Many times couples have a specific wedding budget in mind and while some stick to it, the reality is that things add up quickly and often exceed the original plan. With this in mind, here are three infographics that aim to help Filipina brides prepare for real wedding budget expectations in 2018. The set of numbers provided in these infographics were amassed from reputable local wedding vendors in The Philippines and averaged based on their regular charging rate for a 150 pax-wedding. Expenses and prices can vary widely. One should expect to pay, on average, 50% to 100%+ more when choosing well-experienced professionals, designer labels, popular event locations, unique or customized products and services.

Cost	Low-Range	Mid-Range	High-Range
Legal Marriage Documents	3,000	4,500	6,000
Wedding Planner	20,000	45,000	65,000
Invitation	12,750	18,000	27,000
Ceremony	7,000	10,000	25,000
Reception and Décor	35,000	70,000	150,000
Catering	50,000	150,000	185,000
Hair, Makeup and Beauty	7,500	15,000	30,000
Event Photographer and Videographer	35,000	60,000	130,000
Music	7,000	20,000	40,000
Wedding Dress	5,000	35,000	50,000
Groom's Attire	2,500	8,000	20,000
Cake	4,500	7,500	15,000
Wedding Ring	15,000	35,000	60,000
Flowers	8,000	15,000	25,000
Entourage Attires	8,000	15,500	22,000
Favours and Gifts	7,500	22,500	75,000
Honeymoon	20,000	35,000	50,000
TOTAL	P247,750	P566,000	P975,000

Why Does A Wedding Cost So Much?

Weddings are, in the eyes of many, a day spent for family and friends to celebrate a religious bastion of traditions in the Philippine wedding culture. And for lots of Filipinos, there are certain rules that must be followed in this once-in-a-lifetime milestone: the bride must wear a white dress, a Catholic ceremony must take place in a church, etc. While millennials are not shy of spending more for their big day, the industry slowly faces the generational challenge of keeping up with their increasing demands. According to the most recent survey published by the Philippine Statistics Authority , there has been a consistent decrease of couples getting married in a span of 10 years, while the average amount that couples are spending on their wedding has increased year on year for the past five years. The average total wedding costs locally have reached a new high of P500, 000. Obviously this is still an average - lots of couples are spending less and equally there are a considerable number of luxury weddings with far higher spends.

1. Personalization

The biggest thing with millennial weddings is that no detail is overlooked. These are extremely personalized, detail-focused weddings and brides need each aspect of the event to reflect that. We know that knowledge is power for millennials and self-expression is key, but that can translate to more demands on wedding vendors consequently. Every couple is trying to look for the next big thing to tell their story in a unique way through styling, décor and props, which lead to weddings becoming much more design-focused and visual-centric -- from large scale backdrops, moody lighting to little details like signature cocktails, personalized favours and cinematic wedding videos. The millennial bride wants their wedding to reflect their own personality and the amount of work that goes into pulling off these type of affair is immense. Oftentimes, when a vendor has consultations with a couple, they know precisely what they want and even have photos saved from wedding pins on Pinterest that they want to recreate. Both the bride and groom usually provide a specific task list to their vendors and aren’t afraid to direct more of their budget towards their priority, if it means they get exactly what they’re looking for.

2. Marrying Older

The marriage rate in the Philippines is reportedly declining, as it is similar in other parts of the world, but it could just be that millennials are marrying later in life. With so much focus now being on career advancement and other big life moments, couples are not necessarily getting married at such a young age. According to the survey led by the Philippine Statistics Office, the average age to get married is at 26 (for women) and 28 (for men) respectively, with the age range between 20-35 years old actively looking for a partner - a bit later than earlier generations. Because of this, 77% of couples are now in the position of financial independence who are able to pay for their own weddings which in turn is driving them to two extreme spectrums of budgeting. They either spend more sensibly, DIY style, to cut off their expenses or splurge on their big day to compensate with their sophisticated taste.

3. Social Media Influence

It’s not unusual to hear a modern bride saying, “I paid P35,000 for my wedding photos and got back a USB packed with almost 1,000 digital images. Another P40,000 was allotted over to our videographer to create a 15-minute same-day edit footage, which I also uploaded to Facebook to show my friends and family. Another P15, 000 went to a photo booth vendor so our guests could keep souvenir photos for themselves or share it with us online through our Instagram wedding hashtag.”

Welcome to the well-documented world of millennial weddings. Pinterest boards are now commonly-used for inspiration. ‘Save the date’ invitations take the form of animated videos uploaded on YouTube. Couples can create their own wedding website and have it run up in 10 minutes, providing all the information their guests could need towards the wedding day. Instagram is driving pressure for weddings to be picture-perfect and share-worthy. Millennials are leveraging this to follow new trends which is undeniably impacting the entire design approach of a modern day bride. Our obsession with Instagram has created a generation far more interested in photography than our predecessors, and all aspects of a wedding. Nevertheless, Instagram is also pushing couples to be more creative. In a way, this platform is what inspired this whole change and what is revolutionizing weddings that are crafted by the things that are seen from peers and influencers. The platform becomes a mood board to source out what they want to either recreate or design something unique that is inspired by it. The weddings of today may be more digitally-inspired and tech-driven, but they’re also becoming extremely personal. You can DIY certain aspects, like invitations or the souvenirs. And it’s also common to even ask help from friends and family when it comes to making a very personalized wedding. At the end of the day, a more personal wedding that reflects a couple is a more meaningful one. Don’t forget to shop around suppliers and to check out mybridesmade.com to get the most out of your wedding budget.