Rehearsal Dinner Cost Calculator

The rehearsal dinner is typically held the evening before the wedding and is traditionally hosted by the groom’s family. It follows the wedding rehearsal and includes the wedding party, immediate family, out-of-town guests, and sometimes officiants.

Formula: Total Rehearsal Dinner Cost = (Cost per Head × Number of Guests) + Venue Fee + Bar Cost + Decorations + Gratuity Cost per Head = Food Cost per Person + Soft Drinks Bar Cost = Guests Who Drink × Average Drink Spend per Person Gratuity = (Food + Bar Total) × 0.18 to 0.22

What each variable means:

• Cost per Head is the restaurant’s per-person price for a set menu, or your average à la carte spend.
• Venue Fee is the room rental some restaurants charge for a private dining room, $0 to $500 and up.
• Bar Cost is per person, and open bar against beer-and-wine against a cash bar changes it more than the food does.
• Gratuity is 18–22% for event dining, and it is sometimes added automatically. Check the contract before you tip on top of it.

Every one of those is a field on this page and every one starts blank. Restaurant prices move every year and vary several-fold between a small town and a city centre, so a figure written into the calculator would be wrong for most people using it. Put your own quote in.

Guest count guidelines:

• Minimum traditional list: Wedding party + spouses + parents + officiant = ~20–30 people
• Expanded: Add out-of-town guests = 40–60 people
• Full guest list = uncommon but occurs for destination weddings

Cost benchmarks:

• Casual restaurant (set menu): $45–$75 per person
• Mid-range restaurant: $75–$120 per person
• Upscale venue: $120–$200 per person
• Home or backyard (catered): $30–$60 per person

Worked example: 35 guests, restaurant charges $85/head, open bar $30/person, venue fee $200, gratuity 20%.

Food + Bar = (35 × $85) + (35 × $30) = $2,975 + $1,050 = $4,025 Gratuity = $4,025 × 0.20 = $805 Total = $4,025 + $805 + $200 venue = $5,030

Per-person total = $5,030 ÷ 35 = $143.71 per guest

Type those five numbers into the fields above and you will get $5,030 back. The gratuity is charged on food and bar only, not on the room fee, which is how most restaurants bill it.

One thing that is easy to miss: sales tax. It is not in the figure above because it runs from zero to over 10% depending on the state, and in some places it applies to the gratuity as well. Ask for a quote that shows tax as its own line, then add it to the total here.