Wedding Budget Calculator
Allocate your total wedding budget across categories like venue, catering, photography, and attire using adjustable default percentages, with a running total vs. your overall budget.
$
Category Allocations
Venue & Catering
%
Photography & Video
%
Attire & Beauty
%
Flowers & Decor
%
Entertainment & Music
%
Rings
%
Invitations & Stationery
%
Miscellaneous / Buffer
%
Allocated: 100.0%
Unallocated Budget
$0
Total Allocated
$30,000 of $30,000
Per-Category Amounts
Venue & Catering
$13,500
Photography & Video
$3,600
Attire & Beauty
$3,000
Flowers & Decor
$2,400
Entertainment & Music
$2,400
Rings
$1,800
Invitations & Stationery
$900
Miscellaneous / Buffer
$2,400
How Does the Wedding Budget Calculator Work?
Enter your total wedding budget, then adjust the percentage allocated to each category — venue and catering, photography, attire, flowers, entertainment, rings, stationery, and a miscellaneous buffer. The calculator starts you off with commonly recommended default percentages and instantly converts each one into a dollar amount as you type, while keeping a running total so you can see whether your allocations add up to your full budget.
Example
With a $30,000 budget using the default allocations, venue and catering at 45% comes to $13,500, photography and video at 12% comes to $3,600, and the remaining categories split the rest — all six figures update together the moment you change the total budget or any single percentage.
Common Use Cases
- Setting realistic per-vendor spending limits before requesting quotes.
- Deciding where to cut back when a favorite venue costs more than the default allocation.
- Comparing how shifting money from one category (like flowers) into another (like photography) affects the plan.
- Keeping a shared, editable reference for both partners and family members contributing to the budget.
FAQs
Why don't the default percentages add up exactly the way I want?
The defaults are a common starting template, not a rule — every wedding is different. Increase the percentage for what matters most to you (like photography or venue) and reduce others, just keep an eye on the "Allocated" total so your percentages still sum to 100%.
What should go in the miscellaneous category?
Use it as a buffer for gratuities, transportation, favors, unexpected vendor fees, and last-minute additions. Weddings routinely run over their planned categories, so keeping 5-10% unallocated as a cushion is a common safeguard.
Should the guest count change these percentages?
Guest count mainly affects the total budget itself (catering and venue costs scale with headcount) more than the percentage split — a larger guest list usually means increasing your total budget input rather than reallocating the percentages.