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CostHelper > Weddings  > Wedding Planner

Wedding Planner Cost


How Much Does a Wedding Planner Cost?

 
low costLow: around $1,500average costAverage: $3,262high costHigh: around $5,000+

While many bridal consultants used to charge a percentage of the wedding budget -- usually 10 to 20 percent -- most now prefer to use an hourly, or more commonly, a package rate. Most planners have at least three types of packages: day of service, consulting and full-service planning.

Typical costs:

  • For about $1,500, a day-of planner will help create a wedding timeline, confirm with vendors and handle the wedding day.
  • For about $3,700, a planner will handle the wedding day and offer planning advice and guidance, but will make the couple do the pre-wedding footwork, such as making phone calls.
  • For about $5,000, a full-service planner will plan the wedding and handle most details and the wedding day. That rate sometimes goes much higher -- possibly $10,000 or more for an in-demand planner with ten years or more experience, according to i-do Weddings[1] .
  • The cost varies greatly by region. The average total cost for a wedding consultant is $3,636 in the northeast and $2,635 in the south. The national average is $3,262, according to The Association of Bridal Consultants[2] .
Related articles: Wedding Caterer, Wedding Invitations, Event Planner, Wedding Dress, Wedding Photographer

What should be included:
  • For a day-of package, a planner usually will confirm with vendors, help the couple create a wedding-day timeline and handle wedding-day details from start to finish.
  • For a consulting package, a planner might recommend venues and vendors, offer advice on colors and style, provide etiquette advice and help the couple stay on track with their planning -- but will not handle legwork and small details. On the wedding day, though, the planner will interact with vendors and make sure the day goes smoothly.
  • A typical full-service planners help set the style and colors, help find ceremony and reception venues, recommend vendors, accompany the couple to food and cake tastings and screen vendor contracts. Some will even send invitations and track RSVPs. On the wedding day, the planner usually puts in a full day troubleshooting, handling last-minute details and keeping the event on schedule.
  • Tip: Since packages and services vary from planner to planner, it is important to clarify in writing exactly which services are included.
Additional costs:
  • While it is not expected, some couples tip a wedding planner about15 percent for excellent service -- but a gift of a restaurant or spa gift certificate is more common than a cash tip.
Discounts:
  • One option is do-it-yourself planning, using online checklists or a book as a guide. TheKnot.com[3] offers a 12-month checklist.
  • Half.com[4] offers a number of used books on wedding planning, and Amazon[5] offers new books.
  • Some brides link up with another local bride through message boards on sites such as TheKnot.com[6] and trade day-of coordination services. Trusting a non-professional can be risky, but it saves money.
  • Tip: According to the Association for Wedding Professionals International[7] , many wedding professionals can lower their fees if you bargain.
  • Some wedding planners can get discounts from vendors, and most pass those along to their clients.
  • Wedding planners sometimes give a 10 percent discount for couples who get married in a slow month, such as January or February.
Shopping for a wedding planner:
  • To find a wedding planner, ask friends or other vendors -- such as bridal salons, photographers or caterers. Or, The Association of Bridal Consultants[8] can provide referrals to local consultants. When you get a few names, call or set up meetings to see which consultant fits best with your needs, budget and personality.
  • It is important to make sure hiring a consultant will be worth the money, both in saving time and reducing stress, as well as getting discounts. TheKnot.com[9] offers a list of questions to ask a wedding consultant before signing a contract.
  • Tip: Start looking for a wedding consultant as early as possible. Most wedding consultants cannot handle more than one wedding on a single day, and popular dates and weekends book months in advance.
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What People Are Paying - Recent Comments

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She saved me-JustCrissyEvents
Amount: $6,000.00
Posted by: JaimeJ in Dallas, TX.Posted: January 2nd, 2019 08:01PM
Type: Wedding Planner-full srvcName: Crissy
I needed a Wedding Planner for my Winter Wedding and Crissy with JustCrissy Events was a life saver. She did everything for me. I am a bit anal at times but all I had to do was tell her what I wanted and she truly delivered. I am so happy I found her on the internet. JustCrissyEvents.com is her site. If you are in need of a Wedding Planner in Dallas Tx contact her. I was so impressed.
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Pretty Petal Occasions, so pleased! Expectations highly exceeded!
Amount: $7,500.00
Posted by: Michelle Stevens in Beaver, PA.Posted: November 27th, 2018 10:11AM
Type: Modern WeddingName: Alyssa Glenz, Pretty Petal Occasions
Alyssa is BEYOND highly Professional and comes HIGHLY recommended! She worked with our budget, came up with beautiful designs, floral decorations and she even was the Day-Of coordinator for our wedding! I love that she worked with our budget, she was open to any emails or questions I had anytime, and did everything possible to give me my perfect day for my husband and I!!
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Wedding Planner
Amount: $6,500.00
Posted by: Nicole & Jack in Douglasville, GA.Posted: January 30th, 2017 08:01AM
Type: Wedding PlannerName: Nicole & Jack
We Hired Hart to Hart Events they did a fantastic job planning every detail of our wedding day, I wouldn't have survived because the planning was so overwhelming for us. She found professional vendors and everything was absolutely beautiful. Thank you Rochelle you saved our wedding.
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Majestyk Planners/Majestyk Events
Amount: $800.00
Posted by: Tessa B. in Oceanside, CA.Posted: April 2nd, 2016 09:04AM
Type: Wedding ConsultationName: Tessa
I had everything pretty much planned out. All I needed was to go over everything with a Wedding Consultant. I had called Majestyk Planners/ Majestyk Events and talked to a lady named Dorothy Garcia. We had met up and I hired her. She went over everything and she made a lot of sense with a lot of things I wanted but didn't really need them. She did save me a good 20g's. I thank God I had found her though. If not I would've been in the hole with my money. She and her crew are the best! I would definitely recommend them for an Event or Wedding. She charged me $100 an hour but I gave her a bit more because she saved me a lot of money.
When you guys look for a Coordinator/Planner/Consultant for your day, you do not need to overspend. Save your money for your honeymoon and trips after. I did and My Wedding was absolutely wonderful. Not to mention my honeymoon to Fiji was amazing! Saved the money made it my honeymoon and We still had money to spend.
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Our LIFE SAVER...and now Great Friend!
Amount: $5,500.00
Posted by: Heather & Michael Williams in Atlanta, GA.Posted: March 27th, 2016 06:03PM
Type: Full-Service Wedding PlannerName: Ty Ellih Weddings & Events
12 months out I thought I wanted to do it myself, but quickly realized I was in way over my head when factoring in work and other responsibilities. And let's not even mention the fact that I had no idea what I was doing. So two months later I decided to bite the bullet and found Ty and her team on theKnot.com. And boy was it worth the investment. She stayed within our $30,000 budget and was actually slightly under, so we gifted Team TEWE the difference in a Massage Envy Gift Card. Their service was impeccable....and on-time. She listened to every word we said and came up with a design that represented us perfectly. Having a planner was a life saver, but hiring Ty Hill was the best decision we could have made. Check them out at www.tyellihweddings.com
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Don\'t look any further!!
Amount: $4,000.00
Posted by: Perfection! in Tallahassee, FL.Posted: March 26th, 2016 01:03PM
Type: Wedding PlannerName: All Meetings Matter
All I can say is FLAWLESS! all details taken care of and nothing to worry about. Complete experts! Provided an event grid of times and where we needed to be for planning to the day of the wedding.
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Jasmine The EVENTOR
Amount: $1,300.00
Posted by: monica clay in Atlanta, GA.Posted: January 6th, 2016 08:01PM
Type: Wedding & ReceptionName: Monica Clay
We chose Jasmine as our event planner due to the awesome jobs she has done with mutual friends previously! Her fees are affordable and her ideas were creative! She made this a stress free day for me. My budget was 5,000.
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Awesome Experience
Amount: $2,100.00
Posted by: Jeanie110 in Saint Louis, MO.Posted: August 15th, 2015 10:08PM
Type: Wedding Ceremony and ReceptionName: Jean
I loved my planner at Cosmopolitan, she had everything so perfectly organized from the ceiling to the floor also had a warm and welcoming spirit about her.One mistake on my end, I decided to hire a family member to take pictures (who did not show). My planner had a photography on call and did not miss a beat. She truly made my husband and I wedding the talk of the year. I was stress free and relieved during the whole process even when my family member did not show to take our pictures because I knew she would make it right and exactly how i wanted it. She was so excellent about everything! We have been married for 2 years now and people still talk about how beautiful our wedding was. I have her number hanging on the fridge just in case someone else ask for it.
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wedding plan by Marie
Amount: $1,500.00
Posted by: Marie Dooley. in Allentown, PA.Posted: August 1st, 2015 02:08PM
Type: WeddingName: Marie and Brian
I plannedy own wedding, from invitation, finding a place for the reception and decoration. If you need one call me I can help. I had a 100 guests everyone including my husband were amazed how I did everything on my own. Our amazing day was June 27,2015. One lady at my church just recently asked me to hel her with her wedding.
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Amazing!!
Amount: $800.00
Posted by: lisa miller in warren, NJ.Posted: November 11th, 2014 11:11AM
Type: WeddingName: Lula Taylor's
My planner was amazing, She took care of everything, the vendors she worked with where fabulous! she helped us not only attend to every aspect of our dream wedding but brought everything in BELOW our budget!!! We saved enough to by using Kate to go on a honeymoon after all!!
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Detaille Weddings & Events
Amount: $1,495.00
Posted by: Vicky Olivo in Hartford, CT.Posted: October 9th, 2014 06:10PM
Type: Wedding PlannerName: Vicky
Détaillé offered us exceptional service, for a reasonalble cost! We truly enjoyed the planning process! Cindy is very experienced and truly knows how to pull off a flawless event.
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modern elegance
Amount: $1,500.00
Posted by: shemika little in warner robins, GA.Posted: December 31st, 2013 09:12AM
Type: wedding planner/macon,gaName: shemika
LT our wedding planner took care of everything she gave us a 25000 wedding with a 5000 budget hair make up deals caterers u name it.....
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Awesone Wedding
Amount: $750.00
Posted by: Patricia Manley in Fitzgerald, GA.Posted: July 29th, 2013 04:07PM
Type: Wedding PlannerName: Manley's Unique Design
Our wedding was about to be a disaster, but thank God for Patricia, we sat down and told her we had 6 weeks before our wedding day and things were not coming together. Manley's Unique Design took over and I'm still amazed at how things came together and how beautiful our wedding day was. We're thankful for Patricia!
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EventfullOccasions
Amount: $2,500.00
Posted by: anna weston in west palm beach, FL.Posted: July 13th, 2013 03:07PM
Type: weddingName: Anna, west palm beach
I was having a hard time planning, and coming up with exactly what I want. My wedding was about 2 months away and I didn't have anything book, I realize that I need some help I called a few wedding planners and there was so expensive and because I had such a short time before the wedding no one really wanted the stress until I called eventfull occasions they were so friendly and met with me right away. They took the stress out of all the big and small stuff me wedding turned out a success and all my friends and family loved what they did. I recommend then to everyone there awesome 561-777-9158
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Wedding Planner Extraordinaire
Amount: $2,500.00
Posted by: Morgan J. in Atlanta, GA.Posted: November 18th, 2012 04:11AM
Type: Wedding Planner/CoordinatorName: Events with Flair
What a great decision to hire Events with Flair to coordinate my wedding! Initially, I attempted to plan my own wedding, and have a couple of friends to assist on my wedding day. Quickly the stress of working a day-to-day job and planning a wedding became overwhelming. With only three months until my wedding date, Regina from Events with Flair took over planning my wedding. She effortlessley assumed the details, followed up with my vendors, and more importantly relieved me of stress. As a result, the wedding day went very well, and her added decorative touches and planning ideas really did wow my guests. She was very personable, and really understood our wedding vision. Her team came in an really made the event enjoyable for us, as well as our guests.
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As You Wish
Amount: $2,500.00
Posted by: Elizabeth O'Conner in Cincinnati, OH.Posted: April 25th, 2012 02:04AM
Type: Wedding PlannerName: Elizabeth O'Conner
We used As You Wish Event Planning for our wedding. The owner, Kristen Hess-Winters was our planner and did a wonderful job. I never had to worry about a single detail. She made sure my day was stress free, ran smoothly and it went off withou a hitch. I would recommend this company to anyone if you looking... They are awesome!
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Everlasting Impression
Amount: $4,000.00
Posted by: Nicole C. Binion in Lynwood, IL.Posted: February 7th, 2012 10:02AM
Type: Wedding / Baby ShowerName: Nicole Binion
My wedding and reception was more than I could have asked for. It was one of the most important events of mine and my husbands life! The flowers, center pieces and linens were beautiful, LaQuisha of Q-Nique Flowers and Event Planning was AWESOME and PROFESSIONAL! She provided an elegant yet inexpensive event for us. People are still talking about our wedding and reception. Not only did she do our wedding she also planned our baby shower which people where in awe of the look and style that LaQuisha provided for us!! The decor was absolutely Beautiful!!! I highly recommend her services!!!
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50th Wedding Anniversary
Amount: $1,500.00
Posted by: Palina in San Diego, CA.Posted: January 6th, 2012 01:01PM
Type: Full PlanningName: Luxury Party
My parents were soon to have their 50th wedding anniversary my sister and I decided at the last minute, one month before to be exact to celebrate them in a big way! Both our work schedules did not allow for the planning of such. We dicided to call Luxury Party a place several of our friends had used. I spoke to Maria the party planner and right away we knew we wanted to give them a try. She met us at our house and after a long list of things we wrote down on paper we wanted with our tight budget and a guest list of 200. She put us at ease and told us to give her a day to put things together and she would get back at us. The rest is history... Not only did she work with our budget she also made our parents 50th the most beautiful party we ever had! She was extremly nice, calm and talented. She has been in the business for over 20 years. I would recomend her again anytime!!!!
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A STEPP ABOVE WEDDINGS AND EVENTS
Amount: $1,400.00
Posted by: S.S in Atlanta, .Posted: September 25th, 2011 08:09AM
Type: Full PlanningName: A STEPP ABOVE WEDDINGS AND EVENTS
We booked A Stepp Above Weddings and Events to plan and coordinate our wedding ceremony and recption. Let's first say that she is a tough cookie. She will get everything and everyone in order. She was detailed and made sure that my husband and I stayed on top of things. She was very prompt in replying to emails and phone calls. The day of was great, if something went wrong we were stress and worry free because we had no idea and was able to enjoy our day. Hiring her was a wonderful decision. We will be using her to renew our vows in 5 years.
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Vintage Ivy Events
Amount: $4,500.00
Posted by: Jackee in Richmond, VA.Posted: September 9th, 2011 07:09AM
Type: Full PlanningName: Vintage Ivy Events
I must say this wedding planner has great attention to detail. Since I live in Georgia and my parents live in Richmond, VA I did not have the time to go back and forth to plan my wedding. I tried, but I felt so overwhelmed. So, I decided to contact Tope of Vintage Ivy Events after speaking with a few friends in the DC area. We spoke over the phone about the ideas and issues I have for my wedding and she was able to give me ideas of how to save money, from that moment I knew that she could put the wedding of my dreams together. With her pleasant attitude, professionalism, patience, and wedding planning knowledge she fulfilled my expectations. She also did the decor design for my wedding. I had flower balls on vases, tall floral centerpieces, and submerged flowers in vases. She saved me money by connecting me with the right vendors in the Richmond area since I don't live there. She kept me aware of everything that was going on. Check out, www.vintageivyevents.com. She is simply awesome!
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Great Planner!!!!!!!!!!!
Amount: $2,500.00
Posted by: Krystine in New York, NY.Posted: August 31st, 2011 07:08PM
Type: Wedding PlannerName: Elite Weddings & Events
So I booked Elite Weddings for my event, Joanna was my planner. She was refered to me by a friend who also loved her. The total budget for my wedding was $60,000, Joanna made my wedding look like a $100,000 wedding and kept me under budget by $10,000. I tipped her another $1000 just for saving us so much. Total cost for my wedding was $50,000 and it looked like something out of a fairytale.
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Wedding Planner
Amount: $2,500.00
Posted by: Jessica Smtih in Miami, FL.Posted: August 18th, 2011 02:08PM
Type: Wedding PlannerName: Infinite Wedding Block
We had a wonderful Wedding Planner. Unbelievable service and professionalism. She worked in the Finance Industry for years so she's so organized. When we looked at our flowers and decor we were blown away. She did Booking, decor and was there from beginning to end. Our guests were amazed at how much we paid for her.
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Wedding Planner
Amount: $2,500.00
Posted by: blushing bride in jacksonville, FL.Posted: August 8th, 2011 07:08PM
Type: Wedding PlannerName: Brenda Carter
My wedding planner was fantastic. She listen to every detail and filled in the blanks on whatever I forgotten. My wedding was about 3,00 but it look like 500.00 thousand. I would recommend her any day, she was like my planner best friend and confidant all rolled into one.
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The Planning Company, Inc.
Amount: $4,500.00
Posted by: PB Bride in Palm Beach, FL.Posted: August 6th, 2011 09:08AM
Type: Wedding PlanningName: PB Bride
These ladies are amazing!!! I got to enjoy the planning process and they handled all of the details. The day was seamless and incredible and one that we will never forget. Thank you!!!! Your team is just what a bride needs to have a stress-free planning experience.
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disaster wedding planner
Amount: $0.00
Posted by: christene in cape town, Other.Posted: June 13th, 2011 06:06AM
Type: weddingName: anonomous
we hired a wedding planner that turned out to be a disaster,nothing promised was met...the person doing the photos(included in quote)well she had looked like they found her along side the road and offered her a few rand to take photos?it has been 2 months now and have still not received any photos....the so called waitresses were young kids also looking like hobbos...a total disaster....
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External Resources:
  1.  www.i-do-weddings.com/
  2.  www.bridalassn.com/
  3.  wedding.theknot.com/wedding-planning/wedding-budget/articles/12-month-wedding-plan...
  4.  search.half.ebay.com/wedding-planning_W0QQmZbooks
  5.  www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/002-1826029-4690440?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&fi...
  6.  wedding.theknot.com/wedding-message-boards.aspx
  7.  afwpi.com/
  8.  www.bridalassn.com/mMemberListing.aspx
  9.  wedding.theknot.com/wedding-planning/planning-a-wedding/articles/13-questions-to-a...
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