This story is part of our series on all things love and money. You can read more personal finance content from TD Stories here.

When it comes to making a wedding budget, couples planning to host a celebration of their marriage can easily google the cost of venues, flowers, tuxedos, and late-night poutine trucks.

They could even ask ChatGPT to help make them a rough wedding budget and it will spit out an estimate.

But whatever answer couples find, they should probably disregard it entirely if they’re serious about creating an accurate budget, said wedding planner Valary Chrisman.

“I definitely have some couples come to me and say they searched for the average wedding budget in Canada on ChatGPT,” said Chrisman, who runs Toronto wedding planning company Vivid & Vogue.

“But that information is just an amalgamation of a bunch of different searches. It doesn’t take into account where the wedding took place, how many guests there were, or what kind of food was served.”

Wedding budgets are unique to the people getting married because everyone will make different choices about which professionals to hire, what clothing they purchase, and how many guests they invite, she said.

A three-course meal at a historic mountain hotel in Banff, Alta., is probably not going to cost the same as a buffet BBQ at a community hall in Swift Current, Sask.

A custom-made wedding dress adorned with French lace will likely cost more than a white sundress found hanging on a rack at the thrift store.

Lobster will cost more than ribs — you get the idea.

Creating a wedding budget in the age of inflation

Beyond not reflecting personal choices, generic wedding budget advice might not accurately convey how Canada's rapid rate of inflation has increased the costs of goods and services.

In 2024, the Consumer Price Index — a measurement of the average change in retail prices experienced by Canadian consumers — rose 2.4%, according to Statistics Canada. In 2023, it rose 3.9%.

Most engaged couples will likely be able to create an accurate budget, one that gives them what they want without depleting their savings, but it will mean putting in some legwork, Chrisman said.

Here we dig into some tips for creating a custom wedding budget – and resisting the urge to stray from it.

Reach out to venues and vendors directly for quotes

Don’t guess what a sit-down dinner for 150 people, a late-night pizza snack for 50, or a wedding video will cost. Start sending emails or pick up the phone and ask vendors, Chrisman said.

“You should be looking at actual quotes from vendors and venues you’re considering using,” she said.

Quotes are particularly useful in helping her clients understand if something is truly more budget friendly, or if it just appears that way, she said.

A wedding held at home or on private property is an example. Many couples think it’s the budget-friendly option, but they don’t always account for the costs of getting permits and licences, renting linens, tables, chairs, and washrooms, and hiring bartenders and caterers, Chrisman said.

“People often think a backyard wedding will be less expensive,” she said. “In my experience, having done many private property weddings, the opposite is true.”

Think hard about what's a must-have in the wedding budget

Once a couple has their quotes, they can list them all out, and compare the total cost to what they are able to budget for the wedding. Then, the couple can decide what they want to go ahead with and what they might need to modify or skip entirely.

If a wedding video set to music isn’t in the budget, couples might simply choose a solo photographer to shoot still images for six hours. A photobooth could be replaced with disposable cameras and a guest book.

Chrisman helps her clients prioritize what they want, which usually means they have to de-prioritize something else in order to stick to their budget. Sometimes, they’ll increase their budget.

“If someone says that flowers are really important to them, but they don’t think their guests will drink very much alcohol, they might go for the lower cost bar package, so there’s more money available in the floral category,” she said.

“Wedding planners can help you reframe your priorities in a way that makes sense to you.”

Don’t be afraid to defy convention to stay on budget

There will always be couples who are unfortunately not realistic about their budget and the cost of vendors in their city, Chrisman said.

Someone who wants to host 100 people at their wedding in Toronto for $10,000 is going to be disappointed, she said. Food and drinks alone could eat up the entire budget.

“There are times where you’ll see people with budgets that are unfortunately not workable in the current economy,” Chrisman said.

But there's no single, perfect way to throw a party in celebration of a marriage (that’s what a wedding reception is, after all, a party).

That means a wedding that fits the budget is an opportunity to be creative, whether couples opt for smaller wedding parties, digital invitations, DIY table decorations, a 25-person guest list, or a rented gown.

“If you’re finding the cost of hosting a traditional wedding a little bit expensive, it’s helpful to think of alternative options,” Chrisman said.

“You could have a daytime wedding and cut down on your alcohol costs.”

Couples might also host their wedding ceremony and reception at a restaurant instead of a hotel or other event venue, as long as they feel confident they can meet the minimum spend that restaurants usually ask for, she said.

“A restaurant has all the things required to host a meal and that can be a money saver in the sense that you don’t have a room rental fee or a venue rental fee,” she said. “But it’s worth considering if they’ll have space for your ceremony. Always consider the pros and cons to different options.”

Track spending to stick to a wedding budget

Once couples have settled on a budget and picked their vendors, it’s time to start sending out deposits to makeup artists, florists, DJs, and hairdressers, while ensuring they track each of these transactions.

This is where staying on budget can get tricky. Couples must track all the wedding money going out as transactions, while simultaneously putting aside funds each month to build their wedding fund, said Christina Mikhael, Product Owner, Onboarding & Account Management, Everyday Advice Journey at TD.

“If they're a TD customer, they could use a tool like TD MySpend because it can help you categorize your spending with your TD deposit and/or credit card account(s), set specific savings goals, and track your progress,” Mikhael said.

“That way you can keep tabs on how much money you've spent on your wedding so far and get a clear understanding of how much money must go towards remaining costs.”

With clear visibility into the wedding budget, couples can make small adjustments as necessary in the moments leading up to their big day (and likely for a few weeks after) if something ends up costing more than expected.