When it comes to weddings, money can be a thorny issue. Let’s face it, weddings can be very expensive and run to many thousands of pounds. In contrast if you keep things simple you can reduce that cost by a significant percentage.

But it still begs the question of who foots the bill. Does it fall to one person or will it be split between different people?

Obviously a certain degree of clarity is required here. The last thing you want to do is assume that the father of the bride will be paying for everything. Nowadays that does not always happen, and the sooner you know who will be contributing to your budget, the better.

In actual fact nearly two thirds of modern couples decide to take on the whole cost themselves. This is probably partly because it is not seen as being much of a tradition any more for the brides parents to pay for everything. In addition to this many couples think that if they pay for everything themselves they have total control over what they have. Having the financial responsibility for the wedding is also desirable for many couples, since their parents are not necessarily able to afford to pay for it anyway.

In essence then there is no hard and fast rule concerning who pays for what at a wedding. Every couple will have their own ideas and wishes on what will be ideal. No two families have the same financial situation and what will work for one family may not work for another.

The most important thing is to be up front and agree on who pays for what early on if the cost is going to be split between several people or couples. This may not be done in a monetary sense either. For example the bride’s parents may agree to supply all the food at the wedding reception, while the groom’s parents may foot the bill for the drink. Money can be a touchy subject but it is important to bring it up since you don’t want people agreeing to things they may not be able to afford.

Traditionally it is the bride’s father who pays for the majority of what is required. The bride will pay for certain things such as the hen night for example, and of course the ring she will give to her new husband when they marry. The groom pays for more than the bride does, including his stag night, and he will pay for the honeymoon too.

But this is all down to tradition and for many people the need to conform in this way simply does not exist any more. So if you are worrying over tradition and cost, don’t let it get to you too much. And remember that if both sets of parents are expecting to pay for the wedding, be firm and let them down gently if you wish to foot the bill yourselves. As your big day you have the final say on what happens, when and for how much.

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