Transparent, realistic wedding numbers
Free Wedding Budget Calculator
Calculate realistic venue, catering, photo, and floral costs in seconds. Adjust industry benchmark allocations, experiment with guest counts, and plan your celebration with confidence.
Set Your Budget & Guest Count
Target spending ceiling
Total / 80 guests
45% allocation
12% safety cushion
Budget Allocation Breakdown
Industry benchmark allocation across 8 core categories. Adjust sliders to customize.
Category Allocations & Benchmarks
Venue & Catering
Venue rental, dinner, drinks, bar service, wedding cake, and staffing.
Photography & Video
Full-day photography coverage, second shooter, photo editing, and highlight film.
Attire & Beauty
Wedding dress or suit, tailoring, shoes, accessories, hair styling, and makeup.
Entertainment & Music
DJ, live wedding band, ceremony acoustic musicians, and sound / lighting equipment.
Flowers & Decor
Bouquets, buttonholes, ceremony arch, table centerpieces, and decorative signage.
Rings & Gifts
Wedding bands, wedding party thank-you gifts, and guest favours.
Stationery & Invites
Save-the-dates, invitations, order of service, menus, place cards, and postage.
Contingency / Buffer
Safety buffer for unexpected expenses, last-minute additions, overtime, and vendor tips.
Start a real budget tracker (Premium)
These estimates stay on this page. The budget tracker in your dashboard, part of Premium, is where real quotes go: log each supplier's cost, track deposits and due dates, and see what is left.
Free forever to build • No card required • Made in the UK
How the Benchmark Breakdown Works
Couples often find wedding budgeting overwhelming because prices vary widely. The starting split is a rule of thumb, not a survey: a common way to divide a budget that you then move to fit your own priorities.
Venue & Catering (45%)
Includes ceremony room hire, dinner courses, drinks packages (welcome drinks, table wine, and toast fizz), cake cutting, and staffing. This is your primary budget driver.
Photography & Video (12%)
Covers 8 to 10 hours of professional photography, travel, full digital delivery with printing rights, and highlights cinematography.
Attire & Beauty (9%)
Covers dress or suit purchase/rental, essential tailoring alterations, veil, shoes, accessories, and professional hair and makeup trials.
Entertainment & Music (8%)
Covers ceremony acoustic accompaniment, evening DJ or live band performance, audio equipment hire, and dancefloor lighting.
Flowers & Decor (7%)
Covers personal flowers (bouquets and buttonholes), ceremony floral backdrop, guest table centerpieces, candles, and styling accents.
Contingency Buffer (12%)
Reserves funds for surprise expenses: service charges, tips, vendor meals, unexpected weather contingencies, and last-minute travel.
Frequently Asked Questions
Wedding Budget Planning Advice
How much does an average wedding cost?
In the UK, couples spend an average of £20,000 to £30,000 on their wedding, while in the US the typical range is $30,000 to $35,000. Your reception venue and catering will almost always be your largest single expense, representing roughly 40% to 50% of your total spend.
What percentage of a wedding budget should go to each category?
Industry benchmarks recommend allocating approximately 45% for Venue & Catering, 12% for Photography & Video, 9% for Attire & Beauty, 8% for Entertainment & Music, 7% for Flowers & Decor, 4% for Rings & Gifts, 3% for Stationery & Invites, and holding 12% in reserve as a Contingency Buffer for unexpected charges.
How does guest count affect overall wedding costs?
Guest count is the biggest factor determining your final spend. Catering, drinks packages, tableware rentals, and stationery all scale on a per-head basis. In most venues, food and drink packages average £70–£140 ($90–$180) per guest, meaning adjusting your guest list by 15–20 guests can adjust your budget by thousands.
Why is a 12% contingency buffer recommended?
Hidden or last-minute expenses are common in wedding planning — such as garment alteration charges, delivery and setup fees, vendor meals, overtime, service charges, and weather backups. A contingency fund lets you handle surprises calmly without cutting high-priority vendors.
How does When Will You Marry help track our wedding budget?
When Will You Marry pairs your wedding website with an active wedding budget tracker. You can set category targets, log quotes and payment due dates, and monitor RSVPs all in one place — free to build, with no subscription.
From estimate to reality
Start a real budget tracker (Premium)
These figures stay on this page. Build your wedding website free, then enter your real quotes in the budget tracker, part of Premium: costs by category, deposits, due dates, and what is paid.
Made in the UK • Free forever to build • No card required