Key Takeaways
- In August 2025, the typical price of attending a marriage plus a bachelor/bachelorette celebration was simply over $2,000, whereas the typical price of hire within the U.S. was $2,100.
- Gen Z and millennials report chopping again on housing bills by renting a smaller residence or dwelling with roommates to afford marriage ceremony prices.
- To decrease the price of marriage ceremony attendance, visitors can share journey prices with pals, give smaller or no presents, attend with no associate, or skip celebrations that do not contain shut family members.
Celebrating a good friend’s marriage ceremony can price as a lot as a month of hire, in response to a brand new evaluation by Zillow Leases. These monetary calls for are hitting Gen Z and millennials specifically, as they attempt to stability milestone life occasions with the rising price of, properly, all the things else.
The typical price of attending a marriage plus a bachelorette or bachelor weekend was simply over $2,000 in August 2025, Zillow Leases discovered. That very same month, the typical price of hire within the U.S. was $2,100.
That is unhealthy information for the younger individuals who attend a number of weddings—they usually usually go to bachelor/bachelorette events, as properly. The identical Zillow evaluation discovered that 59% of Gen Z and millennials have attended at the very least one marriage ceremony previously yr, and 28% have attended two or extra. As well as, greater than a 3rd (36%) of Gen Z and almost half (48%) of millennials attended at the very least one bachelor/bachelorette get together.
Younger individuals are making vital trade-offs to afford these marriage ceremony bills. Zillow Leases discovered that 45% of Gen Z and millennial respondents say they’ve made housing sacrifices to afford the price of attending weddings, reminiscent of shopping for a smaller residence or dwelling with roommates.
How You Can Scale back Prices as a Marriage ceremony Visitor
There will be vital social and monetary strain to take part in pricey marriage ceremony occasions. Once you love the folks getting married and need to rejoice them, saying no to marriage ceremony bills will be troublesome.
So what are you able to do?
Lindsey Stanberry, a budgeting knowledgeable who has been taking a look at how ladies spend cash for over a decade, shared recommendation with Investopedia about easy methods to handle marriage ceremony spending with out blowing up your finances (or shedding a month of hire).
“Marriage ceremony season has all the time been very costly, however I do assume we’ve seen an uptick in vacation spot weddings and vacation spot bachelor and bachelorette events,” Stanberry mentioned. “That’s made marriage ceremony spending rather more costly for visitors.”
Her recommendation:
- Be considerate about whether or not you need to attend: Shut pals is perhaps definitely worth the splurge. For a distant relative or work acquaintance, although, it is high-quality to ship a present with a heartfelt card and skip the dear journey.
- Get artistic with prices: Are you able to share a resort room or rental automotive with a good friend? Use factors to deliver down the price of airfare? Flip the journey into a bigger trip to make that aircraft ticket worthwhile? Are you able to mix celebrations by having a single bachelorette get together to rejoice a number of pals who’re getting married in the identical yr?
- Divide and conquer: If you happen to and your associate are invited to a number of weddings, it is OK to separate up and go solo. As a substitute of shopping for 4 aircraft tickets to 2 occasions, purchase simply two tickets and ship one individual to every marriage ceremony. You’ll spend the time there with family and friends members that you do not see as usually as you see your associate.
- Maintain presents modest: If you happen to’re spending some huge cash simply to get to a marriage, it is OK to offer a token reward or one thing just like a housewarming current. A superb good friend or a liked one will worth your presence greater than an costly merchandise off their registry. (And should you do not assume they may, that is perhaps a kind of weddings you may skip.)
- Speak about your finances: If you happen to’re invited to be a part of the marriage get together, do not wait till you are saddled with an enormous invoice to deliver up cash. Speak to your good friend up entrance about what you may and might’t afford to spend. A superb good friend will not maintain your finances in opposition to you.
- Be trustworthy with your self: You would possibly need to go to an occasion you may’t afford. Otherwise you would possibly be capable to afford an occasion however not need to go. In both case, it is OK to say no the invitation and discover different methods to rejoice the one you love.
Quick Reality
About half (54%) of People would decline a marriage invite from an in depth good friend or member of the family if the fee was exterior their finances.
The Backside Line
Evaluation from Zillow Leases in August 2025 discovered that the typical price of attending a marriage and bachelor/bachelorette celebration was simply over $2,000, near the identical as the typical price of hire within the U.S.
To deal with the rising price of milestone celebrations, some members of Gen Z and millennials are chopping again on housing bills.
There are different methods that you would be able to handle marriage ceremony prices, too. Sharing journey prices with pals, attending with no associate, and giving small or no presents can maintain prices down. And keep in mind, simply since you’re invited to a marriage does not imply you must attend. And in case you are requested to be a part of a marriage get together, discuss with the bride or groom about your finances early, somewhat than ready till the prices are already including up.
