Two choices shape a Bengaluru budget early: a city venue or a resort outside town, and one guest count or two.
This guide works through one example: a 2–3 event Bengaluru wedding for 120–180 guests, with a proper venue, full catering and real décor, on a budget of ₹22 lakh (₹22,00,000). The figures are a planning illustration, not survey data; your own numbers come from written vendor quotes.
What ₹22 Lakh Covers in This Example
In the example, ₹22L covers either a solid city venue (banquet hall or hotel property) or a resort-style wedding outside the city toward Nandi Hills and beyond. Resort packages often bundle venue, guest accommodation and some catering into one line, which can work out close to a comparable city-venue total while giving guests a getaway weekend rather than a single evening.
Worth planning around: some couples keep the ceremony small (sometimes just close family) and hold a separate, larger reception for colleagues and friends. If that's your plan, ask venues and caterers to quote the two events with their own guest counts rather than one flat headcount.
The ₹22L Budget Breakdown, Category by Category
For 120–180 guests, the example gives the venue the largest share, with catering second.
| Category | Share of budget | Approx. amount |
|---|---|---|
| Venue | 30% | ₹6,60,000 |
| Catering | 24% | ₹5,28,000 |
| Décor & mandap | 15% | ₹3,30,000 |
| Photography & videography | 9% | ₹1,98,000 |
| Bridal makeup & styling | 5% | ₹1,10,000 |
| Mehndi | 2% | ₹44,000 |
| DJ & entertainment | 5% | ₹1,10,000 |
| Invitations & gifts | 3% | ₹66,000 |
| Miscellaneous & buffer | 7% | ₹1,54,000 |
| Total | 100% | ₹22,00,000 |
These figures are an illustrative planning allocation, not vendor quotes or a surveyed market average. Actual costs vary with venue tier, season and guest count, so always compare written quotes.
The example gives photography a slightly bigger share, for couples choosing a resort or outdoor setting partly for how it photographs.
Planning for a different total?
This split is built around ₹22L — plug in your own number and guest count in our free budget planner to get a breakdown sized to your actual wedding.
Try the free budget planner →Where Bengaluru Budgets Often Slip
- Treating a resort wedding as automatically cheaper. The bundled per-package price can look attractive next to an itemized city-venue quote, but guest transport and multi-night stay costs for an outstation resort need to be added before the comparison is fair.
- Traffic-blind venue selection. Bengaluru's traffic can make a venue that looks "20 minutes away" on a map a genuinely difficult evening commute for guests — worth weighing against a slightly more central, easier-access option even at a small premium.
- Underestimating the two-event guest split. Quoting catering and venue capacity for a single flat guest count when the ceremony and reception actually have different headcounts leads to either overpaying for the smaller event or under-catering the larger one.
- Weekend-only date assumptions. Popular resort properties book out fastest for weekend dates specifically — a Friday or Sunday date can meaningfully ease both availability and price pressure.
If you're doing a smaller ceremony and a larger reception, get separate guest-count-based quotes for each rather than one blended number — otherwise one of the two events ends up over- or under-budgeted.
Five Ways to Stretch a ₹22L Bengaluru Budget Further
- Consider a Friday or Sunday date. Saturdays are the most requested, so ask resorts and venues for Friday and Sunday prices too.
- Get a fully-loaded resort quote before comparing to a city venue. Include guest transport and accommodation, not just the venue rental line, for a fair comparison.
- Quote ceremony and reception separately if guest counts genuinely differ. A blended single-headcount quote almost always over- or under-shoots one of the two events.
- Book resort properties earlier than you'd expect. Popular weekend dates at well-known resorts near Bengaluru can go early.
- Compare verified vendors instead of the first three referrals. A wider, genuinely comparable shortlist in the same budget band usually surfaces at least one vendor priced better than whoever came recommended first.
A Simple Six-Month Booking Timeline
- Month 6: Finalize guest count(s) and date, book venue.
- Month 5: Book catering and decorator.
- Month 4: Book photography/videography and bridal makeup team.
- Month 3: Book mehndi artist, DJ/entertainment, and send invitations.
- Month 2: Confirm final headcount(s) with venue and caterer; finalize décor details.
- Month 1: Logistics, guest travel coordination, and a final walkthrough with every vendor.
Finding the Right Vendors Without the Guesswork
Between city and resort options and possibly two guest counts, it helps to shortlist vendors who fit your exact plan. Search Wedding Bharat for vendors in and around Bengaluru and contact them directly on WhatsApp.
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Find Bengaluru vendors →Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a wedding cost in Bengaluru?
There's no single figure: cost depends mostly on guest count, venue type and season, and Wedding Bharat doesn't have surveyed cost data. This guide uses an example budget of ₹22 lakh for a 2–3 event wedding with 120–180 guests, a proper venue, full catering and real décor, to show how a budget can be split. For real numbers, get written quotes from vendors.
Is a resort wedding outside Bengaluru cheaper than a city venue?
Not usually cheaper overall, but often better value per rupee spent — resort properties toward Nandi Hills or further out typically bundle venue, stay and some catering into one package, which can work out similar in total cost to a city venue while adding a getaway feel guests remember.
Should the ceremony and reception have separate guest counts?
If your ceremony is just close family and the reception adds colleagues and friends, yes: get venue and catering quotes for each event with its own guest count. One blended headcount means overpaying for the smaller event or under-catering the larger one.
What's the biggest expense in a Bengaluru wedding budget?
In this guide's example split, the venue is the largest line at 30% (₹6.6L), followed by catering at 24% (₹5.28L).
How far in advance should I book vendors for a Bengaluru wedding?
Five to six months is usually enough outside peak season, though popular resort properties for weekend dates should be booked earlier — six months for venue, five for catering and décor, four for photography and makeup, and three for mehndi, DJ and invitations.