Anyone who’s ever organized a wedding knows all too well how difficult and time-consuming the process can be. It’s the reason many couples hire professional event planners to do the heavy lifting. And the cost only adds more stress, with the average couple shelling out over $38,000 for their big day.
Between sending invitations, securing reservations, planning a menu and obsessing over final touches on the cake, it’s no wonder weddings are arranged months, even years, in advance. Tying the knot is a huge commitment, and the $78 billion wedding industry is growing.
At WalletHub, we understand the logistical and financial stresses of that typically long march to “I do.” So in order to assist with the planning process, we compared more than 180 U.S. cities to find the cheapest and most convenient wedding destinations that also promise a memorable day. We examined each city across 27 key indicators of wedding-friendliness, ranging from average wedding cost to venues and event spaces per capita to hotel availability. Read on for the results, insight from a panel of experts, and a full description of our methodology.