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Many engaged {couples} within the U.S. are counting on types of credit score to pay for his or her marriage ceremony. Specialists say that strategy could be sensible, if performed fastidiously.
Whereas 46% of surveyed newlyweds — {couples} who tied the knot inside the previous two years — used principally financial savings to pay for prices, 24% paid with bank cards, in accordance to a report by LendingTree. The location polled 1,050 newlyweds in early March.
A separate report by Zola, based mostly on a survey of 6,000 {couples} getting married in 2025, discovered that 31% of engaged {couples} polled plan to make use of bank cards to pay for his or her marriage ceremony, together with utilizing factors or making use of for brand new playing cards.
“In case you’re strategic, a bank card could be an incredible device,” mentioned Matt Schulz, chief credit score analyst at LendingTree.
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In any other case, a bank card is usually a slippery slope, main {couples} to stroll down the aisle with long-lasting and costly debt, specialists say.
About 67% of surveyed newlyweds took on debt for his or her marriage ceremony, in line with LendingTree.
For brand spanking new playing cards, the common annual proportion charge, or the borrowing price, is 24.35%, the best since December, LendingTree discovered.
“Finally, an exquisite marriage ceremony ought to by no means come at the price of monetary stress to a brand new marriage,” mentioned Gloria Garcia Cisneros, an authorized monetary planner at LourdMurray, an funding and wealth administration agency.
‘Make these financial savings work even more durable for you’
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Weddings have gotten costlier yearly. The common price for a marriage in 2025 is anticipated to be $36,000, in accordance to Zola. That is up from $33,000 in 2024, and $29,000 in 2023.
When you have financial savings put aside to cowl your marriage ceremony prices, charging the expense to a bank card after which instantly utilizing these financial savings to repay the invoice may also help you earn rewards akin to factors or miles, mentioned Schulz.
Some bank cards provide massive sign-up bonuses whenever you spend a set quantity on the cardboard inside a brief interval of opening it. That may be greater than you spend on regular bills, however inside attain if in case you have massive bills — akin to wedding-related purchases and deposits — arising.
By instantly paying that cost off together with your financial savings, you possibly can make the most of the rewards for issues akin to your honeymoon, Schulz mentioned.
“It is a solution to make these financial savings work even more durable for you,” he mentioned.
Utilizing a bank card can produce other benefits, too. Bank cards provide layers of federal safety that may assist cardholders dispute expenses and get a refund if issues go awry with an merchandise or service bought with a card, specialists say.
Some playing cards additionally provide buy protections, a type of insurance coverage in opposition to theft or damages, per NerdWallet. Make certain to learn the high-quality print of what your bank card affords and the way lengthy the phrases final.
Do not tackle debt for a ‘short-term occasion’
Nevertheless, the important thing with bank cards “is to pay in full,” mentioned Ted Rossman, a senior business analyst at Bankrate.
“I positively wouldn’t suggest placing marriage ceremony bills on a card if you are going to be dragging that out over time,” he mentioned.
Not paying the stability off will depart you with high-interest debt as you begin your new marriage.
Practically 1 / 4, or 24%, of newlyweds married inside two years of the survey are nonetheless paying the debt off, in line with LendingTree. Of those who nonetheless owe cash, 47% mentioned they are going to end paying the debt in six months to a yr.
“You do not wish to sacrifice your long-term well-being for a short-term occasion,” Rossman mentioned.
A 0% APR bank card is usually a device for marriage ceremony funds, as you will be paying little to no curiosity on excellent balances for a time period. Nevertheless, ensure to complete paying off the cardboard earlier than the promotion expires, specialists say. In any other case, no matter stability is left will then get curiosity tacked on.
Think about bank card charges, money reductions
As you start to plan the marriage and attain out to distributors, ask in the event that they settle for bank cards as a type of cost, mentioned Jason Rhee, a marriage planner in Los Angeles.
Some distributors would possibly take solely money or verify funds, whereas others would possibly cost extra processing charges for bank cards, Rhee mentioned. Such extra expenses can vary from 1.5% to three.5%, in line with Bankrate.
Assess whether or not paying the additional price is each reasonably priced and price it to you, or if it is best to make use of a unique type of cost with the seller, mentioned Lauren Kay, govt editor of The Knot.
What’s extra, some distributors could provide reductions for funds in money.
Marriage ceremony insurance coverage trumps credit score protections
Whereas bank cards can provide sure protections to incurred funds or purchases, they won’t provide broader protections or insurance policies to cowl bigger expenditures, such because the reception or the venue, Kay mentioned.
“In most cases, your bank card would not provide any actual profit if one thing had been to go flawed with a purchase order of that magnitude,” mentioned Kay.
For such bills, marriage ceremony insurance coverage insurance policies is usually a good possibility to think about. They assist defend you from sudden dangers akin to excessive climate, theft or a vendor who did not present up, mentioned Kay.
Marriage ceremony insurance coverage coverage pricing can vary from lower than $100 to greater than $1,000, in line with NerdWallet, relying on the scale of your coverage and the sorts of protection.
“It is vital to consider what you are hoping to guard,” Kay mentioned.
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