A planning reference
U.S. Wedding & Bridal Beauty Statistics: 2026 Reference Guide
Clear, citable data for couples, wedding professionals, writers, and anyone tracking how weddings are being planned today.
Last updated October 13, 2026. Each statistic names its source and reporting year.
The short version
Wedding planning is both deeply personal and increasingly intentional.
National records show more than two million U.S. marriages in the latest available year. Recent wedding-planning research also points to a more considered experience: couples are balancing visual inspiration with real budgets, while making room for the professionals and details that shape how the day feels.
These figures are gathered here as a stable reference, with the original source beside every number. They are not a price guide or a forecast for a particular wedding.
At a glance
Wedding and bridal beauty statistics
2,041,926
marriages were recorded in the United States in 2023.
This is the latest national provisional count in the CDC table, which reports a marriage rate of 6.1 per 1,000 people that year.
CDC National Center for Health Statistics, 2023 provisional data$36,000
was the average projected cost of a U.S. wedding in 2025.
This figure comes from Zola’s 2025 First Look Report. It is a planning benchmark, not a quote for any individual wedding or service.
Zola First Look Report, 202574%
of newly married couples surveyed said they went over their original expected budget.
Zola reported this after following up with 1,500 couples who had planned 2024 weddings, a useful reminder to build breathing room into a wedding budget.
Zola First Look Report, 202591%
of couples surveyed said social media inspires their wedding planning.
In the same survey, 48% said the gap between picture-perfect ideas and real-world budgets was a challenge.
Zola, survey of more than 6,000 couples planning 2025 weddings9%
of surveyed couples named their beauty team as a wedding element they were most willing to splurge on.
The finding places hair and makeup among the personal, experience-led choices couples make when shaping their day.
Zola, survey of more than 6,000 couples planning 2025 weddings53%
of surveyed couples thought the couple should pay for wedding-party hair and makeup.
A further 33% said wedding-party members should cover the cost, showing why clear expectations matter early in the planning process.
Zola, survey of more than 6,000 couples planning 2025 weddings595,000
hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists were employed in the U.S. in 2024.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment in this occupation to reach 640,900 by 2034, a 7.7% increase.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2024–34 employment projectionsMethodology & sources
How to use this guide.
This page prioritizes the original publisher wherever available: national public data for marriage and workforce counts, plus clearly identified wedding-planning research for couples’ preferences and budgets. Survey results describe the respondents in that study, not every couple or wedding.
- CDC National Center for Health Statistics, provisional U.S. marriage data through 2023
- Zola First Look Report, 2025
- Zola 2025 First Look Report Data Deep Dive, based on more than 6,000 couples planning 2025 weddings
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2024–34 employment projections
Michelle reviews this reference roughly monthly, or sooner when a core source releases material new data. Last reviewed October 13, 2026.
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Suggested citation: Michelle Dinsbeer, “U.S. Wedding & Bridal Beauty Statistics: 2026 Reference Guide,” updated October 13, 2026. Link to this reference.
Bridal hair, considered