photo by: Epic Events
Your wedding day - you have been probably dreaming about this day for years, and it’s finally happening! You’ve saved pictures from magazines, have thousands of pins saved to your Pinterest board, and probably can’t wait to start the planning process. If you haven’t already, you will likely soon have a conversation with your partner and maybe even family and friends about the B word… BUDGET. Your wedding day is probably the largest and most elaborate event you will plan. There can be a tremendous amount of detail and vendors to put together to make this one day happen, and the reality is, it all has to cost something. Let us be the first to tell you, it can add up very quickly! It’s important to set a realistic budget before you start committing to anything to ensure you are comfortable later down the line and don’t end up “wedding broke”.
We’ve broken down what you can expect your main wedding vendors/expenses to cost in Westchester County in New York as well as some unexpected costs you may not realize factor into your overall wedding budget.
Before we get to the nitty-gritty and break down these expenses, we want to be sure you have these conversations with your partner and anyone else contributing to your big day…
What are your top 3 priorities for the wedding day (any non-negotiables)?
Knowing your priorities and any non-negotiables can help you better distribute your budget knowing you may want to spend a little more in specific areas. Some examples are venue, food, entertainment, photography, etc.
Who is contributing financially and what are they covering?
As tradition has it, typically one partner is “responsible” for paying a majority of the wedding expenses, while the other partner may pay for smaller expenses like the rehearsal dinner. With that being said, now we often see partners split costs! Be sure to discuss with all parties financially involved what this looks like and what you are including in your overall wedding budget.
Updated as of October 2024:
Hey! We're here to update this blog post with more recent numbers to give you the most relevant info when planning your wedding. Everything below has been updated with 2025/2026 wedding numbers. As always, these numbers will depend on when you're getting married (month & day of week), where you're getting married, guest count, etc. We hope you find this helpful as you start to create your wedding budget - it can be a very overwhelming process!
XO, C&E
Alright, now let’s get to the breakdown:
On average a wedding in Westchester County in New York costs around $100,000 for a 150-person wedding during peak season. What does that actually mean when it comes to what that covers?
ITEM | PERCENT OF BUDGET | NOTES |
Venue/ Food & Beverage | 50% | Most plated meal packages during peak season are $275-295 pp |
Attire | 3-7% | Depending on the dress, chosen designer, custom vs rental suit/tux, this will vary! |
Beauty | 2-5% | Average hair & makeup services: $150-200 per service. Remember services for the bride will cost more! |
Favors/Gifts | 2-3% | Lots of couples are choosing to put the cost of guest favors towards a charity of their choice OR an exit station! |
Floral Decor | 6-8% | The average bridal bouquet cost $175-250, while the average low center piece ranges from $200-250 and the average tall centerpiece starts around $350 |
Stationary | 2-5% | Don't forget about your wedding day signage - welcome sign, signature drink sign, escort board, menu cards... |
Entertainment | 4-5% for DJ, 15-20% for a Band | Average DJ cost is $4,000-5,000 while the average 9 pcs band can start around $15,000 |
Photography/ Videography | 10-15% | If you plan to have both photo & video, plan to allocate a bit more! |
Transportation | 5% | This will vary depending on how much transportation you decide to provide. |
Wedding Planner | on average 10-15% | If you're looking for wedding management plan to allot 4-9% of your budget, but if you're looking for full planning plan to allot a bit more 15-20% |
Wedding Rings | 2 - 5% | |
Miscellaneous Costs | 5-10% | This many include things like vendor tips, bridal accessories, etc. |
We’ve broken down some of the most common and larger expenses to consider when organizing your wedding budget, but what items are you not thinking about? Don’t worry, we’ve been doing this for a while and are going to share additional items most couples forget to include in their budget:
Getting ready space; you may need to pay for your guest room the night before to have access early the next morning or add extra hours onto your venue rental so you have space to do hair & makeup and get ready
Additional beauty needs prior to the wedding day: hair and makeup trials, spray tan, hair extensions, etc.
Ceremony sound equipment
Shipping + postage for stationery; oversized envelopes, different shaped invitations, and vintage stamps all play a part in adding to cost
Welcome bag fees; some hotels charge per bag to hand out or deliver welcome gifts to your hotel guests. On average costs range between $3-5 per bag.
Late night/after hour charges for rental companies (and sometimes florists) to pick up and breakdown rental items.
There are so many factors that can impact the cost of a wedding - time of year, day of the week, number of guests, etc. and the costs mentioned above are an average! We hope this helps you create a realistic budget for your dream wedding!