$50,000 wedding in Phoenix, AZ.
This couple invited 240 people. The entire wedding day took place in a beautiful vineyard. The ceremony was outside, in the garden, and was enriched with romantic live music. Than they held a wedding reception with appetizers, a three course dinner, followed by a big party with a DJ and a live music band.
Click here to download the spreadsheet for this $50,000 wedding budget.
THE BRIDE | TOTAL $2,000.00 |
Dress for the Bride | $1,280.00 |
Dress Alterations and Pressing | $120.00 |
Shoes for the Bride | $260.00 |
Hair Stylists for the Bride | $220.00 |
Make-up and Nails Artist | $120.00 |
THE GROOM | TOTAL $410.00 |
Outfit for the Groom | $320.00 |
Hairdresser and Barber for the Groom | $90.00 |
CEREMONY | TOTAL $9,500.00 |
Venue for the wedding ceremony and reception (Vineyard for the whole day) | $8,500.00 |
Officiant Fee | $350.00 |
Live Music at the Ceremony | $400.00 |
Decorations | $250.00 |
RECEPTION | TOTAL $15,480.00 |
Appetizers (240 people) | $2,280.00 |
Wedding Catering - 3 course menu + drinks (240 people) | $12,000.00 |
Rentals (tables, chairs, linen etc) | $1,200.00 |
PARTY | TOTAL $11,866.00 |
Open bar (4 hours, 240 people) | $6,720.00 |
Party Snacks (at midnight) | $1,896.00 |
DJ for the Party | $900.00 |
Live Music Band | $1,600.00 |
Sound and Lights Equipment Rental | $500.00 |
Decorations | $250.00 |
WEDDING CAKE | TOTAL $1,140.00 |
Wedding Cake (242 servings) | $1,080.00 |
Delivery cost | $120.00 |
FLOWERS | TOTAL $2,090.00 |
Bouquet for the Bride | $380.00 |
Boutonniere for the Groom | $120.00 |
Bouquets for the 4 Bridesmaids | $340.00 |
Flowers for the Wedding Locations | $1,100.00 |
Delivery Cost | $150.00 |
MISCELLANEOUS | TOTAL $7,845.00 |
Wedding Planner | $2,250.00 |
Photographer | $1,500.00 |
Guest Book | $95.00 |
Transportation | $2,250.00 |
Gifts for People who helped you | $350.00 |
Wedding Insurance | $400.00 |
Other Expenses | $1,000.00 |
TOTAL BUDGET | $50,331.00 |
Download Excel spreadsheet with $50.000 wedding budget
Click here to download the spreadsheet for this $50,000 wedding budget.
Typical wedding budget breakdowns
The
infographic and table below give a high-level breakdown of wedding
budgets. The majority of the wedding budget is usually spent on the
wedding ceremony and reception. Not a big surprise as beverages and meals for the (large
number of) guests is frequently a high cost.
| 1 - The wedding outfit for the bride | 5% - 10% |
| 2 - The wedding outfit for the groom | 1% - 5% |
| 3 - The wedding ceremony | 5% - 15% |
| 4 - The wedding reception | 40% - 60% |
| 5 - The wedding cake | 2% - 4% |
| 6 - Wedding preparation costs | 1% - 2% |
| 7 - Flowers for the wedding day | 4% - 6% |
| 8 - Wedding photography | 5% - 10% |
| 9 - Miscellaneous | 10% - 15% |
Table with a breakdown of wedding budgets in percentages
Looking for a thorough rundown of all the most common expenditures?
We've put up a comprehensive checklist for a wedding budget breakdown. Creating a wedding budget has two primary goals.
The first is to assist you in gaining a deeper understanding of the various expenditures associated with your wedding and helping you in making informed decisions.
The second purpose is to allow you to maintain track and manage your spending as the big day approaches.
Here are more wedding budget examples with spreadsheet downloads
$10,000 wedding in St. Louis, MO
This couple invited 80 persons. The wedding ceremony was in the late afternoon followed by a reception with a cake cutting ceremony and an evening party with drinks, snacks and dancing.
Click here to go to this $10,000 wedding budget
$25,000 wedding in Orlando, FL.
This couple invited 100 people. Their wedding venue was a country club. After the ceremony, they had a cocktail hour with an open bar, followed by a seated three course dinner. The celebration continued with an evening party with a DJ and a live cover band.
Click here to go to this $25,000 wedding budget
$75,000 wedding in Los Angeles, CA.
This couple invited 150 people. They had rented a venue just outside LA for the whole day. After the wedding ceremony, there was a 2-hour reception with an open bar and appetizers, followed by a seated dinner with a four course menu. The day ended with a dance party with a great DJ.
Make a list of what you find important
As you can see in the examples above, there are many different things you can spend your money on, and everything can cost a wide range of money. For example, your wedding food catering can be a simple buffet, a very elaborate 7-course dinner, or you can choose to not organize food catering at all.
The choices you make are very personal. Maybe you don't care a lot about an expensive wedding dress, but you do want a cool dance party after you get married. Or maybe you care a lot about the food at your reception, and less for a cocktail hour.
When you need to choose what to spend your money on, you can make a list with the following categories:
1 - What do you find so important that you don't want to be on a budget? |
2 -What do you find important, but not important enough to pay whatever? |
3 - What would you find nice to have? |
4 - What would you doubt about? |
5 - What do you think unimportant, and isn't worth your money? |
This list can help you to also determine how much money you would want to spend on each category.
Look at our great wedding calculators
WEDDING BUDGET CALCULATOR
Do you need help on how much money to plan for you wedding? This Budget Calculator will estimate the costs. You can also download a customized spreadsheet for your wedding budget for free.
DRINKS CALCULATOR
Want to know how many drinks you need for your party? Use this Alcohol Calculator for Wedding or Party to find out how many soft drinks, beer, wine, cocktails and spirits you will need and what the estimated cost will be.
