The various expenses involved in hosting a wedding have been surveyed at an average of 21.01 million won nationwide. In the Gangnam district of Seoul, it is 34.09 million won, nearly three times that of the Gyeongsang Province.
The Korea Consumer Agency disclosed the results of a survey on wedding service prices on the 28th. Based on contracts from last month, it investigated the contract amounts of 522 places, including 370 wedding venues and 152 wedding planning agencies, in 14 regions nationwide, analyzing them by applying a median price as a representative value while considering regional price differences.
According to the survey, the contract amounts for essential items (venue fees, meal costs) for 5,000 weddings starting between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Saturdays and 1,814 contracts for 'studio shooting, dresses, and makeup' averaged 21.01 million won. The average expense by region was highest in Gangnam, Seoul, at 34.09 million won, while other areas of Gangnam recorded 28.15 million won.
Following this, the expenses were 18.75 million won for Gyeonggi, 18.34 million won for Incheon, and 17.96 million won for Ulsan. The places with lower costs were recorded at 12.09 million won for Gyeongsang Province, 12.27 million won for Busan, 15.43 million won for Jeju, and 16.27 million won for Gangwon.
The contract amount for venues during the peak season was 16.2 million won based on median prices, which is 4.5 million won higher than the off-peak season (11.7 million won). Wedding venues identified October, May, April, and November as the peak months.
The largest portion of the deposit for wedding venues was attributed to meal costs. The median price for 'meal cost per person' was 58,000 won, with Gangnam, Seoul, at 85,000 won and Gyeongsang Province at 44,000 won, showing nearly a two-fold difference. Venue fees were also highest in Gangnam at 7 million won, while Gwangju and Jeju had the lowest at 1 million won.
The Korea Consumer Agency noted that 63.6% of the 522 wedding service providers surveyed do not properly disclose price information. In particular, 86.8% of wedding planning agencies and 54.1% of wedding venues did not provide even minimal pricing information. The companies cited 'difficulty in service standardization' (56.6%) and 'concern over competitor exposure' (28.6%) as reasons.
Starting with this survey, the Korea Consumer Agency plans to investigate regional wedding service prices monthly and release the results bimonthly. Detailed results of the April wedding service price survey can be found on the Korea Consumer Agency's 'Fair Price' website.