Who Pays For The Bridesmaid Dresses? Traditions Explained!

In this article, we answer some common questions about bridesmaid dresses including who pays for them, how to ask your bridesmaids to pay, who chooses the dresses and how much to spend! Lets’ dive in…

Who Pays For The Bridesmaid Dresses?

In the UK, it is more common for the bride and groom to cover the cost of the bridesmaid dresses than it is to ask the bridesmaids to pay. This is different to the US where it is tradition for the bridesmaids to cover the cost of their own dresses. Covering the cost of the bridesmaid dresses as part of the wedding budget comes with its’ benefits – as being the one who pays for the dress means you can have the final say on the style and colour.

Although it is more common for the bride and groom to cover the cost of the dresses, it isn’t considered rude to ask the bridesmaids to pay for their own dresses if the wedding budget doesn’t stretch. The magic is in the way you ask! We will cover this further on in the article and give some examples of ways you can ask.

How To Ask Your Bridesmaids To Pay For their dresses?

There are no hard and fast rules around the aesthetics of a wedding, including the dresses. This means that it is possible to ask your bridesmaids to cover the cost of their bridesmaid dresses. Maybe your wedding budget simply cannot stretch meaning you’d have to miss out on your besties being a part of your special day! If this is the case, we definitely advise chatting to your potential bridesmaids to ask if they would be open to buying their own dresses before completely ruling out having a bridal party.

If you’re planning on asking your bridesmaids to cover the cost of their own dresses, it is best to have this conversation with them before actually proposing. Being a bridesmaid does come at a cost (including the hen party, accessories, travel costs and more!), so to let them know that the dress won’t be paid for before officially asking them would be the best approach. This gives them a chance to work out whether they can a\?fford the cost.

We suggest an easy-going conversation one on one, or a light hearted message as the best way to approach the conversation. Below, we have provided some examples of ways you could ask if you’re unsure about the wording or you’re worried it might sound rude.

Examples of Ways to Ask

“I’d absolutely love for you to be my bridesmaid, but our wedding budget is already spent up and I’m so sad we’re unable to cover the cost of the bridesmaid dresses. Would you consider being my bridesmaid if the dress wasn’t covered by us? I would love to have you there by my side, but I would totally understand if this is too much to ask!“

If the number of bridesmaids is causing your budget to stretch, you could also phrase a message like the example below, which could be another way to broach the conversation:

“I have 6 amazing ladies that I’d love to ask to be my bridesmaid (obviously you’re one of them!), but our wedding budget can’t stretch to this many, and I also can’t bring myself to choose between you all. I couldn’t imagine my day without you, so I thought I’d ask to see if maybe you’d all be prepared to cover the cost of your dress so I can have you all there? I would totally understand if you weren’t able to!”

Another idea could be to ask the bridesmaids to contribute to their accessories or their hair and makeup in order for you to afford to pay for their dresses:

“We would love to pay for the bridesmaid dresses, especially as it might not be the kind of style you would wear again, so we have factored this into our budget and can’t wait go dress shopping with you!
Would it be too much to ask if you could cover the cost of your shoes?”

We’d assume that the ladies you’re considering as bridesmaids are understanding and supportive of you anyways (which is why they’ve made the VIP list!), so whichever way you choose to ask them it should be no big deal to them. It is likely they will appreciate that you’ve been upfront and open about the costs beforehand.

Who Chooses The Bridesmaid Dresses?

When it comes to answering the question of who chooses the bridesmaid dresses, the answer will depend on who is paying. As mentioned earlier in this article, the benefits of the bride and groom covering the cost of the dresses is that they will have the ultimate say on the dresses, and it is a lot easier to give a general criteria of what style and colour you want if you’re the one paying! This obviously becomes tricky when the bridesmaid is paying for the dress herself, as it is likely she will want something that she will wear again or that she feels is her usual kind of style.

As the bridesmaid dresses need to fit with the overall wedding theme, the bride should have the final say either way, but to make the process fair and easier on everyone it is best to take into consideration how each bridesmaid feels in their dress. On the day, it is important that every feels comfortable and confident for the photos (no one wants a grumpy bridesmaid in the wedding album!). With this is mind, it is best to involve the bridesmaids but set out some clear expectations of what you’re looking for in terms of colour and style.

How Much To Spend on Bridesmaid Dresses?

The cost of the bridesmaid dresses will depend on the overall budget. Good quality bridesmaids dresses start from around £50 and can cost well over £300 depending on where the dresses are purchased from.

Each time I have been a bridesmaid, the dress has cost between £60-£100. I’ve loved each and every bridesmaid dress I have worn and they were purchased from high street stores like Monsoon, Coast and ASOS.

How much you decide to spend on bridesmaid dresses will of course depend on your own budget. It is completely fine to shop for budget bridesmaid dresses from around £50 (which do not look budget at all!), but if you buy your dresses from a bridesmaid boutique or a specific designer, be expected to pay a lot more.

This brings us to the topic of where to buy bridesmaid dresses!

Where To Buy Bridesmaid Dresses?

Buying bridesmaid dresses has actually become way more affordable over time. In the past, bridesmaid dresses were mostly found in dedicated bridal designer stores, but now the options on the high street are endless!

ASOS have an amazing range of bridesmaid dresses in their DESIGN range. The image below shows the last wedding where I was a bridesmaid, and we all wore gorgeous ASOS dresses which cost around £60.

Our list below shows our favourite retailers and boutiques where you can find stunning bridesmaid dresses.

Affordable Bridesmaid Dress Retailers

• ASOS
• Babaroni
• BooHoo
• Cicinia
• Chi Chi London
• Coast
• Dorothy Perkins
• Little Mistress
• Next
• Quiz Clothing
• TFNC London

Boutique & Designer Bridesmaid Dress Stores

• Allure Bridal
• Dessy
• Rewritten
• Maids To Measure
• Sophia Grace Couture
• Sisterhood
• Whistles

Who Pays For Bridesmaid Shoes & Accessories?

We covered this topic in our article “Do Bridesmaids Have to Wear The Same Shoes?” where we talk about who chooses the shoes and who pays…check it out for more information! In summary, it is completely fine to ask for the bridesmaids to pay for their accessories, especially if the bride and groom has covered the cost of the dresses.

I hope this article has been useful for starting your bridesmaid dress shopping! Why not browse the rest of our similar articles below for more tips, advice or inspiration?