How much does a UK Wedding Planner cost?

Full Wedding Design, Planning & Management

The majority of our clients hire us to work with them for the duration of their wedding planning, right from the beginning of their journey. This is our favourite time to start working together, as it allows us to really get to know our couples, and curate a beautiful wedding which is a reflection of who they are and an extension of their personalities and personal style. This all takes time, and on average we spend between 300-400 hours planning a wedding over the course of 12-18 months.  That said, the cost of hiring a Wedding Planner is not just directly related to the number of hours it takes us to do the work, but also takes into account our many years of experience, the costs of running a business, the support team we have working hard behind the scenes, and the expertise of our knowledge.

As a luxury Wedding Planner, we only take on a limited number of projects each year, to enable us to dedicate our time fully to each client and put our heart and soul into designing and planning every event with the highest level of detail, care and attention that it deserves. Each wedding celebration is different, so our pricing is bespoke and dependent upon various factors; the size and complexity of the event, the level of support required, the geographical location and logistics.

The majority of luxury Wedding Planners in the UK charge their fee based on a percentage of your overall budget or spend. The average is between 10-15%, with a minimum fee in place. Minimum fees for reputable Wedding Planners range from £5,000 – £20,000.

Here at Vanilla Rose Weddings, we offer a comprehensive Full Design, Planning & Management service, and our percentage is based on 12% of your budget, with a minimum fee of £10,000. For larger budgets, we would agree a fixed fee, particularly if it’s a multi-day celebration with a rehearsal dinner or recovery brunch to plan in addition.

It’s likely that there will be some exclusions when calculating from your budget, such as Bridal attire and rings, as these typically aren’t items that a Planner would be directly involved with, so do make sure to ask your Planner if there is anything that isn’t included when calculating a percentage from your budget.

Different Wedding Planners may vary in what’s included with their service, so it’s important to ask for a full breakdown of their service before directly comparing the prices between a few Planners you might be considering, and it’s particularly worth taking into account the experience of each Wedding Planner too.

Wedding Day Management

Sometimes called On the Day Coordination, this service is for couples who have planned the majority of their wedding themselves, but would like some help in bringing the final logistics together and someone who can oversee the setup and running of the wedding day itself. Starting around 6 weeks prior to your wedding day, this service should be offered as a fixed fee, and again is dependent on the size and complexity of your event. For a full day of support, including the 6 weeks prior to your wedding to finalise logistics, confirm plans with your supplier team, and create a full schedule to share with your suppliers, you should expect to pay between £1,500 – £2,000.

If you’d like to discuss your plans in more detail and are considering hiring a Wedding Planner, we’d love to hear from you. For more information on our wedding planning services, you can read more here, or get in touch to schedule an initial Discovery Call.

Photography Credits: Chloe Ely, Imogen Xiana, Lucy Davenport, Hope Helmuth