Consumers Say Wedding Season Can Be More Financially Stressful Than the Holidays

Wedding season arrived this year with significant financial stress for Americans who are continuing to budget amid the current economic turmoil. A recent survey of American women between the ages 18 and 64 conducted in partnership between Rakuten, shopping platform that offers Cash Back from over 3,500 retailers, and The Harris Poll, revealed that attending a wedding today is a stress that 44 percent of Gen Z and 33 percent of Millennial women agree has become even more stressful than the holidays.

Unsurprisingly, Rakuten’s researchers point to inflation as having a major impact on guests’ ability to attend weddings, finding that data shows 20 percent of women pay for their wedding gifts and accommodations with money from their savings. “This shows that wedding season is not fitting into one’s typical budget and women are having to explore other methods to be able to attend weddings,” said a spokesperson from Rakuten.

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“We have continued to see reports over the past few years showcasing the cost of travel, wedding vendors and general goods skyrocket — making inflation an active conversation surrounding wedding season,” said Rakuten’s team of researchers. “For wedding guests, the event itself doesn’t necessarily determine the spend, as much as what they will need to do to get to the venue, in addition to other wedding weekend necessities like the outfit they plan to wear, their shoes, accessories, hair, makeup, the gift they plan to give and more.”

To meet expenses associated with attending weddings this year, nearly 60 percent of Gen Z women and nearly 40 percent of Millennial women say they will look for a temporary job or side gig to afford costs. And just over half of Gen Z and 27 percent of Millennial women will also skip taking a vacation this summer to budget for attending weddings.

“Attending a wedding can be one of the most expensive moments during a woman’s year, especially if they are planning on attending more than one,” said a spokesperson from Rakuten. “When attending a wedding, whether domestic or international, wedding guests are likely to have to account for travel costs, inclusive of flights, hotels, rental cars and more.”

The categories where survey respondents say they see the highest spend are apparel, such as dresses for the wedding ceremony and other events throughout a wedding weekend, and gifts.

Notably, finding a gift is an opportunity that many of the survey’s respondents said they will use to creatively save. Sixty percent of Gen Z and 40 percent of Millennial women report they will give a wedding gift as a group to save money and nearly 60 percent of respondents from both generations said they will also look outside of the registry for gifts. Fifty percent of Gen Z say they will focus spend solely on the gift, choosing to send a present in place of attending the wedding due to high costs.

With this in mind, Rakuten’s researchers said they expect consumer behaviors to continue to evolve. Survey respondents shared they will continue to lean on social media platforms such as TikTok, with hashtags like #WeddingTok, which has already seen more than 8.1 billion views and continues to grow.

“Through our data, we found that 42 percent of women of all ages find TikTok and other social media helpful for tips to make the wedding season more affordable,” Rakuten’s team said. For brands and retailers, the company’s researchers advised “generating content on these platforms that is helpful to consumers to uncover hacks and tricks to make the planning more affordable is key, whether it is tips on saving on dresses, shoes or accessories, a unique gift recommendation that is thoughtful without breaking the bank.”

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