There is nothing like the buzz of being freshly engaged. That feeling where someone has unequivocally chosen you and you’ve chosen them in return is truly second to none. But if there is one thing that dampens the newly engaged flutter, it’s the moment you realise how much cash the best day of your life will set you back financially.
I know, I know, weddings are expensive. That’s nothing new. But I, just like many other bright-eyed, bushy tailed freshly betrothed people, I had no idea just how costly they’d become when I excitedly sat down to begin planning my wedding.
In the weeks after I got engaged, I started to email venues for general quotes. As responses from a range of stunning venues filled my inbox, I had a pretty swift reality check that had me thinking: maybe the picture-perfect wedding I’d always envisioned wasn’t on the cards for someone in my pay bracket.
I only became more disheartened when I spoke to people who’d already tied the knot and found that our budget — which I thought was quite the chunk of cashola — was pitiful in comparison to what they’d spent on their special day.
At first, the whole thing made me question whether my partner and I should have a wedding at all or just elope. But the more I thought about the important parts of a wedding, the more I wondered: Are weddings becoming more expensive, or has social media just warped our expectations of what weddings should look like?
To get some clarity, I spoke Nash Ingram, the chief wedding planner at Canvas House, a stunning venue in South Melbourne. Nash has almost 10 years experience as a wedding planner and if you ask her, social media has played a big role in the changing attitudes towards the Big Day™.
“To be honest, the cost of a wedding is whatever you want it to be. The problem is more about clients having champagne taste but on a beer budget,” Nash tells PEDESTRIAN.TV.
“Often clients will come to us with pictures of florals that they would like, and we have to explain that an installation like that would cost upwards of $10k, when they only have a $2k budget,” she explains.
“Lets face it, they want the visual dream that social media is selling them, and if we want to be truly honest, they want to go bigger and better than the last few weddings that they attended.”
According to the Australian Industry Wedding Report, the average cost of a wedding in Australia is $35,000.
While this amount varies from state to state — couples in NSW generally spend closer to $40K whilst couples in the NT spent around $25K — the report claims that couples in 2025 are spending 4.5 per cent more on weddings year-on-year and frequently extending their budgets by 28.5 per cent.
In other words, 64 per cent of couples are spending under $40K, 23 per cent are spending $40 to $59K and 13 per cent are dropping over $60K on their wedding. Quite the range, hey?
But, of course, it’s not so simple as growing expectations equaling growing wedding costs. The rising cost of living is also having an impact on prospective newlyweds and the wedding industry as a whole.
While Nash notes that she’s seen a shift in priorities, ultimately, she’s felt a decrease in the number of weddings at her venue, and says that her vendors and caterers are seeing the same. As a result, vendors and caterers are feeling the pressure to keep their prices as low as possible to stay competitive in a difficult market.
“We see a lot of clients opting for micro-weddings, or even smaller overseas weddings,” Nash shares.
“More couples are also paying for their own weddings or contributing a percentage towards it. Couples are a lot more careful when spending their own money than if mum and dad were paying for it.
“They are often getting married later, and have mortgages or kids, so the cost of living is a huge factor in what they are willing to spend.”
The Australian Wedding Report backs this claim, with couples inviting 28 fewer guests on average in order to stick to a budget, having longer engagements and even seeing 69 per cent of couples reduce their wedding budget due to cost of living concerns.
Perhaps the best thing to do is simply work out the things that are important to you and your partner and take it from there.
Maybe you do want to prioritise the flower arrangement over a sit down dinner, and that’s totally fine — even by skilled wedding planners like Nash.
“We always try our best to work through budgets with clients and their expectations,” she reassures.
Ultimately, weddings are not a necessity for a marriage. But for me, and many other couples tying the knot, there is something incredibly special about saying your vows in front of your loved ones and then having a big ol’ piss up after.
As far as I’m concerned, the key is to pick a budget that doesn’t make you fear for your future, plan within your means and focus on things that bring you both joy. After all, you might not have a wedding akin to one in the glossy pages of Vogue, but I’m willing to bet my own betrothal budget that the moment you find yourself standing at the end of the aisle with your number one, a signature cocktail or a hand-painted cursive sign won’t matter in the slightest.
Image credit: Kourtney Kardashian / Alex Cooper / Sofia Richie Grainge
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