"$250-$500. The amount should be at least enough to cover the cost of our attendance at the wedding. Amount goes up from $250 depending on how close we are with the couple. Money is the best gift ;)."
$100 to $250 is a safe range for a cash gift at a wedding
“Most couples request cash gifts on their wedding day to help them begin their new life chapter. How much you give at a destination or local wedding depends on your relationship with them and your budget,” he says.
The average wedding gift amount hovers right around $100, which is a great place to start, and you can increase or decrease that based on how close you are. If you're very close or related to the couple (and have the wiggle room in your budget), you may choose to spend more—about $150 per guest (or $200 from a couple).
THE ETIQUETTE
She offers these guidelines to wedding-goers wherever they might be: A distant relative or co-worker should give $75-$100; a friend or relative, $100-$125; a closer relative, up to $150. If you are wealthy, are you expected to inflate the gift? No, Cooper says.
Upon consulting the experts, a wedding gift should range from $75 to $750—but most agree that $300+ is the sweet spot.
On average, guests in 2023 are spending around $100 per person on a wedding gift. When considering an appropriate amount to spend on the wedding gift, the main factors are your relationship with the couple, how fancy is the reception, and how many pre-wedding activities are you invited to.
Also, yes, put the money in a card wishing them well. Gifts from their wedding registry or even one you think that will be meaningful to them are also appropriate wedding gifts.
Most Australians think that between $51 and $125 per person is an appropriate amount to give for a wedding gift or wishing well.
What is a good cash wedding gift amount for one person? If you're flying solo and just a casual friend of the bride or groom, then you can spend $75-$100 on your gift. Even if you're a super close friend of the couple, $500 is the most you should give.
Yes, it's always acceptable to give cash as a wedding gift. In fact, experts say that giving cash as a wedding gift can be a practical and much appreciated present. Seventy percent of couples registered for cash on their wedding registry, an increase of 10% over last year, according to TheKnot.
If you're already in a long-term relationship, then spending anywhere from $100-$200 for a gift is a safe bet. If you're newly dating, then something less pricey is definitely reasonable, like, say, around $25-$50.
"Most guests spend between $75 and $200 on a wedding gift," she tells Insider by email. "If you're attending a wedding solo, somewhere around that lower end is appropriate, but if you're going with a plus one, we encourage guests to look more towards $150 or more."
As a rule of thumb, if you're giving a gift from the registry, start with a gift of no less than $50 and go upwards from there. If you're giving money as a wedding gift, we recommend $75 to $150, upwards of $300.
Wedding check or cash—is one better than the other? Writing a check is best because only a person with the exact name as the payee on the check can deposit it and you can cancel the check if it gets lost or stolen in the mail.
In general, it's thought that guests should spend around $100 on a wedding gift. That said, we recommend spending somewhere between $200-$400 for a sibling as it is generally considered appropriate to spend a little more if you are close friends or family members of the couple.
While it's not required, it's always a nice gesture and will make the couple smile—and there's no harm in that. Some couples designate a table for cards and gifts, particularly for any guests determined to do things the old-fashioned way.
Send as a Gift Card
Since you know that couples will be setting up their new life together, gift cards are a great way to let them pick out exactly what they want.
For a co-worker or acquaintance: $50 to $100. For a friend or relative: $75 to $150. For a close friend or relative: $150 to $250. And if you're a young person with limited budget: $50 to $75 is reasonable.
“The average gift that people give for a wedding is around $100, and that stays consistent whether they're giving a physical product or a cash gift,” says Emily Forrest, director of communications for Zola, a wedding registry website.
“For a non-family member gift, if you are a couple invited to the wedding, you should spend about $75 total on a gift. For a family member, $100 to $200 might be more appropriate,” Kirsner said.
The IRS allows every taxpayer is gift up to $17,000 to an individual recipient in one year. There is no limit to the number of recipients you can give a gift to. There is also a lifetime exemption of $12.92 million.
Here is a general rule of thumb: For acquaintances and coworkers, giving the couple a gift of $50 may be appropriate. However, if a guest is closer to them, they may want to aim for at least $75 to $100. If a guest has a close relationship with the couple, $200 is an excellent cash wedding gift amount.
It's a gesture of goodwill and a lovely way to express your support of the newlyweds. That said, it's highly likely that not every guest at a wedding will oblige. In fact, it's been estimated that between 7 and 10% of guests at a wedding fail to give a gift.
While most etiquette experts agree that $20-$30 is perfectly reasonable for a child's birthday gift, you can spend up to $100 on the child of a close friend or relative, says Helen Holden, founder of Counting Candles, a website that helps parents plan birthday parties.