Survey finds Mayo just above national average for wedding costs

MAYO is middle of the road when it comes to the cost of getting married.

A new study by social network website Wedding Social has found that Wicklow is the dearest county in Ireland in which to get married, whilst Offaly is the cheapest.

Mayo sits slap bang in the middle of the 26 counties in the Republic of Ireland, the average cost to get married here being €23,755 - just slightly above the national average of €23,605.

The average cost in Wicklow is €24,870. In Offaly, meanwhile, it averages €20,930 - making it the only county to come in under €21,000.

Mayo is slightly more expensive than Dublin (€23,625) and western neighbours Galway (€23,605) and Roscommon (€23,520), but cheaper than Sligo (€24,295) and Leitrim (€24,600).

As well as where you plan to get wed, consider the month in which you intend to say 'I do'. July is the dearest month at an average of €24,615 - that's nearly €3,000 dearer than February. August is the most popular month to get married in, with 15% of all Irish weddings, while January is the least popular at just 2%.

Overall, the average cost of a wedding in Ireland is €23,605 - a €1,200 increase on last year. In the battle of the sexes, on average €450 is spent kitting out the bridesmaids, which is more than double that spent on the groomsmen.

The study was conducted using over 1,000 actual wedding budgets from couples across the Republic of Ireland (26 counties). A full breakdown of costs, counties and months can be found at www.weddingsocial.io/WeddingCosts.