*Feel free to consult with a Jewish mother after reading this article...*
If your year’s been anything like ours you’ve probably seen about three years worth of weddings squeezed into one! With receptions back in full-force, we’re all playing a bit of catch up. Weddings that were scheduled for 2020 and 2021 were pushed into 2022 and 2023 and with these events inevitably comes a few questions!
Other than figuring out whether to go with the chicken or the fish, the big question we all ask ourselves is: what do we give for a gift?
The answer is very rarely ever clear-cut and is likely dependent on a handful of factors. How close are you to the couple? Is it a destination wedding? Is it their first wedding? Do you have a plus one?
Here at Menschions, we like to say $150 per adult is a good baseline to start at but have dug up a handful of Wedding Gift Calculators to help you find a figure that makes sense for a wide array of weddings! From your first cousin’s second wedding in Greece to your sorority sister’s first wedding two towns over, these Wedding Gift Calculators will help you land at the right amount!
Of course, no gift is complete without a fabulously hilarious wedding card so once you decide on a gift … be sure to pick out one of our cards!
This particular calculator begins by asking what your relationship with the couple is before moving onto the wedding location, details on who your plus one might be and also how much your annual salary might be. On top of this, they take into account the attending party size because. A wedding you attend with your children and plus one will call for a higher gift than one you attend with just your plus one.
Taking into account a few timing factors like whether or not the wedding is in peak season or off peak and which night of the week the reception falls on, this particular calculator is great for anyone but particularly perfect for guests who are involved with the wedding party. It asks questions like, “Did you attend any of the Pre-Wedding Festivities?” On top of this, it asks for the personal information like salary and basic plus one information that will help you land on an appropriate gift amount.
This article suggests that as a single guest, you can give anywhere from $75 to $500 based upon the factors discussed above! However, the calculator itself breaks down the basics such as relationship to the bride or groom, whether you’re attending or not and if this is their first marriage or not.
To summarize, the factors that will most likely dictate your gift amount are: Your relationship to the couple, whether or not this is the first marriage and whether or not you had to travel for the occasion. As good Jewish attendees, we often love to throw an extra 18 or 36 dollars onto a gift for good luck, but let these calculators be a good guide for all the upcoming weddings in your future and as we said above… feel free to consult with a Jewish mother just to be safe.