I remember not knowing where to even start when our wedding planner asked us this question after I got engaged.

$10k?

$20k?

$30,000 is the average cost of a wedding in 2022, according to The Knot.

Ask around and your friends & family may feel reluctant to volunteer how much they paid for their wedding. It’s not considered polite to ask, so we don’t.

You know who isn’t afraid to share, though? People who cut every corner and eschew every tradition for theirs! They’ll be the first to tell you how cheap it can be! And it can be hard not to feel judged when you spend more than this on your wedding. Well, this is a no judgment zone here.

It’s funny that even with tools like The Knot and Wedding Wire at our disposal, it’s still impossible to give you a straight answer!

The truth is–and I can tell you this as a wedding vendor–almost everyone is operating with outdated information about what your wedding will cost. The aforementioned annual wedding survey that The Knot conducts is merely a guidepost. It’s an average of thousands of couples. Many weddings will cost much more, and many weddings will cost less. If you live in New York City, you’re likely paying more; New York, Florida (yes, it exists), you’ll pay less.

There’s also been an inflection point since the pandemic because of compressed demand for services and widespread inflation. If anyone got married in 2020 or before, I’d completely discount their advice about what they think it should cost. Seriously.

There’s also a widely held belief that every vendor’s eyes light up with dollar signs as soon as you say you’re getting married. You’ll probably feel that way during your wedding planning process–especially if you’re contributing financially or footing the entire bill. But I can promise you we aren’t doing this. After all, if someone can do a better job than us for cheaper–why would I charge more than my work is worth? Weddings are a marketplace, just like travel, cars, houses, and education.

As a vendor, one of my core values is no-BS pricing and packaging. That’s why I’m going to tell you what you can expect to pay for a wedding content creator in 2023.

history of wedding content creation

Since I posted the first video on TikTok with the hashtag #weddingcontentcreator in August 2022, videos tagged with #weddingcontentcreator now have more than 243 million views. I created the #weddingcontentspecialist hashtag, and that too has 14 million views.

The idea came together because heading into my wedding, I had a wedding content wishlist.

• I wanted all of the behind-the-scenes moments captured – from the laughs I shared with my closest friends while getting ready, impromptu dance battles with my dad on the dance floor, show-tunes karaoke, and video of our vows, unedited.

• I wanted to recreate a few specific wedding day trends on TikTok.

• I needed to feature brands that I’d partnered with during wedding planning. (I’m a bridal influencer as well as a wedding content creator).

• I wanted to feel a little like a celebrity on my wedding day.

• I wanted photos and videos shot in vertical format so I could post online.

• I wanted to wake up to photos and videos the next day.

And one more thing – most important of all:

• I didn’t want to pick up my phone on my wedding day. (Honestly I didn’t even want to have my phone at all)

The wedding content creator has absolutely exploded in popularity in the last year. Searches are through the roof. Couples are asking their planners to find a wedding content creator. It feels like I’m doing an interview about every month for a new article about the nascent industry!

but what does a wedding content creator actually do?

If you’re new to this idea of the wedding content creator, a wedding content creator is a wedding vendor that’s different from your photographer or videographer. They tell the behind-the-scenes story of your wedding day through photo and video–shot on their phone.

Some content creators only focus on the behind-the-scenes content “capture” process. But for me as a wedding content creator I actually create content for you. Otherwise, we’re just a friend with an iphone you’re paying to take pictures & video clips (which is fine, and valuable, but shouldn’t cost much).

When I work with couples, my objective is to make you feel like a celebrity on their wedding day. Even just 1% like a celebrity. Because you’ve earned it!

I create cute photo & video montages, trendy clips & viral-style videos. If you want, I take over your Instagram stories, though not everyone opts for this. I do “man-on-the-street”-style interviews with your guests! I capture, edit and post in real time so that you don’t wait 4-12 weeks to get content that you can share privately with friends and family, or publicly on social media.

The biggest thing a wedding content creator does is give you peace of mind. You don’t have to hope that someone in your wedding party captures a few photos and videos with your phone. You don’t have to hope your Aunt Gina wiped the camera on her phone before shooting blurry video from the back of your aisle. You don’t have to track down photo and video from your guests while you’re on your honeymoon.

And you don’t have to wait. You’ll get photos and videos the next day!

how wedding content creators price themselves

So understanding the above, we get to question you’re asking. How exactly do wedding content creators price themselves? I will share with you how I approach this. I will also share what I see other wedding content creators doing differently. There’s two main ways that wedding content creators price themselves: bundled pricing, and a la carte pricing.

a la carte pricing

• Pricing depends on your selections

• Base appearance fee, which is much lower than the total price

• Every add-on is an additional price

• Does not include travel costs

• Ideal if you know exactly what you want from your wedding content creator

• Not my pricing approach

bundled pricing

• All-in package pricing

• All services are included

• Typically determined by the amount of time the wedding content creator is on-site

• Includes travel costs

• Ideal if you want your wedding content creator to use their craft and expertise

• My pricing approach

I can tell you why I take the bundled pricing approach. Because early on, when I was just starting this industry, I tinkered with both types of pricing. A la carte pricing makes a ton of sense for certain clients. For example, if you:

• Are extremely well-researched and know exactly what you want from you wedding content creator, or;

• Budget is your #1 decision criteria between one wedding content creator and another,

Then a la carte pricing makes more sense.

Bundled pricing is a better approach for me – at least for now. There’s two reasons for that.

Reason #1: Couples are still figuring out what the wedding content creator actually does. A fellow influencer will understand the value of an Instagram takeover, for example. But most people don’t know what that’s worth, or even what it is! They just want their content creator to make them feel good and create high-quality content.

Reason #2: Even though I’m an NYC-based wedding content creator, I travel out of state for ~50% of my weddings. And I book my own travel. Negotiating or bartering the travel line item based on whether I take a 6am Spirit Airlines flight home after your wedding is an uncomfy dynamic for both of us. The same applies to my services–haggling and bartering isn’t something I do.

As a couple looking to book your wedding content creator, understand these two pricing approaches and the pros and cons of each!

what you can expect to pay for a wedding content creator

There are a few other factors I ask my couples to consider. Keep in mind that the package price accounts for the reality that I have to pay:

• Small business taxes (40% in NYC where I live)

• Software

• Hardware

• Overhead – business insurance, legal, website

I’m a small business owner, so I have to make sure that the time and craft invested in your event allows me to keep doing this full-time! There are very few, if any other, full-time wedding content creators right now. As our industry grows and matures, we need to make a living to keep honing this skill and craft for you.

So that being said – what can you actually expect to pay for a wedding content creator?

If we assume a coverage period of 10 hours – you’d expect to pay somewhere between $1,200-$2,400 depending on the pricing approach, level of expertise, and location. For reference, packages to have me at your wedding start at $3,000.

If your wedding content creator is traveling to your wedding, budget an additional $500-$1,000 to account for this. Destination weddings can involve higher travel costs, of course.

how to find the right wedding content creator for your budget

I’m a firm believer that there’s a vendor for every budget.

• Venue? Check. Get married at the courthouse or in someone’s backyard.

• Flowers? Check. Find a flower distributor. Ask a talented friend to arrange them. Buy fewer. Rent. Have a picnic reception in a wildflower field.

• Rings? Check. Family jewelry or thrifted jewelry.

You don’t have to spend an arm and a leg to make your wedding happen!

The same is true for wedding content creators. Because the industry is new and growing, there are new wedding content creators starting their business every day. I know because I talk with them in my DMs, giving advice and guidance about how to grow their business and hone their craft. One piece of advice I share with them is to shoot their first few weddings locally, for friends / family for free. Maybe you know someone who is new to the industry!

My advice for working with any vendor is to choose based on portfolio and personality. It’s so important that you ask to see what your wedding content creator has made before. What background do they have in social media? You wouldn’t trust a photographer who just picked up a camera–please do your due diligence with wedding content creators as well.

Your wedding content creator will also be there alongside you for most of your day. Make sure your personalities vibe! They’ll be drawing out some of your best behind-the-scenes moments, so there should be natural chemistry between you.