This is what the average Australian couple is like in 2021

What’s the average engaged Australian couple like? When are they getting married? How much will they spend on their wedding? Here, we answer all those questions and more.

Each year, we conduct an extensive survey of over 4,000 engaged couples across Australia, collecting as much info and insight as possible into what the typical couple is really like. This helps our entire industry make decisions about things like what to charge for popular wedding dates or how to set up wedding packages for the year.

In 2020, our survey looked a little different, as so many couples had their wedding plans impacted by Covid-19. That said, we were still able to gain valuable insights into what weddings will look like in 2021 and 2022.

In this article, we’ll cover:

• Who is the typical engaged Australian couple?

• What’s the average Australian wedding budget?

• When do most couples get married in Australia?

If you’d like to read more industry insights broken down by state and find out about the impact of Covid on the wedding industry, please download our Annual Wedding Industry Report.

Who is the typical engaged Australian couple?

92% of Australian couples are getting married for the first time. This has remained steady for years. What does that mean for suppliers? Unless you’ve been advised otherwise, you can safely assume that most of your clients have never seen a wedding quote or contract before. They’re counting on you to build a trusting relationship with them and guide them through every detail.

47% have attended one or two weddings in the last year, and another 52% missed weddings due to postponements or cancellations. Think they aren’t talking with friends about good and bad experiences with suppliers along the way? Think again. Every potential client has the potential to bring you at least one personally vouched-for referral.

Most couples will opt to have a wedding party, typically made up of about eight people including the couple themselves.

Overall, couples who’ve planned a wedding in the last year have had to be meticulous about their planning. 57% of couples reported spending 10+ hours a week on wedding planning prior to Covid, while that percentage jumped to 67% during Covid. They’ve reported increased stress and anxiety, as well as a thirst for information and transparency from suppliers.

Couples want to know that their suppliers have a Covid Safety plan in place, should it be needed. Not only are they concerned about safety and cleaning protocols, but they also want to know that they can change their date if an unexpected wave of the virus hits again.

For more advice on how to run a successful wedding business during Covid, please download our free Annual Wedding Industry Report for 10 helpful service tips you can apply to your wedding business right now.

What’s the average Australian wedding budget?

In 2020, the average expected wedding budget started at $25,931 and came in closer to an actual budget of $27,288. This is based on the typical couple inviting 88 guests to their wedding.

Now, here’s the thing — in 2019, we reported the average actual cost of an Australian wedding at $32,940 for a wedding of 98 guests. This is clearly a big drop, which is largely due to limited guest numbers in 2020 and couples having to downsize their wedding in accordance with local COVID Safety practices.

In previous years, there’s been a bigger discrepancy between what couples project they’ll spend on their wedding and what they actually end up spending. We suspect this will continue to be the case post-Covid, but this year has been exceptional in that downsizing was much more common than upscaling.

We also know from our survey that couples respond well to having a variety of package and pricing options, especially when it comes to catering and venue costs. Though you might set a flat rate that’s all-inclusive for your packages, it’s smart to keep a short menu of last-minute additions for couples who may have downsized and have the extra budget to add a little lagniappe for their guests.

So, where does the money for most wedding budgets come from? More than half of couples (57%) receive help from their parents and 38% of couples will fund their wedding on their own. Just 1% of couples reported taking out a wedding loan in 2020. 90% will also have a wishing well on the day, which typically brings in another $6,102 on average.

To get realistic about how to price your services as a wedding supplier, we’d encourage you to take a look at the state-by-state average wedding budget and dive into your specific category so you can get to the most competitive pricing or the pricing that works best for you and your business. All this info is available in our Wedding Industry Report.

Get average state-by-state pricing in our Wedding Industry Report.

When do most couples get married in Australia?

Saturday remains the most popular day of the week for weddings — 50% of couples choose to host their wedding on a Saturday.

Spring and autumn remain the most popular wedding seasons, coming in at 34% and 31% respectively. We saw a big drop in the number of winter weddings this year (just 13% of weddings), largely due to pandemic restrictions on indoor events. Summer remains steady with 22% of all weddings taking place on those long summer days.

October and March are the most popular months for weddings in 2021-22, each accounting for about 14% of all weddings. When it comes to pricing your services in these months, it’s all about pricing to match the demand. Most popular wedding dates include 6 March, 12 March and 15 October.

Make the most of the additional weekend capacity for weddings in May, July and October 2021, as there are five Saturdays in each of these months.

Get detailed state-by-state information about popular wedding dates in our Australian Wedding Industry Report.