Holy Moly! Anyone else surprised at how much weddings cost?

Yup. I thought the national average of $30k was absurd and it must be for those really lavish or huge weddings. Surely not ours because we're lowkey and simple and want a smaller thing. Ha! Our budget? $30k.

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I think it depends on the area you are getting married in to. I'm getting married locally and having a pretty nice and decent wedding with about 100 guests and I'm able to stay in my $15k budget.

View Quoted Comment That's amazing!! We're getting married in VT. How about you?

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I'm getting married at a 72 acre resort in Sanger, CA up in the mountains. It's a very beautiful property and it was all inclusive which most likely saved me some money as well.

THIS!!! We're at around $25K in Northern Virginia and that's ONLY because we cut our guest list from 125 to 65. We were a little picky about the venue because of the food options since my FH is a chef, but I don't think we have anything crazy at all! Like where did my money disappear to?!

OMGosh. We've cut down our guest list IMMEDIATELY! And figured that small was better and more affordable.

View Quoted Comment I was freaking out at NoVa prices! We ended up choosing a small country club that will work really well for us, but I did get “wowed” but some of the NoVa venues!
We are older and not very trendy, and the wedding coordinator clicked with us so I think it’s going to be really nice. But I know when my daughters marry, if they marry here, I may need to sell a body part or two!

View Quoted Comment LOL you’re funny Samantha ❤️

I’m still tallying up our grand total and little buys really added up - $25 at Michaels here, $30 at David’s Bridal there - I’m afraid to see the total! So many little things I thought “I have to have” like bridal emergency kits, etc. when I didn’t even use everything.

I think that's pretty normal, most people don't start off with a realistic budget ... at least we didn't lol

Listen, at the price these venues want, I need them to offer EVERYTHING dress, cake, limo, dj, floral, EVERYTHING. The cost is shocking, I'm just glad we booked early. monthly we are paying 2500, until 7/22 soo. you do the math. EHH stress isn't even the word. At this point I don't even care about how I look as long as everyone eats their very expensive plate and drink all the very expensive liquor. Just saying

View Quoted Comment Wow yea that’s crazy expensive!! Not sure what areas you’re looking in but I’m getting married at dante club in Sacramento, CA and will be spending a little below $4,000 that’s with everything we want included!! Took a while to find a place in our budget so I’m glad we finally did 😊

It's got to be the area. We originally started with a December wedding in the mountains, for 5k. Then, we found a local venue that was less, completely all inclusive(literally, minus any floral, clothing, dj and photog, guests and invitations, lol), and now we're back to the mountains in April of 22. However, we doubled to $10k, bc we want a cabin to hold the entire guest list. We're only asking for our guests to pay their travels and we will cover the rest for 3 nights and 4 days, including meals(eaten at the cabin, that is. We're not covering any attractions, etc.). But, I actually heard back today from a cabin owner who is offering me less than the normal rate, bc it's in between spring break and Memorial Day, we're booking so far in advance, and we want a whole week instead of a few days. So, that may have just dropped from 5200 to 3500. That's also if we were to house all 52 people.

View Quoted Comment Wow. That’s amazing! I’d love to know your tips and tricks. 5k is our budget as well!

Yes way more expensive than expected! Our budget almost doubled, especially after we looked at honeymoon prices!

Weddings are as expensive as you make them. To make my point, host a dinner party for 6 people similar to what you want for your wedding. Keep track of how much time you spend organizing, shopping for food, prepping the food, cooking the food, cleaning your house, time spent having the dinner, then clean up. That’s just your time. Now add your costs: food, beverage, linens, tableware, decor. How much do you pay a day for your living space? Add that in. Insurance? Utilities? Business license and business liability insurance, property tax? How much do you want to get paid for all the work you did hosting your party? How many people will be working your wedding? Coordinator, chef, bar tender, servers, maintenance and cleanup. They all get paid to work your wedding. That’s also part of the price you’re quoted.
I’m not trying to be snarky, just wanting to shine a light on a myth. You only need up to 4 people to get married; you, your partner, officiant, and an officiant. Everything else is a choice and simply depends on if you’re willing to pay or not.

*witness (I can’t edit the op).

Yesss! We thought $14,000 would be a generous budget. Just kidding ... looking more like $23,000 FOR A WEEKDAY after we postponed from a Saturday morning 🤦🏽‍♀️

We got married in 2012. A small wedding of about 35 guests, at nice scenic outdoor venue that included decor, set up, clean up, coordinator. We brought in our own food from our favorite restaurant, and wine/ beer (I'm seeing now that many venues do not allow that). We had the wedding on a Thursday, got a family friend photographer who was starting out, and the dj is a friend who gave his service as a gift to us. We spent under 10k. Now we are planning our ten year vow renewal celebration and I am noticing how everything has sky rocketed like crazy lol!

View Quoted Comment Oh, I had my wedding (2017). By having our wedding off-season, on a weekday, we negotiated our site fee to $3K. But it took a few months.