Wedding Wire has taken some of the mystery out of the actual costs of weddings overall in various big cities across the United States. The actual overall cost is something we know little about when we first start planning- usually leading to under budgeting. On average, couples budget around $16k for their ceremony/ reception costs, but will end up spending closer to $27k once they actually start to look at venues and begin to add items-on to their packages. This amount can vary based on the age of the couple getting married- as Millennials spend nearly $10k more than Gen X and those getting married for the first time tend to spend twice as much who have been married previously. First we will take a look at what the country-wide average wedding cost is. Afterwards, we'll see what couples spend in each wedding category and in each large state in the US.
The All-In Average Wedding Cost:
Engagement Ring $5000
Ceremony/ Reception (including vendors) $27,000
Honeymoon $4000 (I don't know about you, but I spent a lot more than this on my Honeymoon)
Total wedding Cost $36,000
The Most Expensive Cities in the US to Get Married:
1. New York
2. Boston
3. San Francisco
4. Washington, DC
5. Chicago
Below we see the average wedding-related costs by category across 2015, 2016 and 2017. By far the venue and catering add up to the most expensive portion of the wedding; followed by a live band and then by... you guessed it! PHOTOGRAPHY! :)
Below we see the average wedding cost by each major city in the US. As we saw earlier, The New York City area comes in at number one with an average cost of $45,000 and is ahead of number two by $8,000 dollars- quite a big margin!
Even if some couples in the NY/ NJ area have an average wedding cost around $45k for their big day doesn't mean it's actually they who are spending the cash! Below Wedding Wire created a great little chart that shows what percent couples, parents and others contribute towards the couples wedding cost. Overall around 56% of parents pull money out of their own savings to help pay for their child's big day and 20% of millennial couples don't spend a dime of their own money!
Check out Bridoll Photography's new packages for 2018-2019 couples and families! There is a package for every need at a cost everyone can afford- whether or not someone else helps pay for your big day! Bridoll Photography offers freelance services in Northern NJ and the surrounding areas incuding Bergen County, Essex County and also offers services in New York and Pensylvania.
Chynna DeStefano-Pasquale is the owner of Bridoll Photography and an avid lover of weddings. She has been serving the Wedding industry since 2016 and also offers family and party photography.