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The cost to have a wedding has gone up a few thousand dollars from previous years because of inflation and a shortage of wedding-related goods and services. What does that look like locally?
I may be biased, but I think Central Ohio is a wonderful place to get hitched.
I am happy to say that I got engaged in August. When I told my Columbus Business First family, everyone was overjoyed. But then it was time to get back to work, because I was immediately assigned a story about Central Ohio wedding venues.
According to The Knot, which surveyed 12,000 couples who got married in 2022, the average cost of a wedding venue is $11,200. Couples reported spending about $30,000 in total on their weddings. CNN and wedding website Zola reported that the average cost of a wedding is $29,000 nationally.
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In Ohio, the average cost is $26,000.
Sites like The Knot and Zola said that the cost to have a wedding has gone up a few thousand dollars from previous years because of inflation and a shortage of wedding-related goods and services.
In Columbus, the city's overall growth is driving up demand and prices for events, weddings included.
"Columbus is a growing city, people see the strength of our market and want to take a cool space and rent it out for events," said John Brooks, managing partner of BTTS Holdings.
BTTS operates several Central Ohio wedding venues including Brookshire Event Venue in the Delaware-area, WatersEdge Event Venue and Conference Center in Hilliard, The Estate at New Albany, The Ellis in Italian Village, The FIG Room in the Short North and the Vue downtown.
Of course, the full cost of a wedding includes a lot more than just a venue (as I am learning). But in celebration of love, I spent some time recently surveying the market to see what it costs to get hitched in Columbus.
Here are 10 wedding venues in Columbus' core neighborhoods and how much it costs to rent them:
- Vitria on the Square, across the street from Ohio State's campus, has a $2,000 room rental fee, a $500 ceremony fee and a $15,000 food and beverage minimum.
- The Columbus Museum of Art on Broad Street costs $17,500 to have a Saturday ceremony and reception, which includes access to the museum from 5 p.m. to midnight, according to Joy Walker with the museum. There is no food and beverage minimum.
- The Ellis, at 777 N. 4th St., has a minimum spend on a Saturday of $20,000.
- The FIG Room, at17 Brickel St., is a new BTTS venue. Brooks said this "micro-venue" was born out of the pandemic. It has a capacity of 75 people and has a minimum spend of $3,500.
- Genesis Downtown requires a $4,000 minimum spend for a Saturday, which can be made up between bar and rental services. Peak season for Genesis is September through November. Only bar services are through the venue, so there is no food minimum at Genesis.
- The Junto, which recently opened at The Peninsula, costs $2,500 to rent on a Saturday during peak season, which is April through October. To have a ceremony on-site in the Franklin Gallery, it costs $2,000 on a Saturday.
- High Line Car House, 550 S. High St., costs $6,500 to rent on a Saturday between April and December. There is a $10,000 food and beverage minimum at High Line. This is a Together & Co. exclusive venue, so the company works to put together an individualized package for each couple.
- The Fives is another Together & Co. exclusive venue. The Fives, located at 550 Reach Blvd., costs $8,000 to rent on a Saturday between April and December. There is a $15,000 food and beverage minimum.
- The Vue, at 95 Liberty St., has a minimum spend on a Saturday of $20,000, according to BTTS, which is taking over management of the space. A ceremony costs $1,500, according to their website.
- Westin Great Southern hotel has a ceremony fee of $3,000 and a food and beverage minimum of $19,000 on Saturdays, according to their website.
To be sure, that's just a sampling of the options couples have in front of them. You can see more venue options in our regular ranking of Columbus venues, linked below.
Indoor meeting space (square feet)
| Rank | Prior Rank | Facility name, prior rank |
|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | Greater Columbus Convention Center |
2 | 2 | Ohio Expo Center |
3 | 3 | Jerome Schottenstein Center |
While the options (and prices) can seem overwhelming, Brooks offered some advice. He said a couple should decide what factors are important to them, from the date to the aesthetic of the venue to the price.
"Figure out what's important to you and rank those priorities," Brooks said. "There are so many choices that sometimes there is decision fatigue."
June, September and October are the three most popular months for weddings at BTTS venues.
