How much does a wedding cost? 2026 averages by state

Updated July 2026

The national average wedding costs $34,200 (The Knot 2026 Real Weddings Study). But averages are the least honest number in weddings: a small share of very expensive events pulls them up, and most couples spend meaningfully less. That's why every figure here shows the median next to the average wherever one is published — the median is what the typical couple actually spends.

One more thing worth knowing about these numbers: Eydn has no vendor advertisers, so nothing on this page is selling you anything — that's the Pledge.

Average wedding cost by state

51 markets analyzed. Click any row for the full breakdown.


Hawaii	$53,369	$21,117	40%	79	$676
District of Columbia	$49,810	$20,381	41%	127	$392
Massachusetts	$49,281	$20,584	42%	164	$300
New Jersey	$46,794	$20,262	43%	168	$279
Washington	$46,348	$20,313	44%	159	$291
California	$46,300	$20,313	44%	142	$326
Maryland	$45,693	$19,866	43%	169	$270
Alaska	$45,604	$20,208	44%	88	$518
Connecticut	$44,696	$20,000	45%	108	$414
Rhode Island	$44,543	$19,954	45%	157	$284
New York	$42,026	$19,720	47%	128	$328
Virginia	$40,073	$19,252	48%	151	$265
Colorado	$39,808	$19,379	49%	135	$295
Vermont	$39,616	$19,462	49%	136	$291
New Hampshire	$39,342	$19,467	49%	132	$298
Oregon	$38,514	$19,401	50%	130	$296
Utah	$38,382	$19,205	50%	83	$462
Delaware	$38,018	$18,959	50%	131	$290
Minnesota	$37,808	$18,765	50%	149	$254
Maine	$37,727	$19,241	51%	130	$290
Nevada	$37,044	$18,942	51%	103	$360
Pennsylvania	$36,985	$19,087	52%	126	$294
North Dakota	$36,080	$18,492	51%	129	$280
Illinois	$35,914	$18,490	51%	138	$260
Wyoming	$35,757	$18,797	53%	108	$331
Wisconsin	$34,289	$18,214	53%	131	$262
Nebraska	$33,755	$18,046	53%	132	$256
Arizona	$33,177	$18,333	55%	102	$325
Georgia	$32,545	$17,981	55%	126	$258
Iowa	$32,237	$17,732	55%	128	$252
Montana	$32,217	$18,110	56%	77	$418
South Dakota	$31,961	$17,685	55%	127	$252
Ohio	$31,779	$17,647	56%	126	$252
Texas	$31,577	$17,647	56%	126	$251
Idaho	$31,468	$17,592	56%	106	$297
Missouri	$31,178	$17,470	56%	126	$247
Florida	$30,951	$17,556	57%	119	$260
Kansas	$30,775	$17,344	56%	124	$248
North Carolina	$30,761	$17,500	57%	119	$258
Michigan	$30,734	$17,344	56%	123	$250
Indiana	$30,180	$17,192	57%	122	$247
Tennessee	$29,504	$17,023	58%	121	$244
South Carolina	$28,932	$16,944	59%	116	$249
New Mexico	$27,884	$16,587	59%	111	$251
Louisiana	$26,457	$15,844	60%	110	$241
Oklahoma	$26,280	$15,793	60%	112	$235
Alabama	$25,958	$15,635	60%	110	$236
Kentucky	$25,899	$15,595	60%	109	$238
West Virginia	$24,707	$15,170	61%	104	$238
Arkansas	$24,155	$14,724	61%	104	$232
Mississippi	$23,432	$14,300	61%	103	$227

Where the wedding budget goes: national category averages

Category	National avg	Share
Venue	$12,900	32%
Catering & bar	$9,360	23%
Photography	$3,000	7%
Videography	$2,300	6%
Florals	$2,800	7%
Music & entertainment	$1,800	4%
Attire & accessories^†	$2,100	5%
Hair & beauty	$300	1%
Invitations & stationery	$510	1%
Cake & desserts	$540	1%
Rentals & decor	$2,000	5%
Planner/coordinator	$2,100	5%
Transportation	$1,100	3%

National averages and shares from The Knot 2026 Real Weddings Study; shares normalized to sum to 100%. State category figures on each state page apply these shares to that state's average — planning estimates, not surveyed state figures. †Dress only.

Wedding cost FAQ

What is the national average wedding cost?

$34,200 (The Knot 2026 Real Weddings Study). Averages run well above what the typical couple spends — see the median column in the table for the honest per-state picture.

Why is the median wedding cost so much lower than the average?

A small number of very expensive weddings pull the average up. The median — the midpoint, where half of couples spend less — is a better picture of a typical budget, which is why this page leads with it wherever a median is published.

What are the most expensive states for a wedding?

Of the 51 markets analyzed, the highest averages are Hawaii ($53,369), District of Columbia ($49,810), Massachusetts ($49,281).

Methodology & sources

Statewide cost figures come from The Wedding Report state tables; national budget-allocation shares come from The Knot 2026 Real Weddings Study. Category-level state figures are estimated by applying those national shares to each state's average total — planning estimates, not surveyed state numbers. Different organizations publish materially different estimates for the same market because they collect data differently — survey-based studies (like The Knot's Real Weddings Study) and market-model estimates (like The Wedding Report's) can diverge widely. Where they conflict, we show each figure with its source rather than picking a winner silently.

Some category-level national inputs come from earlier research passes whose source pages are no longer directly linkable; those figures are retained but flagged internally for re-verification.

Put your own numbers together: the wedding budget calculator builds a state-adjusted breakdown in seconds, and the catering cost calculator covers the biggest line item.

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