It’s estimated that 8% of your total budget will most likely go to wedding flowers, but it depends what’s most important to you as far as wedding decor is concerned. My wedding budget (including dress, invitations, etc.) came it at just under $40,000 and I definitely didn’t spend $3,200 on flowers. In fact, I spent around half that, with the flower cost breaking down as follows:
- Ceremony flowers: $300
- My bouquet: $95
- Bridesmaids: $35/each (6)= $210
- Groomsmen and Father Boutonnieres: $10/each (9)= $90
- Mother/Grandma Corsages: $25/each (4)= $100
- Reception flowers and vases: $430 (I had 10 tables)
- Entryway arrangement: $140
- Outside flowers (for cocktail area): $60
- Place-card holder (roses and moss flowerbed): $150
- TOTAL: $1,575
While I’ve seen brides spend as little as $200 on their wedding flowers and as much as $20,000, the cost will vary depending on your taste and the number of flowers you’ll need. To give you a better idea of what you can expect to spend, the average cost by type of wedding arrangement is below:
- Bridal Bouquets : $100-$300/each
- Bridesmaids Bouquets : $60-$125/each
- Flower girl petals : $30-60
- Corsages : $20-$60/each
- Boutonnieres : $25-$50/each
- Altar Arrangements : $60-$400/each
- Place Setting : $10-$30/each
- Head Table Centerpieces: $80-$150/each
- Guest Table Centerpieces: $75-$300+/each
- Cake Flowers: $25-$100
NOTE: These prices can increase drastically based on what’s in season and type of flower used. For example, I’ve seen bridal bouquets cost more than $400, so only use these prices as an average.
How to Save:
- If using a florist, the cost of a consultation, delivery, and set-up is typically included, so you’ve got that going for you! Tell your florist how much you want to spend, and see what your options are.
- See if any of your ceremony flowers can be re-used during your reception. For example, we used the bridal/bridesmaids bouquets on two of the family tables.
- Buy in season! Check out my guide to wedding flowers by season.
- If DIY’ing it, go through a wholesaler such as Fifty Flowers or Costco. You’d be surprised at the great deals they have.
- Spend more money on your reception/ceremony flowers vs. the bouquets. People will literally see them for 5 minutes!
- Use more candles and less flowers. If your wedding is at night, the candles will have more impact than the flowers, anyway.
- Use flowers with bigger blooms (such as hydrangeas) to fill out a vase. Alternatively, you can cluster together less expensive flowers such as carnations and baby’s breath for an inexpensive yet full arrangement.
- Fill out tables with fruit such as strawberries (for a summer wedding), pineapples, lemons, and apples for color where not using flowers.
- Use potted plants in addition to flowers. Click here for more wedding centerpiece ideas!
Stay on budget! Read our features on how much wedding photographers cost and how much wedding cakes cost, along with our advice on the easiest ways to save!
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We almost fainted when we visited a florist for our wedding they wanted almost $7000. Which was too much only to throw them away after 5 hours. We ended up renting silk bouquets and centerpieces for under $500 through bridalbouquets.com the quality was amazing and looked great in the photos. Flowers just dont offer any type of experience at the end of the day they are props. Hope this helps
LOVE these tips! Costco is having more and more beautiful flowers, the only risk is that you don’t know exactly what you’ll get until the day of.
Another thing that we always recommend our couples keep in mind is that rentals of vases, arches, etc. can be adding to your total price. Keep it down by getting your own vases!