South Asian Wedding Budget Calculator
Built for multi-day Desi weddings. Enter your budget and guest count — get an instant breakdown across 13 categories, plus your cost per guest.
How much does a South Asian wedding cost?
There's no single number — a multi-day Desi wedding is really several events stitched together, so the total is driven almost entirely by how many guests you host and how many functions you throw. In North America, most multi-event South Asian weddings land somewhere between $60,000 and $250,000+. A tighter, single-venue celebration can come in well under that; a five-day affair with 500 guests can run well over.
Rather than chase one figure, it's far more useful to start from a total you're comfortable with and see how it splits across every category. That's exactly what the calculator above does.
Where the money actually goes
Across hundreds of Desi weddings, spending clusters in a fairly predictable way. Two categories — catering and venue — typically eat up close to half the budget, because you're feeding a large guest list across several events. Here's the rough shape of a typical breakdown:
- Catering & bar (~27%) — the single biggest line item; multiplied by every event you host.
- Venue & rentals (~14%) — often multiple venues across the week.
- Attire & jewellery (~13%) — several outfits per person, plus gold.
- Décor & florals (~11%) — mandap, stage, and each event's look.
- Photography & video (~10%) — usually covering every function.
- Everything else (~25%) — entertainment, hair & makeup, invitations, priest, transport, accommodation, gifts, and a buffer.
The calculator uses this framework, tuned for multi-day South Asian weddings — so the split you see reflects the way Desi celebrations really spend, not a generic single-day template.
A quick word on the "per guest" number
Because guest count is the biggest lever, cost per guest is the metric to watch. For a multi-event South Asian wedding, roughly $250–$500 per guest all-in is a healthy planning range depending on your city and venues. Trimming the guest list is almost always the fastest way to move the total. Not sure what you need to budget for? Our free South Asian wedding checklist walks through every task.
Wedding budget FAQs
How much does a South Asian wedding cost?
Multi-day South Asian weddings in North America commonly range from about $60,000 to $250,000+, driven mostly by guest count and the number of events. Use the calculator above to split your own budget across every category.
What is the biggest expense in an Indian wedding?
Catering and bar is usually the single largest cost — often 25–30% of the total — because Desi weddings feed hundreds of guests across several events. Venue and rentals are typically next.
How much should I budget per guest?
A useful rule of thumb for a multi-event South Asian wedding is roughly $250–$500 per guest all-in, depending on city, venue, and number of functions. The calculator shows your exact cost per guest as you type.
Is this calculator free?
Yes — completely free, no sign-up. To turn the estimate into a live budget with vendor payments and per-event tracking, you can start a free 7-day trial of Shaadi Sheets.
Your estimate is the easy part.
Tracking it is where it counts.
Shaadi Sheets turns this breakdown into a live budget — log real vendor quotes, schedule payments, and see what each event actually costs, all in one place built for multi-day Desi weddings.
Start your free 7-day trial