(NEXSTAR) — Getting hitched this year?
Wedding site The Knot recently released its 2022 Real Weddings Study to determine the average cost of a wedding in each U.S. state. The results show wedding expenses are adjusting back to pre-pandemic prices, as the average wedding now costs around $30,000. That's a $2,000 year-over-year increase, likely attributable to overall inflation, the Knot says.
The most expensive wedding state for yet another year? New Jersey, where a wedding will cost an average of $51,000. The least expensive weddings, on average, can be thrown in Kansas, Oklahoma and Utah — average wedding costs in these states are well below the national average at $16,000.
Take a look at this interactive map to see the average wedding cost in your state.
Curious how wedding costs break down?
The Knot also breaks down the average wedding budget — not including honeymoons. The five biggest expenses are a venue, live bands, florists, photographers and videographers.
The average American cost for these are:
- Reception venue — $11,200
- Live band — $3,900
- Photgrapher — $2,600
- Florist — $2,400
- Videographer — $2,100
While all of these totals may seem like little compared to the memories you'll make, experts warn to be careful about over-extending finances for weddings. Financial outlet LendEDU recently surveyed 1,000 recently married Americans, discovering about one-third of respondents say they went into debt for their wedding.
Eighty-six percent of those who went into debt said they accrued credit card debt, according to LendEDU. On average, those who went into debt for weddings tended to spend about $7,182 more than those who didn't.
"While I often see shades of grey in personal finance conversations, weddings are one area where I take a very firm stance," personal finance expert and author of "Broke Millennial," Erin Lowry, told wedding site Zola. "You should not go into debt for your wedding."
If you're curious about ways you might alleviate one of these costs, while a live band averages $3,900 for a night, the average cost of a DJ'd wedding reception is $1,500.
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