Your Guide To A Wedding Dress Budget

Dreaming about your wedding dress is such a special time! But when it comes down to it, the price of it matters, too. You likely have never shopped for a wedding dress before, so you might have a lot of questions about the price and how to set a wedding dress budget! Here are all of our tips.

How much does a wedding dress cost? 

According to a study by The Knot in 2021, the average cost of a wedding dress in 2021 was $1,800. Keep in mind that a lot of factors can affect the price of your wedding dress, such as where you live and what type of dress you’re buying! At K&B Bridals, our dresses typically range from $1,600 to $4,000 – but we have some that are less expensive and more expensive than that range, too! We work with brides with any wedding dress budget and help you find a dress that is perfect for your wedding day.

How to choose your wedding dress budget

There are a lot of factors that can go into choosing your specific wedding dress budget. Most brides will allocate about 10% of their overall wedding budget to their attire – dress, shoes, and jewelry. But this can vary from person to person! Maybe the dress is extremely important to you and you want to spend more of your budget on it. Or, maybe you want a more simple dress and want to spend less of your budget on the dress.

Here are some things to keep in mind when you are trying to determine your overall wedding dress budget:

More detail = more money

The more detail that a wedding dress has, the more expensive it will be. Details such as lace and embellishments are going to make a dress cost more than it would if it were plain.

Don’t forget about alterations

Alterations will almost always be an additional expense for you when you buy a wedding dress. It is extremely rare for a wedding dress to not need alterations, even if it’s just a simple hem or taking in the waist a bit.

However, depending on how the dress fits you and what you are looking to have altered, alterations can get pricey! Keep this in mind when you are figuring out your budget and buying your wedding dress.

Factor in accessories

Don’t forget that your day-of look will include more than just the dress! It could include shoes, jewelry, a veil, and hair pieces. Keep this in mind when you are purchasing your dress – think about what accessories you would like to add to your final look and how much it would be! Many bridal shops offer various accessories for you to try on with your dress and purchase, too.

Ways to save money in your wedding dress budget

Now that you know everything that goes into your wedding dress budget, you might be wondering what some ways are that you can save some money on your dress! Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.

Find trunk shows and sample sales

A huge way to save some money on your dress is to see if your local bridal shops are having any upcoming trunk shows or bridal sales.A trunk show is an event (typically a weekend or week) that a bridal shop hosts where a specific dress designer’s collection is featured for a set amount of time. During this time, the collection is usually on sale – typically around 10% off! This is a great way to take advantage of getting a brand new designer dress while saving a little bit of money.A sample sale is when a bridal shop is clearing out some of their inventory to make room for new dresses in the shop. This means that they will be selling the dresses in their shop that brides have tried on directly to you at an amazing discount! This is perfect for brides who are really looking for a bargain on their dress.

Choose a simple dress

As we mentioned above, details on a dress are going to make the price of the dress higher! Choosing a more simple dress without embellishments will typically cost less – think gowns made of chiffon, silk, or Mikado.

Plus, when you do this, you can spend a little more on accessories to really pull the look together!

Start shopping early

Did you know that you should start shopping for your wedding dress about a year before the wedding? The earlier, the better! Shopping early can ensure that your dress will come in with plenty of time for alterations before the wedding. If you end up shopping last-minute you might incur some rush shipping fees, or you could end up having to settle for a dress that isn’t your dream dress!

We wish you the best of luck on finding your dream wedding dress at the right price!