Even the rumoured wedding of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce comes with a no-gift policy. For most couples, however, invitations increasingly ditch the traditional list for bank transfer details — or, as wedding list service Prezola reports, requests for specific experiences rather than a generic cash pot. Prezola says the average guest contribution is £116.
But expectations vary widely. Jonny, 34, says he and his wife Lottie contribute between £250 and £400 depending on how close they are to the bride and groom and what they can afford. "We don't have that many friends, so it's nice to give generously," he says.
“Wedding cash gifts average £116, but guests are divided as some give £400 while others stick to £50.”
At his own wedding, most close friends gave between £100 and £200, one couple gave £400 and they received £2,000 from Jonny's dad. They used it as spending money on their 17-day honeymoon in Canada — a trip Jonny says they'd saved for "because it's not worth the risk of relying on donations".
Not everyone is giving hundreds. Hannah Rose-Thorn, 30, says she "always gives £50 in a card" and found that the average contribution to her own honeymoon fund was the same. She mentioned money on invitations and created QR codes for guests to scan at the bar. She received £3,000, which will be used as spending money for a honeymoon she had already paid for.
According to Hitched, a UK-based wedding planning website, the average UK couple spends around £4,000 on their honeymoon.
Despite asking for money, Hannah says she also received physical gifts — champagne and flute glasses from her boss — which she says "will most likely get regifted". Jonny adds that some guests ignore the request for money because they want to give something more meaningful. "They mean well, but it probably means you'll get a bunch of John Lewis and M&S vouchers, as well as some physical gifts too."
The result: guests are divided over how much to give, while couples hope their honeymoon funds cover the cost of saying "I do."