Do I need to tip my wedding vendors?
Do I need to tip my wedding vendors?
Such a loaded question. Thanks for asking a wedding vendor if you should tip wedding vendors! ;) Jokes aside, I do try to be as unbiased as possible and play the devil’s advocate.
In general, if you go to a restaurant it is expected of you to tip them on their services. HOWEVER, they are dependent on these tips. I am a firm believer in paying vendors/business owners the full price they ask for because they have worked on their break-evens for their business. It also reflects the service you get, and theoretically, it should pay their bills. If you feel like someone who is a business owner went above and beyond, then, by all means, give them a tip, a meaningful gift, or even a Thank You card. It’s all very appreciated. If they have assistants or workers (especially caterers, bartenders, hair/makeup, band, etc.) many of them do live off of tips.
If you want more of a breakdown of how vendors should be tipped, here’s a handy little guide!
Optional tipping:
Ceremony Musicians
Around $20 per musician is standard.
DJ
A $100 tip or 10% is usually fair.
Band
You can tip around $25 to $50 for each band member.
Floral
Tips ranging from $100 to $200.
Photography & Videographer
Depending on how many shooters you have, $100 to $300 per person.
Planners and Coordinators
Tips can be $100 for coordination OR 10% of the planning cost.
Standard tipping:
Bartender Staff
Usually, they’re tipped about $50 to $100 per bartender, unless there’s a tip jar. If there is one, you don’t have to tip extra unless you want to! (Especially if they did such a great job.)
Catering Staff
Catering is usually tipped about 18% of the food cost, but this is different from the service fee. Make sure to check the fine lines of your contract to see how all of this will add together, and how one fee usually goes to the owner and the tips go to the day-of staff.
Hair & Makeup
Typical tipping for hair and makeup is around 20%.
Some Notes On Tipping -
These are just suggestions! Of course, your day may have fewer OR more vendors according to this list, and it’s always up to the discretion of the one paying for the wedding how tips will be handled.
While checks are acceptable, cash is preferred! If you do tip with cash, be sure to put each vendor's tip in sealed envelopes for each of them.
Along with a tip, Thank You notes and online reviews go such a long way! Vendors often rely on these word-of-mouth recommendations, and it’s also pretty nice for them to see what an amazing job they’ve done by sharing it publicly.
