Why are Officiants so expensive?!

We aren’t. We really aren’t. To help you understand why we aren’t, I’ll let you in on a little secret. The problem is that media like The Knot and Wedding Wire, which give out lovely little budget planning guides, worksheets, tables, and charts only allocate .75 - 2% of your total wedding budget to the officiant. For example, this handy spreadsheet from The Knot lists the officiant cost as being .75%. So for an $18,000 wedding that comes out to $135 and for a $35,000 wedding it’s $263. First off, where I’m located in the Pacific Northwest, in Vancouver, Washington, even though we are on the West Coast, we don’t see the same rates as Los Angeles, San Francisco, or even Seattle. So our weddings typically fall into the average range of $10,000 - $15,000. Therefore, according to The Knot, I should only be charging $75 to $112.50!

Listen. You want a professional to marry you. I mean it. A Professional with a capital P. You want someone who is a good writer, someone who can make you laugh and possibly even cry - that’s a good thing at a ceremony! You want someone who can pitch their voice for the right parts, but also knows when to scale it back. They shouldn’t be using the loud funny voice for the emotional parts, right?! But they also need to know how to make their voice carry in a windy situation, or to speak softer in an intimate venue. Come to that, the ceremony should be written to reflect the venue to some degree, as well. You want someone who can work well with your other vendors, who will arrive early to speak with your planner (who only gets 1.75% of your budget pie according to that same spreadsheet, by the way, a mere pittance and don’t even get me started on THAT situation), and your photographer (6.5%!) to let them know that they, the officiant, know what they're doing and when they plan to move out of the way for the photographer to get the best photo ops, etc., and to the DJ or musicians (3%), to discuss cues with them and confirm all the songs you have chosen for the various points of the ceremony like the processional and recessional, etc. This is someone who makes a living crafting ceremonies. They eat, drink, sleep ceremonies. They take business courses to improve their business and take officiant training courses to be the best they can be. They go to voice coaches to improve their speaking voice and delivery. They do research to stay up on the latest trends, making sure to offer each couple exactly what is au current. They will spend at least a couple hours meeting with you and hours - HOURS - working on your ceremony, reading the questionnaires they asked you to fill out, molding, shaping, and perfecting a ceremony that speaks to your hopes, your dreams, your quirks, in ways that you never even expected, because this is someone who knows what cues to look for, who watches and observes and sees how your eyes light up telling a particular story, or how your soon-to-be-spouse watches you, entranced, while you’re talking, and then uses those little moments and weaves them into a narrative to inspire and uplift your guests at your ceremony. This person will spend MORE hours practicing your ceremony, speaking it aloud before the ceremony to minimize the chance of any misspeaks and to improve the delivery. They will happily answer any questions you have or allay any fears. They will gladly share wisdom from their years of experience. They will show up to your wedding with an emergency kit packed full of things that you might need - just in case, all because of their love for what they do and their desire to help. They will show up to your rehearsal and wrangle your family and friends, getting everybody lined up and make everything run smoothly, whipping out a tissue just at the moment when you realize Oh My God This Is Really Happening.

And after all that, The Knot thinks you should pay them $75??

And you still think they’re expensive at $600? Or $800? 

I get it. Everyone focuses on the reception. That’s where the fun is, after all. But to me - and I was a wedding planner, so the reception is in my blood - there is no reception without the ceremony. The ceremony is the point of it all. The marriage. I mean, sure, it’s not as glamorous as the reception and goes so quickly. But the ceremony is the heart of the day. Personally, I think the budget numbers should reflect that. At a minimum the officiant is easily worth as much as the DJ at 3%, who also spends multiple hours either preparing for or attending the wedding. I’m not knocking DJs - or any other vendor, for that matter. I’m not suggesting they should get less - and I’m not a numbers person, so I’ll let someone else rework the budget numbers. Suffice it to say that the nonsense of major wedding media outlets like The Knot and Wedding Wire shortchanging officiants and convincing unsuspecting couples that certain vendors just aren’t worth as much as others needs to stop. Because the reality is - it’s not just the officiant that gets shortchanged - it’s the couple, too. Because now couples zoom around looking for officiants who are within their price point not realizing they aren’t getting the best officiant for their ceremony, or worse yet, thinking they can remove this cost altogether by getting a family member or a friend to perform the ceremony instead. (To them I would say, refer to the paragraph above to make sure that you’re getting what you deserve or head over to this blog post to get a lowdown on "Friendors.") 

I hope that this post has helped you see that officiants are usually consummate Professionals (with a capital P!) and charge what they are worth only after much consideration and soul searching. They usually deserve the amounts they’re asking. And you deserve an officiant who has honed their practice to give you the ceremony of your dreams. Even if that means you have to spend more than you’ve been led to expect. As the saying goes, you get what you pay for. The sanctity of the beginning of your union is worth it. Contact me today to find out how I can help you get the most out of your wedding ceremony and prove to you how Officiants are worth every penny!