The question many engaged couples ask us is ‘how much do wedding flowers cost?’ – well the answer is it depends on many factors – and the purpose of this blog is to dive deep into the world of flowers and explain it all.

It is a misconception that anything with the word wedding attached to it will double the price, it is far from the truth from our business, so if you think a wedding florist has quoted you a high price, that is because flowers are genuinely costly.

To help guide you on the cost of flowers for weddings, we have put together some information which hopefully should assist you.

Natural bridal bouquet and bridesmaids bouquets

WHAT IS THE AVERAGE COST OF WEDDING FLOWERS IN THE UK?

The price of wedding flowers varies a lot – an average spend can be anything from £350 all the way up to £6,000 and more. So it is very variable.

But the fact is, that you can only pay what you can pay, and sticking to your own personal wedding budget is really important.

Be open and honest about what you want to spend – an experienced florist will be able to come up with ideas, options and suggestions to keep within your budget.

For the most popular requested items most couples expect to pay upwards of £125 for a large bride hand-tied bouquet, from £90 for bridesmaids bouquets, between £10-£15 for buttonholes and - between £20-£25 for corsages, which are very time consuming to make – therefore labour heavy and should be charged accordingly – to receive a more comprehensive list of wedding flower items – complete our contact sheet and we will send you our latest wedding flowers guide price.

A recent 2023 UK National Wedding Survey revealed that, on average, couples tend to allocate around 5% of their wedding budget to the cost of flowers. But going forward - couples need to allocate more than this – 10%-15% would be more realistic.

Wedding reception table design with blush pink flowers

WHAT IMPACTS THE COST OF WEDDING FLOWERS?

To truly understand what goes into pricing up your wedding flowers, it is important to know what impacts the cost.

Suppliers & Sources – about 80% of the flowers in the UK are imported from Holland and sadly, the wedding floristry industry has been impacted by various factors, such as Brexit, and the cost of energy increases partly due to the Ukraine war. Brexit has hit florists quite hard. There are much fewer Holland based flower growers due to the impact of Covid – and heating greenhouses all year round is expensive!

Because of this, it means there are fewer flowers available across the board, so during peak times and in high wedding season, costs go up excessively. For example, last year the cost of one garden rose was £9.00. However, garden roses are more expensive than your average rose, so ask your florist to come up with other flower design choices, and if you have your heart set on garden roses in peak wedding season then be realistic .. they will be costly. Mixing a few focal ones with other less expensive flowers can help to lower the cost.

White wedding garden roses wedding bouquet

Lead Times – over the years we have been sourcing more British and locally grown flowers, when in season, and this is a more sustainable option. However, our British weather and seasons do not sustain an abundant supply of beautiful flowers all year round – and therefore it's necessary to buy via the Holland auctions or direct from further afield growers. As a result, the prices can fluctuate.

Additional stock for delicate blooms - some flowers are notoriously unreliable. For example, if a bride requests peonies in their bouquet, I would order at least two to three times the amount I actually need because peonies can take several days to open, or they can open quickly and be far too open to use.

I once had a bridal bouquet which required just three peonies mixed in with other flowers and foliage, but I had to buy 10 stems to get three that were perfect on the day - all the others looked like golf balls and stayed completely shut. You do purchase them as closed buds normally - but need to give them enough time to open naturally – but we are working with nature here - and as we all know we cannot hurry nature!

Time of year & seasonality - depending on the time of year of a wedding this will impact the price, but with flowers there's the added influence of seasonality. Whilst wedding season in the UK typically runs from May - September, all flowers have their own high and low seasons. The difference here is that when flowers are in season, they tend to be more affordable as more are available, and they are usually of good quality.

When a flower is not in season, they are harder to source and you are more likely to have imperfect batches, increasing order costs and in turn, the cost to you as a couple. So it is always best to ask your florist for advice on what is in season when you get married, but also accept that summer wedding flowers will be more expensive.

WHAT OTHER COSTS DO WEDDING FLOWER QUOTES INCLUDE?

So as well as the price for the flowers, there are some other things most commonly included within your wedding florist quote listed below. Many wedding florist in the UK will include different things in their price or packages – and they will also price items differently - so it is always worth asking, does the price include labour, and VAT.

1. Design and consultation

Wedding flower costs include designing the arrangements, and you are therefore paying for a skilled floral designer to match flower designs in keeping with your wedding venue, researching and selecting the flowers to your wedding colour scheme as well as well as sourcing the actual flowers. Sourcing flowers means contacting several flower suppliers and checking when the flowers are available as well as calculating the quantity of stems required for the job. Even visiting a flower farm to see what will be ready in 10 days or so.

Wedding florists will include at least one consultation meeting, either by online video, phone call or an in person meeting. Some will offer a free no obligation consultation before you book with them – which is something we offer. However, some florists may charge for their consultation time, site visits and any extra meetings requested by the client - this is perfectly reasonable for them to do so.

2. Conditioning and prepping flowers

A lot of work goes into conditioning the flowers ahead of a wedding. For a large wedding a florist may need extra staff and freelancers to help condition – it can take a lot of time – and this also costs money to pay staff.

Flowers generally arrive two to three days before the wedding and need conditioning. This involves cutting every stem, removing most of the leaves and placing them all in clean buckets of water at least 24 hours before using them, this increases their longevity and ensures that on the big day you will have perfect fresh blooms looking their absolute best. As well as preparing and arranging the flowers by hand, costs often include additional labour to set up at a wedding venue or church, and then take down after the wedding.

4. Delivery

When it comes to delivery of wedding flowers, it's important to note that florists will be charging a delivery cost, this pays for the petrol or diesel and sometimes the time it takes to transport them, some will charge a bit more for tricky locations or late/early times, or take downs at midnight. If you are employing a florist in Bedfordshire and are getting married in London, then it will be included into your quote the travel from their destination to the wedding venue. Bear this is in mind if you hire a florist who is based 45 miles away!

So, there we have it, an insight into why wedding flowers cost what they cost, and whilst wedding flowers may seem expensive, it is important to recognise that this cost also reflects employing an experienced qualified/trained floral designer, their skill, time, as well as the bespoke nature of the service and responsibility.

And lastly, it is your wedding day .. so make sure you hire a florist who knows what they are doing!