Fancy getting Hitched for FREE? WIN A DREAM WEDDING WORTH £25,000!

With the cost of living impacting every aspect of Brits’ lives, leading wedding planning website Hitched.co.uk wants to ensure the ongoing crisis doesn’t affect the cost of loving in the UK, and so is giving couples the chance to WIN their DREAM WEDDING, up to the value of £25,000.

Exclusive use data from wedding planning app and website Hitched.co.uk reveals that December is the most popular month for Brits to pop the question, leading to a spike in searches for “wedding planning” content throughout January as couples begin to think about what happens next…

The annual National Wedding Survey by Hitched shows that the average cost of a wedding in the UK has increased by a whopping 90% since 2020, to £17,300. This figure saw almost half of 2021’s couples (48%) overspend on their wedding budgets, and two thirds of newlyweds dipping into savings pots (65%) or accepting financial gifts from friends and family (66%).

Now, as the UK’s newest cohort of nearlyweds begin their own wedding planning journeys amid the ongoing cost of living crisis, the wedding experts at Hitched are giving couples across the UK the chance to WIN their dream wedding!

What’s included in the prize?

The winning couple will be able to choose up to 10 different wedding suppliers from the Hitched Directory, and all costs will be covered up to £25,000 by Hitched. To be in with a chance of winning this incredible prize, nearlyweds must sign up to Hitched by the 28th February 2023. (Ts&Cs apply).

Zoe Burke, leading wedding expert and editor at Hitched says: “The rising cost of living is stressful for everyone, especially after the last few years we’ve had collectively. We don’t want the rising costs to mean that people miss out on having their dream wedding, which is why we have decided to give away this amazing prize.

“At Hitched we believe that every couple should have access to the very best wedding suppliers, to make sure their big day is as special and unique as they are. So, we’re going to give one lucky couple the chance to have the wedding of their dreams this year, by giving them £25,000 to spend with the almost-19,000 suppliers we work with!

“It’s a really exciting competition, and we can’t wait to see how it all turns out!”

Average cost of a UK wedding

Post-pandemic, the average cost of a wedding in the UK rose by 90% to £17,300, with the largest chunk of spend going towards the cost of a venue as well as catering for the guests. The right venue was so important in fact, that couples spent 40% more on this area than before the pandemic at an average of £7,600, suggesting that the right setting was much more important to couples since lockdown.

The cost of catering a wedding is also much higher than pre-pandemic, despite the much smaller guest lists. On average, couples now spend £4,680 catering for their 72 guests – a 20% increase on 2019 when the average spend on catering was £3,887. And let’s not forget the cake. The entertainment. The outfits. It all adds up, and unfortunately, it often sees couples spend more than expected.

Financial habits of the UK’s couples

The National Wedding Survey also revealed how couples managed to pay for their weddings. It seems many didn’t set out to spend as much as they did, with 48% of those surveyed revealing that they had gone over budget when spending on their big day. A third of couples did manage to stay on budget, but less than 1 in 10 managed to spend less than they planned to.

The report also reveals that family support played a huge part in how weddings were paid for last year, with two thirds of couples (66%) receiving money from their family to fund their nuptials, and parents footing 61% of the total wedding cost. Savings accounts were also heavily relied on, with 65% of couples citing this as their main source of financing their big day, though many used their current accounts (47%) to pay small portions of costs along the way.

A whopping 90% of couples said they had additional financial goals as well as paying for their wedding, with the majority (54%) citing honeymoon expenses as their biggest goal. As well as that, 41% of couples said they were saving to buy a house while paying for their wedding, while almost a third (29%) admitted they were attempting to pay off debts alongside their planning.

Zoe Burke adds: “Here at Hitched we match hundreds of thousands of couples with our almost 19k different dream wedding vendors every year. The free and easy to use wedding planning tools, inspiring content and expert advice help couples every step of the way, from proposal planning to post-wedding life.

“We understand that times are tough right now, so are offering this competition as a way of giving one lucky couple the chance to have their dream wedding, without the worry of the rising cost of living.”

For more information on how to WIN your dream wedding, please visit: https://landing.hitched.co.uk/dream-wedding/