THE AVERAGE COST OF A WEDDING NOW EXCEEDS $20,000.00. 2011 Wedding Statistics Most Expensive Place to Get Married: Manhattan, $65,824 average spend Least Expensive Place to Get Married: West Virginia, $14,203 average spend Average Spent on a Wedding Dress: $1,121 Average Marrying Age: Bride, 29; Groom, 30 Average Number of Guests: 141 Average Number of Bridesmaids: 4-5 Average Number of Groomsmen: 4-5 Most Popular Month to Get Engaged: December (16%) Average Length of Engagement: 14 months Most Popular Month to Get Married: September (15%) Popular Wedding Colors: Blue (30%), Purple (25%), Green (24%) 2011 Average Wedding Budget Breakdown Overall Wedding (excluding honeymoon): $27,021 Wedding Venue (reception hall): $12,116 Wedding/Event Planner: $1,753 Reception Band: $3,122 Reception DJ: $929 Wedding Photographer: $2,299 Florist/Décor: $1,894 Videographer: $1,486 Wedding Dress: $1,121 Wedding Cake: $535 Ceremony Site: $1,599 Ceremony Musicians: $536 Invitations: $331 Limousine: $669 Favors: $217 Rehearsal Dinner: $1,078 Engagement Ring: $5,130 Figures based on respondents who hired a professional vendor for the service. Top 20 Most Expensive Places to Get Married Based on average wedding spend in 2011, these are the areas around the US where couples spend the most on their wedding. 1. NYC (Manhattan): $65,824 2. Chicago, IL: $53,069 3. NY Metro (Long Island, Hudson Valley and NYC Outer Boroughs): $50,087, $46,560, $40,356 4. Northern/Central NJ and Southern NJ: $46,600, $38,103 5. Rhode Island: $41,307 6. Santa Barbara/Ventura, CA, and Los Angeles, CA: $37,823, $37,690 7. Philadelphia, PA: $37,014 8. Boston, MA: $35,560 9. Southern Florida (Miami, Fort Lauderdale and surrounding areas): $34,465 10. Washington, DC, Northern Virginia and Suburban Maryland: $34,203 11. Connecticut: $33,789 12. Baltimore, MD: $32,702 13. Northern, CA, San Diego, CA, and Orange County/Inland Empire, CA: $32,261, $30,482, $29,826 14. Hawaii: $31,461 15. Pittsburgh, PA: $29,703 16. Louisiana: $28,790 *New to Top 20 List in 2011 17. Dallas, TX, Houston, TX, and Austin/San Antonio, TX: $28,717, $27,459, $27,735 18. California/Nevada (Sacramento, Tahoe and Reno): $28,028 19. Lehigh Valley/Poconos, PA: $27,339 *New to Top 20 List in 2011 20. Detroit, MI: $27,017 *New to Top 20 List in 2011 After the Vows... 72% of all brides say they would have spent more time choosing their reception entertainment. Almost 100% say they would have spent more of their budget on the entertainment. During wedding planning, Brides say their highest priority is their attire, followed by the reception site and caterer - reception entertainment is among the least of their priorities. Within one week after their reception, 78% of Brides say they would have made the entertainment their highest priority! When asked 81% of guests say the thing they remember most about a wedding Is the entertainment. 65% of all couples that chose a band to entertain at their wedding, said, if they had it to do over again, they would have chosen a disc jockey. *These statistics were published in St. Louis Bride & Groom Magazine in 2003. Sources include: Simmons, 2001; USA Today, 2002; National Bridal Service, 2001; The Knot, 2002; Brides Magazine, 2001. |