You may be celebrating one of the greatest days of your life, but it’s business as usual for your wedding vendors. In the service industry, gratuities are always appreciated – and sometimes, expected. So unless your venue or particular vendors have specific policies against tipping or have already added in a gratuity, you should plan on tipping (read your contract to find out). Also be sure to keep in mind these extra expenses while booking a vendor! Use this Free Wedding Budget Planning Worksheet to track all the expenses going toward your big day.
Rule number one: you don’t need to be running around at your wedding or reception doling out tips to various vendors. Instead, assign someone you trust (wedding planner, family member, attendant) to hand out day-of tips so you can focus on the fun stuff. You will just need to do a little prep work beforehand by putting predetermined amounts of cash into envelopes for each vendor, along with a little thank you note. The thank you can be as simple as using these Silver Thank You Cards. If you want to go a little further in thanking your vendors and people helping out at the reception, you can make up little goodie jars using these fun Personalized Lace Mini Mason Jars.
How much should you tip? Use these guidelines when tipping your wedding vendors. Remember: before planning tips, be sure to read vendor contracts. Some vendors have the gratuity figured into the bill, and some vendors do not permit tipping. On the other hand, you can always tip more for exceptional service.
- • Hairstylist/Makeup artist: Ranges from 15-25% depending on the extent of services provided and whether or not it was a "house call"
- • Delivery people/set up staff: $5-$10/person
- • Venue staff (parking, coat check, etc.): $1 per car or guest
- • Catering: $20/each member of wait staff, $50/chef, $100-$200/manager, or give 15%-20% of the bill to the manager to be divided among the catering staff (FYI: the final bill might also be due at end of evening, so be prepared.)
- • Bartenders: $20 each
- • Officiant: While it isn’t necessary to tip members of the clergy, it’s nice to thank them by making a donation to their house of worship. Amounts typically range from $100 to $500. If you have a civil employee officiate your wedding, you do not need to tip. They receive a flat fee and usually are not permitted to accept tips.
- • Musicians: $20-$25/musician or $50-$150 for DJs
- • Transportation: 15-20% of bill (if not included in contract)
Vendors who own their own business (wedding planner, florist, photographer, etc.) don't necessarily need to be tipped – but a small gift or thank you note is always appreciated. Of course if they truly went above and beyond to make your day special, feel free to tip them too.
One month to go before you say "I do"! Stay on track with our tips for creating a seating chart, advice on writing thank you cards and inspiration for writing your own wedding vows.
See more tips for every phase of your planning process in our Month-by-Month Wedding Planning Guide.
Article written by: Heather Clark
