Wedding Budget Breakdown

This week's posts are designed to help you get a grip on your wedding budget. If you are newly engaged or just getting started in your wedding planning, one of the first things to do will be to set the budget.  

ALL weddings should have a budget! Even an over-the-top extravagant, expensive wedding has a budget.  Once you have established who is paying for the wedding (you, your parents, the groom's parents or a combination of all), and have figured out about how much you have and are willing to spend, try to set a maximum budget amount and stick to it!  You may go a bit over or you may stay under budget, but it certainly helps to have a plan!

Every couple is different so what is important to one, may not be to another. For example, many of our brides look for their venue first and that is what is very important to them. They may be willing to spend the bulk of their budget on the venue and skimp on things like the catering or the cake.  For other couples, photography or a particular band is extremely important to them so they are willing to spend the bulk of their budget on their photographer or band and spend less of their budget on the other items.   

The first thing to do in establishing a budget is to sit down with a budget worksheet like the one pictured above and determine the importance of the items listed.  We usually have brides number from most important to least important and this helps them adjust their budget according to what they want for their wedding day.

Generally, a wedding budget can be broken down as follows:

Ceremony and Reception {40% of Wedding Budget} - includes venue fees, rental fees, food and beverage service, cakes, officiant fees, etc.

Attire {10% of Wedding Budget}

Flowers and Decorations {10% of Wedding Budget}

Music/Entertainment {10% of Wedding Budget}

Photography and Video {10% of Wedding Budget}

Wedding Planner/Day-of Coordinator {10% of Wedding Budget}

Stationery {3% of Wedding Budget}

Wedding Rings {3% of Wedding Budget}

Favors and Gifts (2% of Wedding Budget}

Transportation {2% of Wedding Budget}

However these items are budgeted for, the total percentage should add up to 100%.  If you splurge one one item, you will have to make up for it and scale back on another item.  It is all about finding the right balance on what is most important to you and focusing your money on those parts of the wedding. The above information is simply a rule-of-thumb guide to help you budget your wedding day expenses!  

For a copy of a Budget Worksheet, leave a comment to this post or shoot us an email at amy{at}allthingsplannedbcs.com!