R.I. named 5th priciest place to get married in U.S.

RHODE ISLAND IS THE fifth most expensive place in the country to get married, according to a survey of nearly 17,500 brides from TheKnot.com and WeddingChannel.com. / COURTESY THEKNOT.COM AND WEDDINGCHANNEL.COM
RHODE ISLAND IS THE fifth most expensive place in the country to get married, according to a survey of nearly 17,500 brides from TheKnot.com and WeddingChannel.com. / COURTESY THEKNOT.COM AND WEDDINGCHANNEL.COM

NEW YORK – A survey of nearly 17,500 brides from TheKnot.com and WeddingChannel.com found that Rhode Island is the fifth most-expensive place in the United States to get married.

With an average wedding price of $47,399, Rhode Island’s costs beat were beat only by New York City’s Manhattan ($76,687), Chicago ($49,810), Long Island ($49,002) and northern/central New Jersey ($48,496). On the list, Long Island was listed as part of the New York metro with the Hudson Valley ($46,300) and the New York City’s outer boroughs ($39,602).

Rhode Island’s cost-of-weddings also beat out the Hub’s. Boston was ranked as the seventh-most expensive place in the U.S. to get married, with an average cost of $39,239.

The average wedding prices included costs related to venues, photographers, wedding planners, musicians or DJs, décor and flowers, videographers, wedding dress, tuxedos, wedding cake, invitations, limousine, favors, catering costs and the price of both the rehearsal dinner and engagement ring. Honeymoon costs were not included.

- Advertisement -

The national average wedding cost in 2012 was $28,427, according to the survey, a 5.2 percent increase over 2011’s $27,012 national wedding cost average. Getting married in Rhode Island costs 66.7 percent more than the national average.

Alaskan brides had the lowest average wedding budget in the country, at $15,504, excluding a honeymoon. Brides in Rhode Island pay an average 206 percent more than brides in Alaska, the survey found.

“In 2011, budgets increased for the first time since the economic downturn, and this past year, in 2012, we saw that wedding budgets are continuing to rise even more and to an all-time high since 2008,” Carley Roney, co-founder of The Knot, said in a statement. “Couples are increasingly less concerned with the economy and are comfortable investing more than ever in the once-in-a-lifetime experience of planning their wedding and making it a fabulous experience for their guests.”

Completing the list of the 10 most expensive places to get married in the U.S. were: Santa Barbara/Ventura, Calif. (No.6 at $42,319); Philadelphia (No. 8 at $38,369); Connecticut (No. 9 at $38,009) and San Francisco (No. 10 at $35,344).

The survey results were compiled from nearly 17,500 U.S. brides married between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2012. Respondents were recruited throughout the year from TheKnot.com and WeddingChannel.com memberships, a representation of nearly 80 percent of brides in the U.S., according to a release. Brides were 18 years of age or older, had a wedding in 2012 and represented a variety of ethnicities, locations and education and income levels.

No posts to display