Wedding costs now swallow half a year’s pay in many big US cities

A new report ranks major US cities by how much of a local household’s annual income an average wedding consumes, showing the sharpest strain in New York, Honolulu and Savannah. The findings come as search interest in wedding budgets and wedding debt surges and more couples rethink where and how they marry.

Why it matters: - Wedding costs are no longer just a sticker-price problem. In many major US cities, an average wedding now consumes a huge share of what local households earn in a year. - The report measures financial strain in a way that better reflects real-world pressure on couples than raw venue or vendor pricing alone. - Peak wedding season is colliding with rising money anxiety. Searches for “how to budget for a wedding” are up 1,730%, while searches for “wedding debt” are up 497%. - A recent survey found that 67% of couples regret how much they spent on their wedding, and 1 in 3 wish they had used that money for a house deposit instead.

What happened: - A new report ranked major US cities by average wedding cost as a percentage of local median household income. - New York City ranked No. 1, with an average wedding cost of $51,700, or 64% of a year’s household income. - Honolulu ranked No. 2 at $54,500, or 58% of annual household income. - Savannah, Georgia ranked No. 3 at $32,542, or 57% of annual household income. - Los Angeles ranked No. 4 at $41,300, or 50% of annual household income. - Houston ranked No. 5 at $30,800, or 48% of annual household income. - Orlando ranked No. 6 at $34,000, or 47% of annual household income. - Charlotte, North Carolina ranked No. 7 at $37,600, or 46% of annual household income. - Seattle ranked No. 8 at $56,700, or 46% of annual household income. - Phoenix ranked No. 9 at $37,100, or 46% of annual household income. - Chicago ranked No. 10 at $35,000, or 45% of annual household income.

The details: - New York City’s ranking reflects how far wedding prices have outpaced local earnings, with couples handing over nearly two-thirds of a year’s household income for one day. - Honolulu’s average wedding cost is higher than New York City’s, but its share of income is lower because local household income is higher. - Savannah was the report’s biggest surprise. The city has a lower cost of living than many of the other cities on the list, but weddings there still consume a bigger share of income than in Los Angeles or Seattle. - California remains the country’s biggest wedding market, with $9.6 billion in annual wedding spend. - Texas is the second-largest wedding market nationally, with $5.5 billion in annual wedding spend. - Seattle has the highest sticker price in the top 10 at $56,700, but it ranks lower on income share because the city’s median household income is about $124,000. - Phoenix is part of a nearly $1 billion wedding market in Arizona. - Illinois sees nearly $2.2 billion in annual wedding spend, and Chicago’s average wedding claim is just under half of local household income. - Palm Beach, New Orleans and Providence were identified as the most budget-friendly places to get married, where the average wedding uses as little as 21% of household income.

Between the lines: - The report suggests location matters as much as guest count or venue choice. A wedding that feels manageable in one city can be a major financial hit in another. - Destination-wedding demand appears to be reshaping local pricing. Savannah’s high income share points to its growing appeal as a wedding destination. - Couples in expensive metros may be responding by looking outside their home cities for venues and vendors.

What's next: - More couples are likely to keep adjusting dates, locations and services to reduce costs without making the wedding feel smaller. - Kristen Kane, a wedding planner at Kristen Kane Events, said she is seeing more couples from expensive cities like New York and Los Angeles choose to marry elsewhere. - Kane recommends Friday weddings, off-season dates from January through March, QR-code RSVPs, hiring a planner or coordinator, and replacing a full dessert spread with a small cutting cake and sheet cake served from the kitchen.

The bottom line: - In many major US cities, the average wedding now costs enough to reshape household budgets long before the honeymoon starts. - Methodology: The report used average wedding cost data from wedding.report and compared it with local median household income from worldpopulationreview.com and the US Census Bureau to calculate wedding cost as a percentage of annual household income. Cities were then ranked by that percentage.