WEDDING TIPPING GUIDE
Tipping is one of those taboo things that no one likes to discuss openly. But because this is a service industry - tipping is encouraged in the wedding world. Gratuities are taxed differently than income, so it is best to provide cash tips. If you provide us with envelopes with the vendor’s name on the outside of each one, we will happily hand them out on the wedding day. We will get them from you or your family on the morning of the event.
OFFICIANT +
HOUSE OF WORSHIP
OFFICIANT
If you hire a professional officiant, we recommend tipping $150-250. If a family or friend is marrying you, giving a thoughtful gift and thank you card is more appropriate.
HOUSE OF WORSHIP
If you are holding a ceremony at a house of worship, typically, they will ask you to make a donation in lieu of a cash tip to their pastor or rabbi. The most common donation we see is between $200-500, but you can always ask your contact what they recommend for a donation. We also suggest writing a thank you letter for the Pastor and Church or Temple Coordinators!
Food & Beverage Venues
CATERING & VENUE MANAGER
It is not expected to tip this vendor, but I suggest a $150-300 tip if you wish to do something. Or we recommend you simply write a thank you card or give a small gift to show gratitude!
CATERING + BAR COMPANY
There is most often a line for gratuity in your final invoice. If there isn’t one in there, it isn’t expected or required. We often see our clients providing a 15% tip on the food and/or beverage costs.
Photographers and videographers
It is recommended these days to tip photo or video teams -- whether or not they own the business. You can plan to tip owners or lead photographers/videographers around 5% of your package price.
Hair & Makeup stylists
Like at the salon, tip 20% of the service on the day of the wedding! This tip is highly expected and can be frowned upon if forgotten.
Entertainment
It is encouraged to tip ceremony, cocktail & reception musicians or DJ's. Tipping around $100-$200 per musician is appropriate. If working with a band, don’t forget to include the sound tech and band manager! For a DJ, we recommend tipping $100-150, or 5% of their service fee.
Transporation
Many companies include gratuity for their drivers in their quotes. However, if they do not, it is recommended that you tip drivers 10-15% of the service fee. For drivers dedicated to the couple, we suggest 20%, as they go above and beyond to take care of them on the day of the wedding.
LEAD PLANNER & ASSISTANTS
First and foremost, this is optional and not expected. But because we often get the question, we wanted to ensure we touched upon it here. We usually see tips in the amount of a percentage of your overall package price for the lead planner. This is shared among all staff - office and event assistants - through year-end bonuses since not everyone is present on the day of. As an alternative, we appreciate a review on Google!
DESIGN VENDORS
FLORIST, LIGHTING, STATIONERS, ETC.
For those vendors who do not work the evening of the wedding, it's not expected to provide cash tips. However, if they have gone above and beyond, it is always courteous to tip the provider. Most commonly, we see $200 - 300 tips given to the specific contact who assisted at each design company. Sending a thank you card or a small gift post-wedding to thank them for their services is also typical in place of a cash tip.
ONE LAST SUGGESTION
It is a nice gesture to follow up after the wedding with thank you cards & reviews (on google preferably) -- as you know – it means the world to us wedding professionals!