Wedding Facts March 31, 2008

As a follow-up to my last post, here are more interesting wedding stats (take special note of the expense related statistics- the wedding industry is a $50-billion a year industry!):

ENGAGEMENT STATISTICS

• The average American engagement is 16 months.
• Every year an average of 2.3 million weddings are performed in the U.S.
• The Wedding Industry is a 50 billion dollar a year industry
• Average age for first-time brides is 25 years, for grooms it’s 27.5
• 175 guests are invited to an average wedding
• Average size of wedding party: 12
• 35% of weddings occur in the summer; 29% in the spring; 23% in the fall; 13% in the winter.
• 11% of winter weddings are Christmas weddings

COST STATISTICS

• $25k-$30k is the average amount spent on a traditional American wedding
• A total of $72 billion is spent on weddings annually in the U.S.
• David’s Bridal accounts for 20% of all bridal-gown sales, and that percentage is increasing
• The average ring costs $2,000

TOP WEDDING DESTINATIONS:

• Las Vegas (100,000 weddings/year)
• Hawaii (25,000 wedding/year)
• Bahamas (5,000 weddings/year)
• Jamaica (5,000 weddings/year)
• U.S. Virgin Islands (4,000 weddings/year)

OTHER WEDDING STATISTICS

• 80% of traditional weddings are performed in churches or synagogue.
• Four out of five brides are employed.
• Percentage of engaged couples who’ve known each other longer than 3 years: 69%
• Percentage of brides who say they’ll be changing their surnames: 60%
• 93,750: Approximate cost, in dollars, of an average Japanese wedding
• 150,000: Wedding ceremonies conducted in Canada in 2002
• 53% of weddings occur in the afternoon; 31% in the evening; 16% in the morning.
• 30% of receptions are held in churches; 20% in hotels; 20% in country clubs; and 10% each in fraternal halls, private homes, and other locations.
• 38% of weddings have a buffet; 34% have a sit-down dinner; 28% serve only cake and punch.
• 62% of weddings have a flower girl.
• 56% have a ring bearer.

MARRIAGES BY MONTH

• January 4.7%
• February 7.0%
• March 6.1%
• April 7.4%
• May 9.8%
• June 10.8%
• July 9.7%
• August 10.2%
• September 9.6%
• October 9.4%
• November 7.4%
• December 7.8%

WEDDING COSTS BY CATEGORY*

• Reception 28.3%
• Consultant 15.0% (if hired)
• Wedding Rings 11.5%
• Photography/Video 6.6%
• Bridal Gown 6.1%
• Music 5.2%
• Flowers 4.6%
• Bridal attendants’ apparel 4.5%
• Rehearsal dinner 4.2%
• Men’s formal wear 3.2%
• Invitations 2.8%
• Attendants’ gifts 2.1%
• Mother of the bride apparel 1.7%
• Bride’s veil 1.6%
• Clergy and ceremony fees 1.2%
• Limousine 0.9%
• Groom’s attire 0.8%

WHO WILL PAY (for some portion of the wedding)

• Brides parents  58%
• Grooms parents 32%
• Bride & Groom  77%
• Sponsored Wedding  1%

HONEYMOON STATISTICS

• Among couples who choose a traditional wedding, 99 percent take a honeymoon.
• Couples spend an average of $4,000 on their honeymoon. That’s three times as much as the average U.S. adult spends on a vacation.
• The length of an average honeymoon is seven days.
• 45 percent of honeymoon trips are to domestic locations; 55 percent are foreign.
• The Honeymoon Industry is a 12 billion dollar a year industry.

(Statistics from National Association of Wedding Ministers, Bridal Association of America, and Association of Bridal Consultants)