Bank of America reveals costly wedding inflation problem
Sticky inflation just showed up in a place we’d rather not put in a spreadsheet. That inflation setup fits Bank of America’s latest report shared with me, which shows the pressure building in categories couples actually buy into. The note shows consumers are still spending a ton on ...
Overview
Sticky inflation just showed up in a place we’d rather not put in a spreadsheet.
That inflation setup fits Bank of America’s latest report shared with me, which shows the pressure building in categories couples actually buy into.
The note shows consumers are still spending a ton on weddings, even as they look to stretch their budgets elsewhere. Moreover, the inflationary pressure is coming from the usual suspects, including food, apparel, travel, vendors and small businesses passing along higher costs.
For perspective, in May, CPI rose 4.2% from a year earlier, while core CPI jumped 2.9%. More wedding-linked costs still remain elevated, with food away from home rising 3.5%, full-service meals rising 3.8%, and apparel climbing 4.8%, according to the BLS.
So clearly the squeeze wasn’t just linked to romance inflation. Consumers are cutting corners where they can, reusing outfits, reconsidering travel, and looking for cheaper alternatives, but the final bill continues to tick up.
So with inflation still sticking around in the most emotional parts of consumer spending, how much wiggle room is left?
What Bank of America said about wedding inflation
Weddings tend to be one-off celebrations (if you’re lucky), but BofA’s new note shows it being a revealing pocket of sticky consumer inflation.
The bank’s payments data shows that wedding-related spending per customer increased by 8.5% year over year through May 2026, double the growth seen in the past 2 years.
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On top of that, the report suggests consumers aren’t simply absorbing higher prices blindly but are becoming a lot more selective. Guests are re-wearing outfits, couples are looking at cheaper alternatives such as lab-grown diamonds, and destination weddings may be losing some appeal as travel costs bite.
Nevertheless, the total bill keeps rising anyway.
Bank of America said wedding-facing small businesses faced heavier tariff-related expenses than the broader small-business sector, especially in areas such as flowers, apparel, food and retail.
Details
Though couples continue to trade down around the edges, inflation is still walking down the aisle in a big way.
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The key numbers behind the wedding inflation squeeze
- Wedding-related spending rose 8.5% year over year through May 2026, according to Bank of America payments data, showing that higher costs have not stopped couples from spending on the big day.
- The average U.S. wedding cost hit $36,000 in 2025, up $3,000 from the prior year, according to Zola data cited by Bank of America.
- Gen Z weddings have tripled since 2019, while millennial weddings are down roughly 20%, suggesting younger consumers are becoming the new driver of wedding demand.
- Roughly 2 million couples married in 2025, generating more than $100 billion in total wedding event spending.
- Lab-grown diamonds now make up about 15% of the diamond industry, up from less than 1% in 2016, as couples search for cheaper alternatives.
- Lab-grown diamonds can cost 80% to 90% less than natural stones, making them a clear pressure valve for wedding inflation.
Source: Bank of America Insights.
What the report means for wedding businesses
For businesses linked to weddings, the report shows that demand is still there, but the customer has become a lot more price-sensitive.
Florists, caterers, dress shops, venues, photographers, jewelers and travel operators continue to have pricing power like yesteryears due to the emotional quotient. However, that power isn’t unlimited if consumers start renting outfits, buying secondhand, choosing lab-grown diamonds or trimming guest lists.
Additionally, BofA’s tariff point sharpens the margin story.
The report sounded the alarm on the fact that wedding-facing small businesses saw tariff payments outpace the broader small-business average, especially in categories including apparel, eating and drinking places, florists, caterers and miscellaneous retail.
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So vendors either need to absorb higher costs and protect volume or pass them on through and risk losing budget-conscious customers.
Moreover, the Fed is unlikely to budge either, as inflationary fears continue to worry one-and-all.
Following the Iran war’s disruptive impact on energy markets, more hawkish calls have emerged, with Bank of America expecting three rate hikes totaling 75 basis points in 2026 and Deutsche Bank expecting two hikes.
Moreover, Reuters reports that futures traders are pricing in a 30% chance of a July rate hike and about an 80% chance of a September hike, while a separate Reuters poll found most economists still expect the Fed to hold rates steady this year.
That said, the next big checkpoint is the June CPI report on July 14, followed by the next PCE inflation report on July 30, the Fed’s preferred gauge. Those reports will help analyze whether the recent pressure is mainly an energy shock or something broader across services and consumer spending.
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Source
Originally published at www.thestreet.com.
