Wedding Budget Breakdown

October 18, 2021 (0) Comments

Budget, Budget, Budget! That’s the only thing you’ll hear for the first few weeks during your wedding planning process. But it’s SO important. You cannot pick your wedding venue or flowers until you have your budget! 

The last thing you want to do is not have a budget and accrue a lot of wedding bills in your first days as a married couple. The point is, that being in copious amounts of debt is an awful way to start your marriage. 

After a few months of being engaged, sit down with your partner and figure out a budget. Set your ego aside and let your parents help! Trust me, this is what they want. Your parents would never offer to help if they couldn’t afford it financially. Besides, most parents have been dreaming about this day. 

As you can imagine, there are so many things you have to spend money on. From engagement parties to the honeymoon, it’s a lot of money. Or I should say, it can be a lot of money. If you’re a very casual person, it might not cost you too much. I’ve seen beautiful $2,000 weddings before.

If you’re wondering how much other couples spend on their wedding, $28,000 is the average wedding cost in America. Having an established budget will ensure a beautiful wedding whether you have $100,000 or $10,000 or $1,000. 

Wedding Budget Guideline: 

The bulk of the budget will go to food, drinks, and venue site fee for many couples. 

Here’s a wedding budget percentage breakdown: 

• Favors: 1%
• Transportation: 1%
• Nails / lashes / hair / spa: 1% 
• Wedding cake: 2%
• Church / Chapel / Synagogue: 2% 
• Ceremony music: 2%
• Invitations and announcements: 2% 
• Hair and makeup for bride / bridal party: 3%
• Groom’s formalwear: 3%
• Rehearsal dinner: 3% 
• Reception music: 4% 
• Wedding Dress: 4%
• Flowers: 7%
• Videography: 7% 
• Photography: 7%
• Wedding Rings: 7%
• Reception (site, food, drinks, decoration): 44% 

Of course, if you are non-religious, you have that 2% to spare on other things. Overall, this breakdown will help you stay on track when it comes to wedding expenses. Inevitably, things will cost more than you expect so put a 10% buffer into your budget. 

How to Cut Wedding Costs

If you’ve implemented the 10% buffer and you’re still over budget, you may want to reconsider some things. But the key to a great wedding is knowing where and when to spend and save. So, “how do I cut wedding costs?” Read below. 

The biggest expense for a wedding is the guest list. Look to trim that down. If you can’t decide whether to invite Stacey from college or Jessica from work, think about how you would feel if you saw them after your wedding. You’re going to feel “guilty” no matter what but how guilty? Can you get over it? Also, will these people matter to you in 5 years? Do you want to see photos of them 20 years from now? 

Off-site weddings are gorgeous but they are much more expensive. Maybe ditch that plan and go with an on-site reception that already includes tables, chairs, and silverware in the price. All I’m saying is, don’t limit your options. Stay open-minded and be reasonable. 

Consider moving your wedding date to during the week, like a Thursday. Or you could have it on a Sunday. It’ll be much cheaper than having a Friday or Saturday wedding since those days are the most popular. In addition, choose a non-popular wedding month. April – July and holidays are very popular wedding times. If you’re not too picky, having your wedding in February could save you a lot of money. 

And find a venue that is beautiful on its own. This way you can save money on decorations. 

Lastly, if you’re offering liquor, limit the alcoholic beverages to beer, wine, and maybe a signature cocktail. Hard alcohol like tequila or vodka is much more expensive. 

Speaking of alcohol, move your ceremony to earlier in the day. Why? Food and beverage consumption will be much lower. Think about it: if you have your ceremony start at 11 am, most people will come on a full stomach from breakfast and it’s too early to be taking shots. When people eat less and drink less, it’ll lower your costs. 

Finally, skip favors. It’s a nice gesture but let’s be honest, you’ve spent a lot of money already on your guests. If you have a huge wedding cake or a dessert station, place plastic bags or containers for people to take some home. Or allow them to take the centerpieces and flowers. And if you don’t have enough of those to give out, write them each a personalized thank you card. 

Don’t feel bad for cutting on costs. If the guests truly care about you and your marriage, they’ll be thankful just for the invitation. 

Best Wedding Splurges 

If you find that you have extra money to spend, consider yourself lucky. Most brides are ripping their hair out trying to stay within or under budget. But if you do have extra money to spend, there are a few things I’d highly suggest. 

First, if you are having a plated dinner, hire extra waitstaff. You don’t want half of your guests to be done with their food while the other half of your guests are still waiting to order. This way you’ll have much faster service. 

Get professional lighting! I personally think this should be part of everyone’s wedding but I get it – it’s extremely pricey. So take that extra money and throw it into professional lighting! Your wedding is only for a day but the pictures last a lifetime. So invest in good lighting. The worst thing you could do is overspend on flowers or decorations and then have your photos turn out mediocre. 

Speaking of photos, get extra prints. That way you can add them to your wedding album, gift them to close family and friends, or send them out along with your thank you cards. 

Good quality linens make such an impression. Not only are you going to have pictures taken during your ceremony and after, but reception pictures also play a huge role! Cheap linens will have wrinkles and creases which will show in all your photos! Yikes! Make sure the linens are smooth and clean. They should cover the legs of the table too. Do not make the mistake of getting the wrong-sized linens for your tables. 

Along with linens, get elevated chairs or background items. Chivari chairs or ghost chairs are a bit more expensive than a standard reception chair but they truly elevate an experience. They’re elegant and stylish. Background arches, especially during your ceremony, are gorgeous! This is a must-have for us if you have the money to splurge. The best thing about this is that you can use it as a photo booth area for your guests after your ceremony. Or bring it to your reception and use it behind the head table.

The thing is, there are so many options when it comes to splurging! At the end of the day, think about what is important to you and your partner. Do you guys care if the food isn’t filet mignon and lobster? Do you care if there isn’t a dessert station? Do you care if there aren’t floral centerpieces on every single table?  All of these are personal preferences so splurge on what will make you happy!