A bride once told me that her wedding cake cost more than my celebrant services. A guest was recently quite shocked that I actually charged more than $200 to conduct a wedding ceremony. A potential groom once remarked that being a marriage celebrant must be a nice easy part-time job because I wouldn’t have to do much besides turn up on the day and say some words.
This is quite common in the world of a marriage celebrant. Celebrants offer all sorts of different services, and costs can range from $200 to $1200. So what is involved in preparing a wedding ceremony? Meeting with couple, telephone calls, preparation of all legal documents, writing the ceremony, more telephone calls and meetings, continually editing the ceremony so it’s perfect, more meetings and telephone calls, usually a rehearsal. Then the big day arrives. There many be a significant amount of travel depending on the venue. You may need to bring along your sound system, table, cloth and chair which all have to be set up. The ceremony takes place, everyone is happy, the couple thank you for doing such an amazing job and you pack up and goes home. The documents then all have to be lodged with the Registry of Births, Deaths & Marriages. Finally you can relax – until the next wedding.
Most personalised civil marriage ceremonies can take up to 25 hours in total of a celebrant’s time, depending on the situation. But every couple is different, and each ceremony is different, and this can have an impact on a quote. It’s worth noting the NSW Registry of Births, Deaths & Marriages charges between $442 and $599 for a wedding service. You don’t have a personalised service and you don’t meet the celebrant until the day of the wedding.
The Easy Weddings website lists the average cost of a wedding cake at $533. What would your cake look like if it cost $150? Remember, you get what you pay for. So, I would encourage you to make your decision based on the professionalism of a celebrant and not how much they charge.
