May through October is considered Wedding Season in the U.S. If you have a wedding in the family to help plan or more importantly pay for, start budgeting for it.
Wedding planning website The Knot has published it’s annual survey, The Knot Real Weddings Study of about 12,000 couples who tied the knot in 2022 in the U.S.
The data is designed to help couples plan their nuptials but provides a snapshot of wedding costs in every state The Knot survey’s takeaway is inflation is increasing the overall cost of weddings.
The Knot survey shows nationwide couples revealed they spent on average, $30,000 in 2022 for the ceremony and reception. That is a $2,000 increase over the 2021 average and the highest figure in four years but still less than the nearly $34,000 spent on average in 2018 before COVID-19 limited or even prevented some gatherings for weddings.
Couples spent the most in 2022 on the venue, the engagement ring and a live band.
What Did A Wedding Cost In The Northwest in 2022
The Knot Survey broke out average costs for the Pacific Northwest;
- Washington: $23,000
- Idaho: $19,000
- Oregon: $19,000
Now the size of the ceremony and number of guests play a big factor in wedding prices and the survey revealed the average budget was $256 per person in 2022. Couples invited an average of 117 guests in 2022, up slightly from 2021.
Who Is Footing The Bill?
Another online wedding resource Zola says parents or in-laws are helping about one-third of couples with wedding expenses and only 9% are paying for everything. About 1/3 of couples are paying for some of the expenses and just 16% say they covered the entire bill.
To afford the expense of all or part of a $30,000 wedding, Zola reports about 29% of couples are using credit cards, about 1/4th used savings, and about 12% took extra jobs.