Budget · October 2026

How to Budget for a Wedding in India: 7 Steps That Hold (2026)

Most wedding budgets fail for one reason: the total was written down before anyone agreed what it had to cover. The order you decide things in matters more than any single number. Here are the seven steps we use with families, with the figures we have already published behind each one.

Step 1: Who pays, and how much in total?

Step one: agree one total with both families. Before any venue visit, settle who is paying for what and what the ceiling is. Families who skip this end up negotiating with each other in front of vendors. If the split itself is the hard part, our guide to who pays for an Indian wedding sets out the three models that work.

Step 2: How many guests?

Step two: set a guest count range. Guest count is the biggest lever in the budget, by a distance. Each guest at a destination wedding is rooms multiplied by nights multiplied by plates, so fifty fewer guests usually frees more money than any vendor negotiation. Write down a low and a high number, and plan to the high one.

Step 3: Which city and venue tier?

Step three: choose the city and the venue tier. The same guest list can cost three times as much at a palace hotel as at a boutique heritage property. Decide the tier before falling for a venue, because venue tier fixes the price of rooms, food and most of what follows.

Step 4: How much for venue and food?

Step four: budget venue and catering together. Across most credible sources, venue and catering combined take roughly 40 to 50 percent or more of the total, and more once a bar is added. Published figures for the split between the two disagree, so plan the pair as one block.

Step 5: How much for décor?

Step five: set the décor tier early. Décor is the most elastic line in any wedding budget: basic packages run roughly ₹1 to 4 lakh, while luxury productions run ₹15 to 40 lakh. Décor ambition set after the venue is booked is where most budgets first crack.

Step 6: What do quotes leave out?

Step six: add the lines that quotes leave out. Expect 18 percent GST on top of quoted service prices. In Delhi NCR, venue overtime runs ₹25,000 to ₹1 lakh an hour, and corkage runs ₹500 to ₹1,500 a bottle if you bring your own alcohol. Add genset, valet and outside-decorator entry fees, and get every one in writing.

Step 7: How much contingency?

Step seven: hold 10 to 15 percent back. Treat the contingency as untouchable while you plan. Late guests, an added function, overtime and tax surprises will claim it. A budget without one is a best-case scenario waiting to be disproved.

How do you keep the budget on track?

Then run it from one place. Put every quote, contract and payment in one sheet and one account, and update it every time something is signed. Our free wedding cost calculator gives you a starting range by destination and guest count, and the budget planner PDF turns it into a working sheet.