly]

i agree that you can def do for cheaper than the average, but if you want the standard traditional wedding (but willing to go for cheaper venues/vendors), it''s tough to get below 30K in major cities or surrounding areas.
for the girls that came in quite a bit lower...that''s awesome! mounting expenses are depressing!

 

[Bpham]

Hi Mara,

I am planning a Feb. ''08 wedding in Maui. How did you do your wedding for 15k????!??!??!?!
Granted, we are having about 80 people...so that would be about 30k. We are at about 40k for ceremony, reception. Did you get married at a hotel? Did you use an outside vendor for floral, table and linen rentals?? If you have any suggestions, I totally welcome and really appreciate it. I just can''t imagine paying so much for a wedding, so if i can cut costs anywhere, it would help a ton!

Thanks again!!

bp

 

[Mara]

Date: 3/18/2007 2:17:54 AM
Author: Bpham
Hi Mara,

I am planning a Feb. ''08 wedding in Maui. How did you do your wedding for 15k????!??!??!?!
Granted, we are having about 80 people...so that would be about 30k. We are at about 40k for ceremony, reception. Did you get married at a hotel? Did you use an outside vendor for floral, table and linen rentals?? If you have any suggestions, I totally welcome and really appreciate it. I just can''t imagine paying so much for a wedding, so if i can cut costs anywhere, it would help a ton!

Thanks again!!

bp

Well we only had 30 people so it was MUCH cheaper. We paid about $60 per head for the food, so that was only $1800 but for 80 it would have been basically triple that.

Also we didn''t have it at a hotel...we rented out this huge manager''s house on this plantation and also everyone stayed in cottages around the plantation (there were 80 cottages)...and we got married in front of the house on the lawn overlooking the ocean. So the rental fee was only about $1000 and then the rental of the house for a week (we had family and a few friends stay with us there also, it was a huge 3000 sq ft home) was like $2000. Liquor was only about $2k because they had their own on-site brewery and also they made us special mixed drinks as well. We used outside vendors for table and linens etc...florals, etc. We used outside vendors for everything. Flowers cost the most...hehe, I think we paid $1500 total. And we got a ton. Cake was only $200 and the gal was one of the best bakers on the island. Hair and makeup was about $500 and we brought a photographer with us from SF who we wanted to use...he agreed to split costs with us so we paid $2k and $500 for his lodging and airfare..it was a GREAT deal because he wanted to continue to build his portfolio and he also shot the rehearsal dinner for free!

Maui is more expensive than Kauai I would imagine though. And when we got married 3 years ago, Kauai was not AS popular as it is now to get married in Hawaii, so I think things may be a bit more inflated than before. But my old roommate actually got married on Maui the same year as us and I believe she paid more for her wedding, probably more like $25k. But they used a hotel and it was more expensive.

Anyway, I think with a hotel you might be a bit more constrained than we were with what you can do and where you can go since so many places require you use their own people or people they recommend. Our plantation manager was sooo flexible and they do weddings all the time. The island is so small also they know all the vendors. It worked out great. Hope this helps, have fun!

 

[fisherofmengirly]

Date: 3/8/2007 1:43:20 AM
Author: EBree
According to the website Diamonds Are Hot posted, people in my area (well, the area I''m getting married in) will spend an average $31,000. And that isn''t Los Angeles....it''s Texas, y''all!

Our budget is a solid $15k, and we''re not skimping on anything. Please, don''t fret....beautiful weddings can be had on any budget.

Totally agree with that. There is no way we would have ever dreamed of spending that kind of money on a wedding, which is really just one day that begins what is the rest of your life.

What you spend really doesn''t matter. I think a lot of people get stuck in thinking it *has* to cost a lot to be married, and that''s just not true. There seems to be some stigma that an inexpensive wedding is "white trashy" or something, but you really can have a wedding without going in debt, or having anyone else go in debt, especially when you spend the time to do some things yourself, and when you decide what you want, not what others want you to want!

Then again, some people enjoy having huge, elaborate weddings. To each their own!

 

[Maisie]

My husband and I are going to fly from the UK to Vegas to renew our vows. It will cost us around £6000 ($11,643) and thats just us two! I am insisting on upgraded flights as I have never flown that far and don''t want to be squished in economy!

It will also be more than our original wedding cost!!

Maisie