173: Cost of Living Crisis: 4 Levers To Cut Your Wedding Venue Bill

Engaged couples everywhere, like literally all over the world, are grappling with the harsh reality of wedding planning amid the ongoing cost of living crisis, and it's causing some people to make the decision to elope or cut back and in some cases even postpone their wedding until a time when they feel, I don't know, more confident about their financial situation.According to the results of the 2026 EasyWedding Industry Report the average cost now for a venue, a wedding venue is $17,500AUD. For the UK, your venue costs vary very widely by type and location, season inclusions, things like that, but an average for 2026 hovers around 8,000- 11,00£, and that would include your basic catering and packages.According to The Knot and Zola and WeddingWire, the prices you are having to deal with, swing hugely from state to state. You've got New Jersey topping at over $27,000 USD with California at approximately $8-15k.The United States is both the least and most expensive country to book a wedding venue in.But the constant is that in Australia, the UK, the United States, the venue cost frequently takes up the lion's share of the whole budget, as in the largest percentage slice of whatever budget a couple is working with. And in my mind, that means that there are opportunities to make choices, compromises, and smart swaps.Stick around to find out what these four levers are that you can adjust on your wedding venue. To help you either redistribute your wedding budget, go on a dream honeymoon, or slash your costs to save for another day. RESOURCES2026 EasyWeddings Australian Wedding Industry Report: https://www.easyweddings.com.au/business/australian-wedding-industry-reports/#download-formGuides for Brides: https://guidesforbrides.co.uk/wedding-ideas/how-much-do-wedding-venues-costThe Knot: https://www.theknot.com/content/average-cost-reception-venueSend Unbridely a 90-second audio message on Speakpipe: https://www.speakpipe.com/unbridelypodcast*The Unbridely Podcast is sponsored by its listeners. When you purchase products or services through links on our website or via the podcast, we may earn an affiliate commission.*------This episode of the Unbridely Modern Wedding Planning Podcast is brought to you by WedSites.com, Unbridely's recommended all-in-one wedding website builder, guest management platform & wedding planning tool.Visit WedSites.com to get started on your FREE wedding website and use code UNBRIDELYPOD to get 10% off any of their paid plans.-----Unbridely acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we record this podcast on, the Kaurna People. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.Support the showFollow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unbridely/or TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@unbridelyEmail the Unbridely Podcast:[email protected]