The average cost of a wedding

I have been reading lately about the average cost of a wedding. I'm not sure these figures mean very much at all - except to scare people who are thinking about getting married.

I have looked through some American websites where very brave couples allow their budgets to be published along with the photos of their day. When you look closely, the figures rarely agree with the final total quoted, nearly everyone has the words about, give or take in the calculations somewhere.

It was also interesting to see how the "average" numbers from the UK and the US compared. The UK numbers come from the Brides App and the US ones come from a website Cost of Wedding

                                                                                     UK                USA         

TOTAL                                                                     £19,871          $25,292

UK equivalent (Thomas Cook tourist rate)                                         £15,347

It's interesting to see that the UK figures don't include a Planner, Invitations or Gifts & Favours. 

Also interesting is that the US figures carry a note with them saying:- 

"The average wedding cost in the United States is $25,200. 

Couples typically spend between $18,900 and $31,500 but most couples spend less than $10,000."

The surprise when the exchange rate is calculated is that contrary to the "conceived wisdom" US weddings cost less than UK and even less if you believe that most couples spend less than $10,000 - that's £6,068 which makes us look extremely extravagant!

Is it worth it? Only the individuals concerned can say. I was privy to a conversation on Sunday where a couple were saying they wanted different things. She wanted  her "day" with the dress, flowers, bridesmaids etc and he just wanted to get married without any fuss. Hopefully, they will find a compromise - or maybe they will just continue to share their lives.