Who Pays for What in a Wedding?

The financial side of a wedding can definitely get complicated - should you stick to tradition or not? Who pays for what?

If you and your families do want to follow traditional wedding etiquette (or you're just intrigued!), then here is our guide on who should pay for what:

Bride's Family

Traditionally, the bride's parents would pay for the majority of the day, but recently more and more couples are paying for the wedding themselves.

If the bridal party generously want to contribute towards the wedding, these are some of the things they may want to pay for:

• The wedding reception, including the food, entertainment and music, and venue decorations
• The ceremony costs, including rental fees
• Wedding stationery, including wedding invitations, save the dates and order of service
• Wedding flowers
• The wedding dress and any accessories for the bride
• Photographer and videographer
• Bridesmaid's hotel fees
• Transport for the bridal party on the wedding day
• Wedding favours

The Bride

The bride will also have a few smaller things that she pays for on her own, which are mainly gifts:

• The groom’s wedding ring
• The groom’s wedding gift
• Gifts for the bridal party
• Hair and makeup for herself and the bridal party

Groom's Family

The groom's family traditionally pay for a lot less than the bride's. Here are some things that you could ask them to contribute towards:

• The rehearsal dinner, including food, decorations, and entertainment
• A wedding gift for the couple
• Corsages and buttonholes for both the bride and groom’s parents
• The alcohol at the wedding reception (optional)
• Hotel fees for groomsmen

The Groom

You can also expect for the groom to cover a few costs. These include:

• The marriage license
• The officiant's fee
• The engagement ring and wedding ring for the bride
• A wedding gift for the bride
• Gifts for the groomsmen
• Buttonholes for groomsmen
• Hotel fees for the groomsmen
• The honeymoon

Remember that these are just traditions, and that you don't need to stick to them. It's completely fine if you want to pay for your entire wedding yourselves, or if your families are happy to pay for the entire thing. The most important thing is that everyone is content with the decision, and that you have an amazing wedding day.

We hope you have found this blog interesting, and that it has helped you with your wedding finances. For more information, as well as wedding inspiration and ideas, head over to our other blogs.