$420,000 for a wedding as HK couples splurge

Hong Kong couples are spending more on weddings - seen in the fact total expenditure reached a record high of HK$420,000 per wedding this year.

A study between September and November by e-commerce website ESDlife checked 1,033 individuals getting married between this year and 2025.

It found planned average expenditure was rebounding for a second year, growing nine percent to HK$419,751 from HK$384,366 last year.

"This is the first time the average wedding expenditure surpassed the HK$400,000 mark," ESDlife chief executive Tony Ma Chung-kit remarked. "This shows that couples have the capacity to pay more for their weddings."

Among expenses, the wedding banquet still holds the highest share, jumping 15 percent to HK$170,886 from HK$149,044 last year. But Ma said the average cost of banquets is yet to recover to the pre-pandemic level of over HK$185,000 in 2019.

Meanwhile, couples are willing to spend more on rings and other jewelry.

Average spending on such items surged nearly 60 percent to HK$114,257 this year from HK$72,328 in 2019 and by five percent on last year's HK$108,988.

This showed a willingness to spend on commemorative and value-preserving items, the e-commerce platform said.

It added that couples are also willing to spend on pre-wedding photography. For average spending rose eight percent to HK$27,456 from last year's HK$25,534 and from HK$24,147 in 2019.

The survey also found 95 percent of couples opted for pre-wedding videography this year compared to last year's 94 percent. But that was still below 98 percent before the pandemic.

The average wedding banquet tables also bounced back to pre-pandemic levels from 16 tables last year to 19 and ended a four-year drop since 2019.

"With the maximum number of people for banquets lifted since the end of December 2022," ESDlife said, "it eases the concern on the tightening of measures or potential suspension of reserved wedding banquet among couples."

However, the survey showed only 11 percent of couples will be hosting banquets with 26 tables or more, while around 60 percent would have 15 tables or fewer.

For guests attending banquets, the average cash gift amount remained the same over four consecutive years: HK$1,500 for premium hotels, HK$800 for restaurants and HK$1,000 for standard hotels, clubhouses and other wedding venues.

The e-commerce platform said the total value of Hong Kong's wedding consumer market this year will reach HK$16.1 billion, up 58 percent on last year, as it estimates 42,247 couples will have married this year - 41 percent up from last year's 29,983.

But the number of marriages is expected to drop next year due to the increasing outflow of Hongkongers and the decline in population. Also, "more and more young couples prefer to simplify the procedure of hosting wedding banquets."

ayra.wang@singtaonewscorp.com