How Much Should You Really Gift At Weddings In 2025?

Many people are unsure of how much money to give when they attend a wedding, statistics showed Google searches for 'how much money should you give for a wedding gift' soared by a whopping 5,000% in April of 2025 alone and 11% of guests go into debt just to attend a wedding, with the average spend hitting £451.
Anita Naik, Savings Expert at VoucherCodes, has broken down exactly what you should spend based on your relationship to the couple, plus clever tricks to make your gift feel luxe on a budget. Anita recommends if you're a distant friend or colleague to be gifting between £25-£50 whereas if you're the best man/maid-of-honour it varies between £150-£200. (full table below)

Relationship to the couple	Suggested gift value
Distant friend or colleague	£25 – £50
Close friend	£50 – £100
Immediate family	£100 – £200
Best man / Maid of honour	£150 – £200

 
'Love doesn't cost a thing'
For some people this may still be too expensive so Anita came up with her top hacks for thoughtful gifting on a budget
1. Personalised print swaps - If you can't afford to gift cash, consider a meaningful keepsake. Sites like Etsy offer affordable personalised prints of wedding dates, vows, or star maps from the night they met – often for under £20.
2. DIY hampers - Build-your-own hampers can feel even more special than expensive shop-bought ones, especially if they are tailored specially to the couple. Think a bottle of their favourite bubbly to mark the event, a framed photo featuring the couple, or even an old-school homemade playlist of 'their songs'.
3. Group gifting - Instead of individual gifts, club together with friends or family and buy one larger present from the couple's wish list – or offer cash as a group gift. This spreads the cost and gives you more bang for your buck, whilst still making the couple feel spoiled on their big day.
4. A heartfelt message - Sometimes, the most valuable gift is a thoughtful note. If money is tight, write a personal letter or card with your best wishes and memories. It's the kind of thing couples treasure long after the day has passed.
5. Offer your services - Whilst the cost of attending a wedding can go into the hundreds, the cost of having a wedding is likely to go into the tens of thousands. If you have a special skill which can help the couple during the planning or on the day itself offer it up!

You can also look to save costs on travel by using public transport instead of driving down to save on hefty petrol and parking fees.If you're staying overnight, it's often cheaper to stay at a local hotel a few minutes away from the venue rather than on site.
If you're still looking for a cheaper deal you should avoid splurging on a new outfit and instead use a rental platform such as 'By Rotation' or 'Hurr' that let you borrow designer looks from as little as £20. However, if you're looking for a piece to keep and reuse you can use VoucherCodes for deals on occasion wear from stores like ASOS John Lewis or Karen Millen.


-News story added by Callie Langdon