2.3 million couples wed every year in the US. That breaks down to nearly 6,200 weddings a day

the average age of a bride in the US is 25.3

average age of a groom is 26.9

average number of guests invited to a wedding is 178

one-third of those getting married each year have been married before

The money behind the marriage

$72 billion per year is spent on weddings

the average wedding budget is $20,000

$1,016 is the average cost of wedding rings for the bride and groom

traditionally, the father of the bride would pay for everything. Today, however, the bride and groom themselves pay for the wedding about 30 percent of the time; the bride's parents pay about 17 percent of the time. As for the rest of the time, costs are covered by different sources -- the bride and groom and one or both sets of parents, according to surveys by Bride's magazine.

$19 billion per year is spent on wedding gift registries

$8 billion per year is spent on honeymoons

the average honeymoon budget is $3,657

over 91 percent of all to-be-weds register for gifts. The couple receives gifts from an average of 200 guests

most wedding guests spend between $70 and $100 on a gift

Timing of weddings

June is the most popular month for weddings, then August, followed by September and October

here's a monthly breakdown:

January 4.7%

February 7.0%

March 6.1%

April 7.4%

May 9.8%

June 10.8%

July 9.7%

August 10.2%

September 9.6%

October 9.4%

November 7.4%

December 7.8%

Where do weddings take place?

80 percent of weddings are performed in churches or synagogues

Honeymoons

99 percent of newlyweds take a honeymoon

t he average couple will spend three times more on their honeymoon than a regular vacation

he average couple will spend three times more on their honeymoon than a regular vacation 40 percent of honeymooners will travel within the United States, about 60 percent will travel to a foreign country

honeymoons usually last 7 to 9 days

the most popular destinations are Las Vegas, Hawaii, the Caribbean, and Jamaica

35 percent of brides and grooms have a valid passport

Other Interesting Info

the top wedding city in the world is Istanbul, Turkey with 166,000 for the year

Las Vegas, Nevada is in second place with 114,000 weddings.

Sources for our statistics

US Census Bureau http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2003/cb03ff02.html

The Knot (http://www.theknot.com/au_industrystats.shtml),

The Association for Wedding Professionals International (http://www.afwpi.com/wedstats)

Sellmoreweddings.com

Sellthebride.com (http://www.sellthebride.com/tipsstats.htm)

American Demographics

Bride's Millennium Report: Wedding Love & Money

Bride's magazine