The term 'wedding tax' is often used to refer to the extra money that many wedding industry suppliers charge

Here's why weddings are so expensive

Anyone who has planned a wedding knows firsthand how shockingly expensive things like flowers or a live band can be. This article from the wedding experts at The Knot breaks down why, exactly, weddings cost so much. Plus, it explains the truth behind the so-called “wedding tax.” Read the article to learn more.

Some wedding expenses might be tax-deductible, depending on the situation

For instance, donating your wedding flowers to a homeless shelter or other nonprofit organization may make them tax-deductible. Some other expenses that may be tax-deductible in specific instances include historical venues, wedding gowns, and more. Find out more about which wedding expenses could be tax-deductible via this article.

From flowers to venues, seemingly everything gets a price markup when it's for a wedding

At the start of this video, a venue gives two people drastically different prices for what seems like essentially the same service: a family gathering and a wedding. These price differentials feel so ubiquitous across the wedding industry—and experts attribute this to quality of services for weddings versus other, more casual events. Learn more by watching this video.

The wedding industry is a roughly $200B global market

That market is shaped by both tradition and commercial influence. In the US, couples spend an average of $35K on a wedding, while Indian weddings range from $5K to more than $100K. Despite rising costs, weddings remain a deeply emotional tradition, celebrating love and human connection.

Wedding photographers and other vendors have tailored their services to social media in recent years

In this podcast interview with Xochitl Gonzalez—a former luxury wedding planner who wrote the viral The Fake Poor Bride article in 2023—you'll learn a lot about how the wedding-industrial complex has evolved over the past few years and how modern additions, such as the rise of wedding styling services for "wedding weeks," have driven costs up.

Wedding cost increases have outpaced inflation

The cost of the average US wedding rose by 13.79% between 2023 and 2024, whereas the inflation rate during the same time period was roughly 2.9%.

A wedding cost calculator

Want to know how much your wedding will cost? Simply enter your wedding date, location, and a few more details about your wedding plans, and this tool will spit out an estimate for how much it will all cost—with details on how each estimate was figured, from a wedding dress or tux to ordering the cake. If you're planning a wedding soon (or just dreaming about planning one), explore this wedding cost generator.

Run your numbers in this marriage tax calculator

When it comes to federal income taxes, not every couple benefits from getting married. This calculator lets you see how much two specific people might pay if they were to get married based on their individual income levels and more. Specifically, the calculator compares the taxes a married couple would pay if they filed a joint return with what they would pay if they were unmarried and each filed as single.

Tariffs are typically paid by the importing company or organization to the US treasury

Tariffs levied on foreign countries are typically paid by the importer upon arrival of goods—for example, if Walmart imported a $100 pair of shoes, they would pay the US treasury an additional $15 under a 15% tariff rate. The degree to which these costs are passed onto consumers depends on real-world business agreements.

Estate tax opponents coined the term 'death tax' to sway public opinion

Even though the term death tax has been used for centuries, opponents of the federal estate tax started utilizing the term in the 1940s to try and sway public opinion. Since the modern federal estate tax was first established in 1916, opponents have unsuccessfully tried to get it repealed.

Ghost weddings used to be more common

Ghost weddings are marriages between two deceased parties, or one living and one dead partner. They satisfy departed family members’ needs for companionship and peace in the afterlife, according to Chinese spiritual beliefs. Unfortunately, since ghost marriages are pricey and can include the mingling of mortal remains, murderers and grave robbers have, at times, sought to supply spouses through nefarious means.

In 1924, the department store Marshall Field's invented the first modern 'wedding registry'

However, there were many traditions around wedding gifts before the wedding registry was invented, too—from dowries to marriage chests. Read about the history of the wedding registry in this article.

Marriage is a legally and socially sanctioned union

Marriage's definition may seem simple—a union of two or more people who join their lives together in a culturally appropriate fashion. However, elaborate customs and diverse expectations dictate the roles spouses will play for one another. Across different regions and periods, marriages have taken a great number of forms.

Rhode Island plans to impose a ‘Taylor Swift tax’ on second homes

Starting in the summer of 2026, the state will impose a new property tax surcharge on second homes valued at, or over, $1M that aren’t used as primary residences. Some are calling it the “Taylor Swift tax,” given that Rhode Island is home to the pop star’s gargantuan historic beach house.

Valentine's Day is considered the end of 'proposal season'

Wedding website The Knot's internal study found that Christmas is the most popular day to propose. It also kicks off "proposal season," a monthslong season from Christmas to Valentine's Day that's a popular time for lovers to pop the question.

What something costs is reflective of a balance in the market determined by the amount of demand relative to the supply of goods and services

Because economies are complex systems, a wide variety of issues influence this balance—including some things generally considered to be positive, like rising wages.

Merchants have to pay credit card transaction fees each time a card is swiped

Credit card networks such as Visa, Mastercard, and American Express must calculate fees for not only the customer, but also the merchant in every transaction.

The price of gas is a composite made up of several different factors, with the federal gas tax making up less than 20% of what drivers pay at the pump.

The total cost of owning an ETF is the sum of the holding costs and the transaction costs

Holding costs include things like the expense ratio, or the annual fee that a fund issuer charges. Transaction costs include things like brokerage commissions, or the fee that a broker charges to enact a trade. However, in recent years, most brokers have essentially eliminated commissions on ETF trading.

A group of 88 kindergarteners creates heartfelt centerpieces defining what love is for their teacher's wedding

Ahead of her big day, a kindergarten teacher came up with an idea to have her students help decorate her wedding tables. Teachers prompted their students to fill out the prompt "love is…" and found that the children shared a variety of heartfelt responses.

A guide to gig-worker taxes and the new Venmo rule

Tax laws are catching up to modern freelancers. Starting with income made in 2024, gig workers will have to report the earnings they receive via apps like Venmo and PayPal differently. The main change: workers will have to detail all app earnings above $5,000 (previously, it was $20,000), and that’ll eventually drop to $600. This guide explains what that’ll mean and answers common questions about the new rule.

A 'debt trap' refers to the need for loans or credit to cover the expenses incurred from other debt

Debt traps can be caused by unforeseen expenses or inadequate savings and can be a brutal cycle to break. At the end of 2025, total household debt in the US reached $18.8T, according to data from the Federal Reserve of New York.

The 'playing card' and 'blueberry' taxes are among the strangest around the world

In Canada, companies making children’s breakfast cereals are granted a tax exemption if their cereal boxes contain free toys. While the exemption is limited to toys that are not “beer, liquor, or wine,” the cereal tax is far from the world's most eccentric tax.

Many 'cheap' retirement destinations contain hidden costs

Considering factors outside of housing and state income tax is crucial when thinking of an inexpensive place to retire. High energy bills, grocery tax, and insurance premiums are just a few things to look out for when picking where to live.

How much does sports betting generate?

According to 2025 data, sports betting generated $2.7B in state tax revenue. That number has increased every year since the government began collecting data in 2021.

Women tend to tip more often than men

For instance, among people who visit hair salons or barber shops, 62% of female respondents said they always tipped. Only 45% of men said the same. This article includes more takeaways and stats about how Americans tip, and who receives them.

US consumers collectively owe more than $1T to credit card companies—almost as much as they owe in auto loans.

Use this tool to calculate the dollar value of your parental mental load, from meal planning to coordinating after-school care, then see resources that help generate solutions.

Hedge funds, the private investment firms that trade a wide swath of financial assets, make money by imposing steep fees on investors and from the fund's investment performance.

Art theft is the third-largest source of criminal revenues worldwide, thanks in part to the subjective nature of valuing a work of art.

Before the current East Wing ballroom project, only two White House renovations in the past 100 years cost more than $10M.

Fireworks-related ER visits are on the rise—in 2024, they increased by 52% as compared to the prior year.

The most expensive ad of all time was for Chanel No. 5 perfume and cost roughly $33M to produce in 2004—about $57M in today's dollars.

Georgia O'Keeffe's flower paintings are often assumed to be sexual, though the artist claimed she was simply interested in highlighting the beauty of flowers that most people neglect

Some coin denominations have ridges etched on their sides, partly to prevent counterfeiting, in a practice called 'reeding.'

Up to a million Girl Scouts sell about 200 million cookie boxes every spring, generating $800 million, largely because refusing a child is frowned upon

Mark Twain spent decades feuding with the US Postal Service, convinced its costs and regulations were bureaucratic overreach.

Hotels in Cannes, the glamorous city on the French Riviera, hire hawks to ward off seagulls during the city's famous film festival.

Coral reefs get their colors from zooxanthellae—microorganisms that line corals' digestive tracts and provide them with sugars in exchange for a home within this protective tissue.

The 1987 Nintendo video game 'Stadium Events' isn't known for being particularly fun, but its scarcity has made it a highly sought-after item that has sold for up to $35K at auction.

Take a 3D tour of the Hajj, Islam's annual pilgrimage to Mecca, undertaken by over 1.5 million Muslims.

A Yale student wrote a profound essay about the consulting industry's influence on elite college students that was published in a book of her writing after she died in a post-graduation car accident.

To reduce wrinkles in clothing, research recommends gentle wash cycles with more water and tumble drying with smaller loads and longer times.

Chaos theory—informally known as the butterfly effect—is the reason why weather forecasts are presented with probabilities rather than certainties.

The word 'jazz' evolved from 'jasm,' 19th-century American slang for 'energy'

Gerrymandering works through two techniques: cracking opposing voters across districts to dilute their power, and packing them into a few to waste their votes in lopsided majorities.

One disco producer saw 'Star Wars' four times on its opening weekend and was so inspired that he recorded the album 'Star Wars and Other Intergalactic Funk,' which produced a chart-topping single.

Objects can be 3D printed with light by projecting 2D computerized tomography (CT) scans onto rotating cylinders of resin, which solidify upon exposure.

Poison ivy's characteristic rash is caused by an allergic response to an oily compound in the plant called urushiol.

The syncytiotrophoblast is the outer layer of the placenta and the largest human cell, spanning an area about twice that of a king-sized bedsheet.