Your Complete Guide on How Much to Tip Wedding Vendors

Weddings can be a complicated undertaking, whether you book the vendors on your own or work with a wedding planner. Expensive, too. What if we said that you need an additional $1,000 for tips?

That’s right, tips. Budgeting a little extra money for the makeup artist who made the bride shine and the florist that got the mother of the groom to smile was a smart idea.

How much should be given and to whom? This guide to wedding tips will help you determine how much money you should budget well before the big event.

Do You Even Tip Wedding Vendors?

Some wedding vendors do not get tips, but the majority of them will. Parking attendants, receptionists, hairdressers, DJs and reception staff are all dependent on tips. Even conservative tipping can affect your wedding budget, according to The Knot. Set aside at least $800 for gratuities.

Tipping Wedding Vendors Is A Good Idea

You can avoid any surprises by planning your budget and including gratuities in advance. This guide will tell:

Who is to be tipped?
What is the tipping rate?
Who can tip optionally?
You don’t need to tip anyone at all

We’ll tell you when to give money so that you don’t accidentally hand someone money at the wrong moment.

Clarify with your planner or yourself whether the contract includes gratuities for wedding vendors or service fees. Do not assume that the service charge is a tip for employees.

Before the wedding, you (or those who offer to help) could write a thank-you note for each vendor that already includes the tips. You can then choose a friend or relative who you trust to give them out after the reception.

It is not necessary to tip the owner if it’s a well-established business. However, you may want to tip their staff. Tipping is acceptable for small business owners since they may be one-person operations.

Let us take away the stress of calculating how much to tip your wedding vendors. You don’t need to worry about it.

How to Tip

List the task of going to the bank a few weeks before the wedding to get cash. You can put cash tips in envelopes that are pre-labeled and labeled with the name of the recipient. Choose a friend or relative who will be responsible for distributing them at the end each part of the wedding: rehearsal dinner, ceremony and reception.

Please note that you can tip your wedding vendors both before and after.

What To Tip Wedding Vendors

You can tip some vendors on the day of an event, while others can be paid via credit card or by mail.

Florist: $50-$100

The reception and wedding are incomplete without flowers. Florists will often help you make the right decisions. It is not expected that florists receive a tip. However, it is customary to give $50 to $100 depending on the complexity of your floral arrangements. With the cash or check, you can send a note of thanks to the florist.

If you want to tip them, give them between $10 and $20 per person, depending on the complexity of the setup. You can tip them when they deliver the flowers.

Stationer: No tip

It is not necessary to tip your stationer. A thank-you card or a positive review on their website would be a nice gesture.

Set up and delivery staff: $5 to $10

People who deliver and set up tables, chairs tents, cakes, flowers etc. The amount of tip to give each person depends on the complexity of their task. Wedding planners or coordinators can give them tips.

Wedding officiant: $50 to $100

The amount of tipping the officiant at a wedding depends on whether or not it’s a religious ceremony. It depends on whether they are hired or voluntary. You can donate to a religious institution if your ceremony is held in a mosque, church, synagogue or other religious building.

You can tip the officiant of your wedding between $50 and $100 if there is a fee to use the religious institution. If you have premarital counseling, or any other special services, then the higher amount is appropriate.

You can tip the wedding officiant between 15-20% of their fee, up to $75 if the service was exceptional.

Wedding planner/coordinator: up to 15% off the bill

A wedding planner is different from a coordinator. Wedding planners can help you create your vision for the wedding from the very beginning. They also help with understanding how to tip wedding vendors. They set the budget for the wedding, negotiate contracts with the vendors and supervise the entire project.

A coordinator is in charge of planning the logistics for the rehearsal, ceremony and reception. The coordinator will work with you to plan your wedding and ensure that everything runs smoothly. They would begin working together about a month before the wedding date.

It is a nice gesture to give 10-15% of your bill as a gift after the wedding.

Ceremonial Musicians: 15% Discount on the bill

You can tip the musicians at the end by giving them either 10 to 15 percent of their fee, or 10-15%. Give them envelopes of cash from a trusted friend.

Valet/Parking Attendants – $1 to $2 per vehicle

Parking attendants usually receive tips from guests. If the wedding and reception are at different venues, estimate a tip of $1 to $2 per vehicle. It’s easier to tip the valet in charge of each venue if there are multiple workers. Let guests know tips have been taken care of.

The Chauffeur can earn up to 20% of your bill

Check the contract with transportation companies to determine if a gratuity or service fee has already been included. If gratuities are not included in the contract, or the driver of the limousine was excellent, 15-20% is a good amount. They have a busy day, too. From the start of the wedding, to the end of your reception, maybe. After the last ride, tip them.

It is the same if you hire a party bus to transport everyone. If there are any service charges, make sure to check. If not, give 15-20% and always more if the service is exceptional.

Venue Coordinator/Catering Manager: $100-$200

Venue coordinators or catering managers often do a lot of what a wedding coordinator or planner would, but for a much lower price. They are usually tipped but check the contract to make sure that a service charge is included. You can either tip $100-200 at the reception, or mail it later.

Catering Staff: up to 20% off the bill

If gratuities are not included in your contract, check it. If there are no gratuities, tip 15-20% of your final bill. You can tip another $5-10 if the waitstaff did an excellent job even if a service charge is included.

Bartenders: up to 20% off the bill

Check before you tip the bartenders. They may already be covered by a catering contract or a drink charge. If there is no built-in tip, you can give them 10-20% of their bar bill to be split at the end. You can tip even if you’re at a cash-only bar.

Wedding DJs: 15% Discount on Bill

Tipping a wedding DJ is the same as tipping any small business owner. You can tip between 10-15%, or more if the DJ has emceed the entire night.

Wedding Musicians: $10 – $15 per musician

It is the same as paying the musicians at the reception. Either a flat rate of 10-15% or $10 to 15 per musician.

Photographer or Videographer – Up to $100

You don’t tip the owners of wedding vendors, but their employees. If you have a photographer who has an assistant, and the assistant has provided great service, tip $50.

Wedding photographers are also tipped. $50 to $100 is a good amount if you’re happy. Send the tip after you receive all your pictures.

Wedding Cake Bakers: 15% Discount on Bill

Wedding cakes are a memorable part of any reception. It’s not expected, but quite common to tip the cake baker. You’d tip them between 10-15% of the total bill. After the wedding, you can send a card with the tip.

Hair and Makeup: up to 20% off

At least two visits to the makeup and hair artist are likely. You will see the hair and makeup artist twice: once for a trial run, and again on the wedding day. When you go to the hair salon, and when the wedding is held, you tip 20% each time.

Even if you pay for the entire wedding party and the hairstylist, you should still tip 20%.

The makeup artist follows the same process. You tip between 15-20% for your wedding and trial run.

What about the rehearsal dinner?

You can add more if you feel that your expectations have been exceeded. Gratuities are usually included in the total bill. If you are ordering from the bar, guests should have some cash on them for tipping.

You might tip the banquet manager 15% at the end of a grand dinner or catered event.

You can thank people in many other ways

You may not want to tip all vendors, but it is nice to say thank you for helping make the wedding so memorable. You can thank the owners of the business with a small gift or gift basket.

Other ways include posting positive reviews on their websites or sending them photos of your wedding to use in their marketing materials. These wedding professionals are business owners, but that doesn’t mean that they won’t appreciate a thoughtful gift.