Getting married

The information in this guide was last updated on 21/04/2017

Getting married or starting a civil partnership means combining everything, including your finances. See how to plan for your big day and beyond. With the average UK wedding now costing around £20,000* your big day can come with a big price tag. Of course, your family may chip in to help, but even so, you’ll probably want to save some money yourself – and make some savings too.

First of all, decide on the maximum you’re willing to spend. Then start a wedding budget planner. There are plenty of these available online to download.

The planner should itemise everything you’ll need for the big day, including the cost of:

• the ceremony
• venue hire
• food and drink
• the cake
• transportation
• outfits for everyone, including the dress
• rings
• flowers
• entertainment

Make an estimate of how much each item will cost, then get quotes for the actual price. Once you’ve got your plan, and you’ve totalled up the costs, you’ll be able to see how much money you need to raise and start thinking about where you could make some savings.

If you don’t already have one, each of you may choose to open a cash ISA. This way, you can both make the most of your savings because you don’t have to pay tax on any interest you earn. Generally, the longer you tie- up your money the better the interest rate. Hopefully, you’ll have time to build up a nice nest egg to help pay for the big day.

You can only put a fixed amount into an ISA every year, but if you’ve already used your ISA allowance, you can still earn interest on your savings. Look for high-interest savings accounts to maximise your money. Even if you’re only saving for a year or so, the interest could add up, which can help to reduce your wedding bill.