Average Wedding Cost in Australia 2027: Complete Budget Breakdown

The average wedding in Australia costs $38,252, according to the most recent national survey from Easy Weddings, published in February 2026. A second large survey from ABIA puts the figure higher at $41,400, and the gap between those two numbers tells you a lot about how to read wedding cost statistics.

This guide sets out every figure with its source and year, explains why the sources disagree, breaks the budget down category by category, and builds three sample budgets you can check line by line. Where we could not find a reliable published figure, we say so instead of guessing.

The headline numbers, and where they come from

Measure	Figure	Source and data year
National average wedding cost	$38,252 (up 8% on the previous year)	Easy Weddings Australian Wedding Industry Report 2026, published February 2026
Average original budget	$29,471	Easy Weddings 2026
Average guest count	85	Easy Weddings 2026
Victoria average	$39,502	Easy Weddings 2026, as reported by Forbes Australia
National average wedding cost	$41,400	ABIA Weddings survey of 10,000 married couples, 2024 data
Average original budget	$34,160	ABIA
Average guest count	90.57	ABIA
Victoria average	$47,200, with 108 guests	ABIA
Marriages registered in Australia	118,804 in 2025	ABS Marriages and Divorces, Australia, 2025, released July 2026

The previous Easy Weddings report put the average at $35,315 with a starting budget of $27,455, according to its 2025 industry insights page (February 2025). The same annual survey has now recorded a rise of almost $3,000 in a year.

Why the surveys disagree

The two cost surveys measure slightly different things, so they should not match.

• Who was asked. Easy Weddings surveyed more than 4,200 engaged and recently married couples. ABIA’s figure comes only from married couples reporting what they actually spent after the day.
• Guest numbers. ABIA’s couples averaged 90.57 guests against 85 for Easy Weddings, and guest count drives the biggest costs.
• Timing. ABIA’s page describes its numbers as 2024 data; the Easy Weddings report was published in February 2026.

Divide each total by its guest count and the two land close together: $38,252 ÷ 85 is about $450 per guest, and $41,400 ÷ 90.57 is about $457 per guest. ABIA’s Victorian figure works out to about $437 per guest ($47,200 ÷ 108). In other words, Victorian weddings in the ABIA data cost more mainly because they were bigger.

Even official counts and industry forecasts differ. The Easy Weddings report forecast 122,121 marriages for 2025, while the ABS later recorded 118,804 registered marriages for that year. Treat forecasts as forecasts.

Average versus typical

Both surveys show more couples spending under $40,000 than over it. In the Easy Weddings data, 58% of couples spent between $10,000 and $39,000 and 25% spent between $40,000 and $59,000. ABIA found 22.7% spent less than $20,000 and 31.9% spent between $21,000 and $39,999. A minority of large weddings pulls the average up, so the “average” is higher than what many couples actually spend.

What about 2027?

As of October 2026, no survey covering 2027 weddings has been published. If costs rose by the same 8% again, the national average would be about $41,300 ($38,252 × 1.08). That is an illustration of the trend, not a forecast, but it is a sensible reason to build a buffer into a 2027 budget.

Category-by-category budget breakdown

The table below uses the national category averages from the Easy Weddings 2026 report, alongside Ghost Booth Events’ published “from” prices for the categories we supply.

Category	National average (Easy Weddings 2026)	Notes	Ghost Booth Events from
Reception venue	$17,518	92% of couples book a venue; about 46% of the budget
Catering	$6,177	Includes caterers, gelato carts, mobile bars and food trucks
Photography	$3,657	90% of couples hire a professional photographer
Videography	$3,125
Content creator	No reliable average found	Easy Weddings asks about content creators but publishes no cost	$800
Wedding dress	$2,591	Designer dresses average $4,475
Formal wear	$2,102
Bridesmaid attire	$645
Hair and makeup	$992	85% of couples hire professionals
Flowers	$2,639
Decor	$2,849	Stylists average a further $2,809	$300 (decor hire)
Furniture and styling hire	$2,203
Music	$2,142	68% have professional music
Celebrant	$1,031	83% book a civil celebrant
Wedding cars	$1,223
Cake	$645
Invitations	$1,001		$2 per piece (printed stationery)
Signage (welcome sign, seating chart)	No reliable average found	Not reported as its own category	$500 (package)
Photo booth	$1,038	Half of couples include one	$850 + GST
Guestbook	No reliable average found		$80
Audio guestbook	No reliable average found		$350
Video guestbook	No reliable average found		$350
Bomboniere	$678
Engagement ring (usually budgeted separately)	$6,842
Honeymoon (usually budgeted separately)	$9,684

A few notes so you read this table correctly:

• The lines do not add up to the total. The 19 wedding-day category averages above (excluding the ring and honeymoon) sum to $55,065, well above the $38,252 average. Each category average is calculated only among couples who bought that item, and many venues include food and drink, so not every couple pays for every line.
• Photography has two published figures. The 2026 report shows $3,657, while the Easy Weddings wedding cost article (updated March 2026) lists $3,567. We have used the report figure.
• GST. Our photo booth page lists prices excluding GST, so $850 + GST is $935 including GST, and our typical $850 to $1,500 + GST range is $935 to $1,650 including GST. Confirm GST treatment on any itemised quote before comparing it with survey figures, which reflect what couples paid.

For a closer look at the entertainment lines, see our guide to wedding entertainment costs in Australia, and for the content line, what a wedding content creator costs.

A matched welcome sign, seating chart and wishing well box. Signage has no published national average, so it often gets left out of early budgets.

Three sample budgets, with the arithmetic shown

These are illustrations built from the sourced averages above, not quotes. The method:

1. Venue scales with guests. $17,518 ÷ 85 guests is about $206 per guest, so we multiply $206 by the guest count. Real venues add minimum spends and room hire, so treat this as a simplification.
2. Everything else uses the national category average for the items that size of wedding typically includes.
3. Where no survey average exists, we use a Ghost Booth Events “from” price and say so.

Line	Small: 40 guests	Mid: 85 guests	Large: 150 guests
Venue ($206 × guests)	$8,240	$17,518	$30,900
Photography	$3,657	$3,657	$3,657
Videography		$3,125	$3,125
Wedding dress	$2,591	$2,591	$2,591
Formal wear	$2,102	$2,102	$2,102
Hair and makeup	$992	$992	$992
Flowers	$2,639	$2,639	$2,639
Celebrant	$1,031	$1,031	$1,031
Invitations	$1,001	$1,001	$1,001
Cake	$645	$645	$645
Music		$2,142	$2,142
Photo booth (survey average)		$1,038	$1,038
Audio guestbook (our from price)	$350
Wedding cars			$1,223
Furniture and styling hire			$2,203
Decor			$2,849
Bridesmaid attire			$645
Bomboniere			$678
Total	$23,248	$38,481	$59,461

The mid budget lands within about $230 of the national average of $38,252, which is a useful sanity check that the category figures hang together. The large budget sits at the top of the $40,000 to $59,999 band that 31.1% of ABIA’s couples fell into.

To adapt this for your own wedding, swap in real quotes line by line as they arrive and keep a running gap against your target. Moneysmart’s free budget planner is a good place to track the household side of the spend.

Melbourne and Victoria notes

• Victoria costs more than the national average. Easy Weddings puts Victoria at $39,502, $1,250 above the national figure, and only New South Wales ($42,322) is higher.
• Fewer weddings were registered in 2025. The ABS recorded 30,209 marriages in Victoria in 2025, 5.7% fewer than in 2024 and the largest proportional fall of any state or territory.
• The cheapest legal option is the registry. Births, Deaths and Marriages Victoria lists a Classic ceremony package at the Old Treasury Building for $500 Monday to Friday or $600 on weekends, and a legal-only package for $400 Monday to Thursday (fees updated 1 July 2026). Some couples marry there and hold a separate reception.
• Spring Saturdays go first. Nationally, the most popular wedding date in 2025 was 25 October, with 2,035 marriages that day (ABS). Easy Weddings reports that spring and autumn account for more than two-thirds of weddings planned for 2026. For our own bookings, peak-season Saturdays from October to April usually fill six or more months ahead, while weekday and Sunday dates are more flexible.
• Regional venues carry travel lines. Yarra Valley, Mornington Peninsula and Geelong weddings often include supplier travel and accommodation. Ask every supplier to itemise travel, parking and venue access fees; ours are quoted per event and shown on the quote.
• Melbourne weather needs a backup plan. Budget for a wet-weather option such as an indoor space or marquee if your ceremony or cocktail hour is outdoors, even in summer.

For venue ideas with room for guest entertainment, see our list of Melbourne wedding venues that suit a photo booth.

Our open-air booth needs about 2 m × 2 m including the backdrop, which is worth knowing when your venue is quoting floor plans.

How to save money without losing what matters

Cut the guest list first. It is the single biggest lever. On the $206-per-guest venue figure above, every 10 guests removed saves about $2,060 in venue costs before you count invitations, favours or stationery. Easy Weddings found couples invite an average of 23 fewer guests than they originally planned.

Choose a Friday, Sunday or off-peak month. Many venues and suppliers price these dates lower, and the registry fee schedule above shows the same weekday versus weekend pattern. Always ask for the off-peak rate.

Bundle suppliers who already work together. Our audio guestbook, signage, decor and stationery are discounted when booked with a photo booth, and signage and on-the-day stationery are delivered in the same trip with no delivery fee. Fewer suppliers also means fewer travel charges.

Make one piece do two jobs. A combined welcome sign and seating chart, or menus that double as place cards (like the hero photo above, where the guest’s name sits on the ribbon), removes a whole line from the stationery budget.

Reuse ceremony florals at the reception. Easy Weddings notes this has become a common way couples get more from their flower spend.

Match the service level to the guest count. For a photo booth, our Remote package uses the same booth and unlimited prints as Attended but without an on-site attendant, and suits smaller weddings. Attended is recommended for weddings over 150 guests. Our photo booth pricing guide explains the difference in detail.

Get itemised quotes. Compare inclusions, not just totals: hours, setup, travel, delivery, GST and what happens if the timeline runs over.

An audio guestbook runs from a single power point with no attendant, which keeps it one of the smaller lines in a guest-experience budget.

Where photo booths and guestbooks fit in the budget

The Easy Weddings 2026 report puts the average photo booth at $1,038 and says half of all couples include one. Our photo booth hire starts from $850 + GST and includes setup, unlimited sessions and prints, a custom print design, choice of backdrop and an online gallery within 24 hours. Face-detection printing gives one print per person in each shot.

If you also want a keepsake, a guestbook holds those prints next to handwritten messages. Our handmade guestbooks start from $80 and hold 30 sheets as standard, and our wedding signage packages start from $500 so the book, booth print and signs can share one design.

Photo strips added to a ring-bound guestbook beside a handwritten note.

Ready to price your day?

If you are building your budget now, send us your date, venue and guest count and we will send an itemised quote, with GST, travel and any bundle discounts shown line by line. Start your enquiry here.

Wedding cost questions