Wedding budget calculator: how should you split your wedding budget?
Start with the costs that grow with every guest: catering and drinks, priced per head. Take those and a buffer of about 5% off the total first, then split what is left across the fixed costs like venue, photography and attire. Example: a $30,000 budget with 100 guests at $95 a head sets aside $9,500 for food and drinks and $1,500 as a buffer, which leaves $19,000 for everything else. The wedding costs $300 per guest, but each extra guest only adds $95.
Calculate your wedding budget
Enter your total budget, the guest count and what catering and drinks cost per guest. Then list the other categories with the share of the remaining money each should get, one per line as name and percent. The shares must add up to 100.
Worked example
A couple with $30,000 and 100 guests. Their caterer quotes $95 per guest for food, drinks and service.
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| Total budget | 30,000 |
| Buffer 5% | 1,500 |
| Catering and drinks, 100 × 95 | 9,500 |
| Left for the other categories | 19,000 |
| Category | Share | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Venue | 30% | 5,700 |
| Photography and video | 20% | 3,800 |
| Attire and beauty | 12% | 2,280 |
| Flowers and decor | 12% | 2,280 |
| Music | 10% | 1,900 |
| Rings | 8% | 1,520 |
| Stationery and favors | 4% | 760 |
| Officiant, transport, other | 4% | 760 |
| Total | 100% | 19,000 |
What the example shows: the average cost of $300 per guest is misleading when you cut the guest list. Dropping 20 guests saves $1,900 (20 × $95), not $6,000, because the venue, photographer and dress cost the same for 80 people as for 100. Cutting guests helps most when the caterer's price per head is high.
Why per-guest costs come first
Most of a wedding budget is fixed once you book: the venue fee, the photographer's package, the band. Catering and drinks are the part that moves with the guest list, and the guest list usually changes several times before the invitations go out. If you budget catering as a flat amount, every added guest silently eats into another category. Pricing it per head keeps the trade-off visible: the calculator tells you the largest guest count your budget allows before the other categories get anything.
Common mistakes
- Comparing quotes without service and tax. Catering quotes often leave out the service charge, gratuities and sales tax. Ask for the all-in price per guest and use that number above.
- No buffer. Overtime for the photographer, a second fitting, extra rentals: something always comes up. Keep the buffer out of every category.
- Booking before the split. Once the venue takes half the budget, everything else is squeezed. Decide the shares first, then look for vendors that fit them.
- Forgetting deposits and due dates. A budget that fits in total can still run short in a month when three balances are due at once. Write down when each payment is due.
Follow-up questions
What if our shares do not fit the quotes we got? Change the percentages until they match the quotes you are about to book. The calculator shows the dollar amount next to each share, so you can see what one category gives up for another.
How many guests can we afford? The calculator shows the most guests the budget covers if the other categories got nothing. In practice, decide what the fixed categories need first and use the guest count that leaves enough for them.
Where should the wedding money sit until it is paid out? In a separate savings account, so deposits do not get mixed up with everyday spending. Our sinking funds calculator works out how much to put aside each month until the date.
Disclosure: Still Penny makes the Wedding Budget Planner Spreadsheet (6.90 EUR, one-time purchase on Etsy) for Excel and Google Sheets. It keeps the budget per category, every vendor quote with deposits and due dates, and a guest list that feeds the per-guest prices. It is optional: the calculator above is free.
General information, not financial advice.