Budgeting

emilyb623

Hi Everyone! I'm trying to figure out a few things to finalize my budget, and wanted to see if you all might be able to weigh in to tell me if my costs seem about average, or if you might be able to provide feedback about what things "should" cost. I've shopped different quotes, but I'm having a pretty remote destination wedding in WV, so there are very few vendors (that I wouldn't have to pay to travel) to choose from. Any feedback on the below (just to get a sense where I stand relative to others) would be awesome.

Floral - $3,627 (ceremony and reception)

Catering and Rentals w/ staff for plated dinner for 150 - $14,757

DIY alcohol for 150 - beer and wine ONLY - $1,500 (is this too high?)

Wedding coordination - $1,500

I know it's hard to compare, but for a sense of context, I'm having to rent everything at my location, but I'm not really doing anything exorbitant. Thanks so much for your input! And congrats to everyone on their engagements  

CMGragain

I'm not sure what you are asking us.  Costs vary wildly in different parts of the country.

1.  What is your total budget.  Does that include cost of rings and honeymoon?
2.  How many guests total?
3.  What time of day is your ceremony?  This determines what time your reception will be held.

It isn't a question of how much individual items cost.  What can you afford within your budget?  Your wedding is far more costly than my daughter's brunch reception/church wedding.  Not all plans fit every occasion. 

Nymeru

Honestly, if you're spending about $21k total on your wedding, and it's not a super simple affair for 150 people, the costs seem about right to me, but it would be helpful to know what you're getting for the money. 

tammym1001

I don't think that you can really compare with other people because every area is different. Also, there area ton of things missing from you list so I'm guessing this isn't your total wedding budget. 

Just to give you an idea of how different it can be: My catering didn't include linens, but it did include alcohol so right there you can't even compare mine to yours.

MandyMost

emilyb623 said:

Hi Everyone! I'm trying to figure out a few things to finalize my budget, and wanted to see if you all might be able to weigh in to tell me if my costs seem about average, or if you might be able to provide feedback about what things "should" cost. I've shopped different quotes, but I'm having a pretty remote destination wedding in WV, so there are very few vendors (that I wouldn't have to pay to travel) to choose from. Any feedback on the below (just to get a sense where I stand relative to others) would be awesome.

Floral - $3,627 (ceremony and reception)

Catering and Rentals w/ staff for plated dinner for 150 - $14,757

DIY alcohol for 150 - beer and wine ONLY - $1,500 (is this too high?)

Wedding coordination - $1,500

I know it's hard to compare, but for a sense of context, I'm having to rent everything at my location, but I'm not really doing anything exorbitant. Thanks so much for your input! And congrats to everyone on their engagements  

If you break down the costs, that's about $100/head for the catering and rental costs. That seems reasonable to me since it includes all the waitstaff, as well as all the tables and chairs and linens and glassware. I'd assume you're getting  nice meal for that, though!

For the bar, that's only $10/person for open beer and wine? That seems like a great price! 

$3600 for flowers seems really high to me unless you're really going all out. Ask the florist for the breakdown--how much per centerpiece, per bouquet, per ceremony arrangement, etc. Maybe there is something you can cut. 

atlastmrsg

My numbers were all a little lower than that in Louisville, but I also had 120 not 150.  I'd say they're on par when broken down per head.  I didn't have a coordinator though, I just had a day of person who was $600.  My flowers were in the mid 2ks, but I also only had one bridesmaid--it was centerpieces that ran up my budget since I had a silver flower urn on each table, julep cups on all cocktail tables, bathroom vanities, and bars.  I provided the silver cups and urns.  I had to spend elsewhere--like on tent, dance floor, etc., too, so my total wouldn't match up exactly.  But for those line items, they don't seem really outlandish at first blush.