Who Pays for the Wedding?

Weddings can be very expensive and while traditionally the brides parents have footed the bill paying for the engagement party and wedding reception, but today more and more couples are sharing the expenses associated with their wedding.

Traditionally, the bride would pay for the groom's wedding ring while the groom would pay for the bride's engagement and wedding ring. However, today there are many couples that buy engagement rings for both the bride to be and the groom.

Many couples pay for the majority of their wedding themselves.

While there are still many couples that get married in their early 20s and haven't the finances behind them to pay for a large wedding, there are also many more couples who are waiting that little bit longer to get married after they have accumulated some wealth.

Every couple has a different financial situation and this plays a part in who pays for what at a wedding.

The following is a traditional breakdown of who pays for what at a wedding:

The Bride:

The Bride pays for the groom's wedding ring.

The Groom:

The groom has a few more expences in that he buys his bride her engagement and wedding ring.

The groom will also buy his bride a wedding gift and gifts for his best man and groomsmen.

The groom also pays for his suit hire or he will purchase a new suit for himself. The groom will also see that the bouquets and corsages are paid for and he will see that the celebrant and ceremony fees are taken care of.

The groom also pays for the honeymoon.

The Bride's Parents:

Traditionally, the parents of the bride are hardest hit in the pocket with the engagement party and wedding reception the biggest financial burdens.

The bride's parents also pay for the bridal gown and any accessories that the bride may want.

The parents of the bride also pay for the newspaper announcement, wedding invitations, reception flowers, wedding photographer and the wedding cake.

They also buy the bride and groom a wedding gift.

The Groom's Parents:

The grooms parents also buy the couple a wedding gift and while it is not expected of them to offer to pay for anything else at the wedding, it is appreciated if they can pay for any other expenses.

Most parents of the groom know that the bride's parents are footing the majority of the bill and are more than happy to help out financially.

The Bride and Groom:

The newlyweds buy gifts of appreciation for their parents.

It is not uncommon for the bride and groom to share the costs of buying gifts for their bridal party. Rather than have the groom buying gifts just for the groomsmen and the bride for her bridesmaids.

As you can see, the parents of the bride have historically been hardest hit financially when their daughter marries. Fortunately, the times have changed and it is more common that couples and both families, share the costs involved when their children marry.