It’s a recurring question during wedding planning: “Am I a sucker for paying this much?” Yes, you are. But what you really need to know is: “how much should I be paying?” or “What are other people paying?” Sure, the answer is always “it’s relative,” but we’ve done the research. And we have actionable answers; real data has been crunched into an interactive tool — the Wedding Price Guide — so you can enter your zip code and select the service you want to price (photographer, cake, flowers, DJ, etc.) and then see the low, high and average prices in your neighborhood.
STEP 1: You start by visiting the cost guide tool landing page.
STEP 2: Use the drop-down menu to select a category.
Note that we have gathered date on the following services:
Suits/tuxedo, wedding dress, ceremony officiator, DJ/MC, wedding day-of coordinator, engagement rings, food & drink, flowers & arrangements, limo rental, makeup service, save-the-date cards, cake/dessert, wedding ring for bride, photographer, thank-you cards, photo booth, musician/band, invitations & reply cards, hair service, full-service wedding coordinator, event rentals, venue. wedding ring for groom, videographer.
Next, you can type in any US zip code. The results page includes the name of your city (note Brooklyn below) and shows a graph with the lowest, average, and highest price — along with how much most couples spend (remember that an extreme number will throw off the average). You can always select a different service and/or a different zip code from the box on the right-hand side of the screen without having to go back to the main page.
STEP 3: Read the analysis and tips, save money on your wedding.
We don’t just leave you with some prices and hope you can figure out how to cut costs. Each result comes with a detailed explanation of what you need to know about prices and how to get better deals. These articles are also aggregated in our Cost Guide subsection of our Money hub.
STEP 4: Make informed decisions from now on.
If you want to save even more money, check out the hacks in our money section. There, you’ll also see our credit-card advice columns, married-life primers and our ultimate wedding budget spreadsheet. It’s pre-built with every cost you need to consider. Now you have no excuse to put this off.
