Wedding Planning Series 2
Your Wedding Budget: The ‘Where’, The ‘Who’ and The ‘What’?
Planning a wedding can be daunting. It is likely to be the biggest, and most complex, celebration that you and your finance will ever host. The thought of selecting venues and vendors, juggling the expectations of friends and family, managing budgets, and finding a way to bring your vision of the perfect wedding to life, can be totally overwhelming. In this series of blogs, we will break down the planning process into bite-sized chunks.
Inevitably, there will be moments when wedding planning will be stressful, but with the help of these blogs, it doesn’t need to be torture. This, the second blog in the series, explores the tricky question of your wedding budget. We’ll discuss the “where”, “who” and “what” of paying for your wedding.ry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.
WHERE WILL THE MONEY COME FROM?
Of course, no wedding can be planned without considering that ever-dreaded thing - the budget. As of 2024, the average cost of a wedding in New Zealand is about $32,000, with the average size being between 80 and 120 guests. The average cost of catering for guests (i.e. food and drink) is $120 per person. These statistics provide a nice benchmark to work from when planning your wedding. Where do you sit relative to this average? What can you realistically afford for your big day?
It’s important to bear in mind that the $32,000 is just an average. It’s perfectly reasonable to spend more or less than this. In my experience, you can spend less than this and still have an amazing wedding. You will just need to work out where your priorities lie regarding what you spend your money on.
Clearly, one of the easiest ways to save money is to reduce your guest list. Not only will this have a big impact on your catering bill, but a smaller guest count means you can hire a smaller reception venue. Another upside is that the smaller the guest count, the more options there are for a reception venue. You might even find that some restaurants and hotels have a large enough room for you to use that won’t cost extra if you are purchasing all your food and beverages from them.
Some further food for thought - where will the money for your wedding come from? Savings, credit or loan? If it is credit, do you have a plan to clear the debt in a workable timeframe? Will paying off the debt make it difficult for you to live comfortably? You will also need to remember that, taking into account interest on credit cards and loans, your total spend on your wedding can be considerably higher than the original sum loaned.
If you are planning on only using savings, think about how much you can reasonably save per month. From this, you can calculate how long you might need to save before booking your wedding. For you as a couple, waiting 2 or more years will be more acceptable than going into debt.
If you are worried about how to pay for your wedding, could you consider taking on an extra part-time job? What about selling unwanted items via Trade-Me, or Facebook Marketplace? These places are also a great source of second-hand wedding items that can help save a little money.
If you need help to understand what you can afford, what your total spend might be after paying interest, and when you could reasonably afford a wedding, reach out to a financial adviser who can give you solid advice.
WHO PAYS?
Will you pay for your wedding using a joint account that you both pay into, or will you pay for discrete parts of the wedding separately? If you are both paying for discrete parts of the wedding, will you have the ultimate say over the parts you are paying for? For example, when I got married, hubby was responsible for sourcing and paying for all drinks. We chatted in general about what we’d like (a pinot gris, a lager, etc.), but he alone chose the specific labels. As planning gets further down the track, and invoices start rolling in, tensions over budget can arise. It is best at this early stage to talk through these questions to make budgeting and decision-making as clear and smooth as possible.
On the subject of ‘who pays’, could you possibly ask for a contribution from friends and family? They could do this in lieu of a wedding gift; though you will have to think about how much you could reasonably expect from this avenue. Asking others to help can come at a cost. Parents, in particular, might expect to have some control over your wedding planning choices if they pay for a considerable part of your wedding. How do you feel about this?
Everyone will have their own personal tolerances. A great solution is to ask them to pay for specific parts (e.g. transport, accommodations) and give them decision-making power and responsibility for that part. If this isn’t acceptable, are you willing to go without? Talk this through with your fiance so that you are united before approaching friends and family for financial help.
WHAT WILL YOU SPEND YOUR MONEY ON?Phew! We’ve covered some heavy-duty subjects. At this stage, I’d recommend you take a break and grab a snack!!
Ready to keep going? The next question to ask yourself once you’ve thought about where the budget will come from, is what will your budget cover? Will it be purely the wedding expenses, or will it be covering other events (think: guest accommodation, engagement parties, bachelor and/or bachelorette parties, a honeymoon, etc.). These will have a major impact on your budget. It would also be wise to set aside an amount of money as a contingency for unexpected costs. With all the good will in the world, some wedding vendors can’t guarantee that the amounts they estimate will stay the same. Many of us prepare design proposals and costing estimates many months in advance of a wedding. By the time we order the materials needed, prices may have increased.
Interestingly, weddings around the world tend to follow the same trends of budget allocation. I have included a summary graphic to show this. Hopefully, you will find this summary useful to:
Help you understand what kinds of things you might spend money on for a wedding.
Help you work out, roughly, what you might have to pay for the different elements of a wedding. For example, taking an average $32,000 wedding in NZ, expect to pay approximately $16,000 on your Reception venue hire, furniture hire, food and drink.
Wedding Budget Breakdown
For the New Zealand scene, we can break these categories down further. As of 2024, typical wedding-related costs include:
CEREMONY
● Celebrant: $550
● Wedding Bands: $800
RECEPTION
● Venue hire (including basic furniture, linens and staff): from $6000
● Food and Drink: &120/head
● Cake: $250
MUSIC AND ENTERTAINMENT
● Music Band: from $3000
● DJ: $2000
DRESS AND ATTIRE
● Wedding Dress: $3200
● Bride’s Hair: $180
● Bride’s Make-Up: $180
● Groom’s Suit and Shirt Hire: $160
PHOTO AND VIDEO
● Photography: $3200
● Videography: $1800
FLOWERS AND DECOR
● Decor hire, decor flowers: $3000
● Fresh Flower Bouquets: $250 (bride), $150 (attendant)
STATIONERY AND GUEST DETAILS
● Printed Save-The-Date cards: $1/unit
● Printed Invitations: $1.20/unit
● Printed RSVP Cards: $1/unit
● Printed Menus: $1/unit
● Printed Place Cards: $17/100
● Signage (e.g. A1 printed corflute): $60
OTHER POSSIBLE EXPENSES
● Guest Accommodation: $5000 (20 rooms)
● Bridesmaid/ Attendant dress: $280 each
● Flower child/girl outfit: $160 each
● Ring bearer/Page Boy outfit: $80
● Groomsmen’s Shirt and Suit Hire: $160 each
● Make-Up: $150 attendant, $60 flower-child
● Hair: $150 attendant, $80 flower-child
And don’t forget about any expenditure on planning, designing and styling services! In my opinion (and I could be biased), employing the services of a planner, stylist and/or coordinator will save you a huge amount of time, stress and can often save you money. Expect to pay from $1500.
THE BUDGET: SPLURGE OR SAVE?Armed with all this information about typical wedding expenditures and costs, you can start to think about how you might divide up your budget. This will depend on your priorities. Where will you ‘splurge’ (spend a little more than average) and where will you ‘save’ (pay a little less)?
For example, your dream wedding dress might cost $4500, so to afford it, you might decide to forego a videographer. Or, if you are a foodie, you might prefer to spend $150 per person on food and drink and reduce the number of guests you invite.
Every engaged couple is unique, so every wedding and every wedding budget breakdown, will be unique. There is no wrong way to spend your money, despite pressures and ‘advice’ from loved ones.
Talking of every wedding being unique, the list of expenses given above may not capture those extra little details that you specifically want for your wedding - those details that will make your wedding extra special and extra you. These could end up being your ‘splurges’. For example, you might want to shout your Wedding Party to some fabulous experiences - taking the boys golfing and the ladies to a beauty spa (or perhaps vice versa!). Maybe you would like to spend some money on getting little ‘thank you’ gifts for friends and family who helped with wedding planning. Maybe you want to hire a cultural performance group in addition to a DJ. If these extra ‘splurges’ are important to you, then you should include them in your budget - it may just mean identifying one or two extra areas that you will need to ‘save’ on.
Whilst you are in the early stages of wedding planning, it may be too hard to think about all the extra little details you’d like to include in your wedding. And that’s ok. For the time being, you can set aside an ‘extras’ sum in your budget - then, as you refine your wedding-day vision, you can adjust your budget accordingly.
SOME FINAL THOUGHTSThinking about your budget can be scary; talking about it with your fiance, even scarier. Sadly, it is a necessary, albeit awkward, thought and talk to have. But it need not be scary, as long as you are equipped with a good understanding of where your money is both coming from and where it will be going.
AUTHOR:Lyndal McKenzie
Owner and Lead Designer,
Little Lace Flower Company
Wedding and Event Styling, Floral Design and Bespoke Crafting
Photo Credits (in order of appearance): Canva, Michiele Hendes - Unsplash, Canva, Puspak D’Silva - Unsplash, Thomas Curryer - Unsplash, LLFC, Hannah Busing - Unsplash, Alexandra Gom - Unsplash, Canva.