Despite economic uncertainty, the wedding industry remains healthy, contributing to more than $100 billion in total wedding related spending in 2025, on par to a year ago.
That’s according to The Knot’s Real Weddings Study 2026, which was released Wednesday. Among the findings, some two million U.S. couples got married in 2025, lab-grown center stones accounted for 61 percent of all engagement ring purchases, and AI is rapidly becoming part of the wedding planning toolkit.
In just one year, AI adoption jumped from about 20 to 36 percent among engaged couples. Couples primarily use AI to spark inspiration, answer early-stage questions (such as searching for venues) and draft communications before turning to industry platforms to validate details and make final decisions. Earlier this month, The Knot Worldwide launched a new app within ChatGPT — the first within the wedding industry. Adoption of AI is expected to accelerate further.
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According to The Knot, Gen Z now represents 41 percent of the wedding market, and their influence is unmistakable. Traditional, cookie-cutter weddings are giving way to celebrations centered on authenticity, intention and personal expression. Couples planning weddings in 2026 are increasingly choosing one of two paths: going all-out or going ultra-intimate.
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“The biggest thing is weddings are still resilient. They’re still here. Two million couples got married in 2025,” said Esther Lee, editorial director of The Knot Worldwide. She said with talk about tariffs and economic uncertainty, people are still getting married and weddings are happening at the same $100 billion wedding spending level.
She noted that they’re seeing Gen Z “entering the chat,” and representing 41 percent of the wedding market. “There is that hyper-personalization that’s occurring now, a focus on individualism, aesthetics, the storytelling and that narrative. It’s become really fun to see a couple’s story play out with the wedding day,” said Lee.
Lee noted that one interesting point is the engagement ring market has fundamentally shifted. Nearly nine in 10 proposers pop the question with a ring in hand, and lab-grown center stones account for 61 percent of all engagement ring purchases, a 239 percent increase since 2020. This shift has led to larger average carat sizes (1.9-carat) and lower average costs ($4,600, down from $5,200 in 2024), reshaping expectations around luxury and meaning.
Ring selection is increasingly a joint effort, with 79 percent of ring recipients participating in the process. Only 21 percent of rings are selected without any input from the recipient, and one in four couples now shop at a retailer together before the proposal. More than half say it is important to shop for rings in person. On average, proposers visit two retailers in person and look at 10 rings in person. Most proposers choose to make their ring purchase in-person (64 percent), but one-third make the purchase online.
While clear diamonds are the most popular stores, moissanite and sapphires are the most popular non-diamond ones. The most popular shape is round (26 percent), followed by oval (25 percent). Other top ring shapes include emerald (8 percent), princess (8 percent), pear/teardrop (8 percent), and marquise (8 percent). Yellow gold (39 percent) continues to rise in popularity, up 140 percent over the last five years, while white gold continues its steady decline.
The cost of a 1.6-carat found natural stone diamond is $7,000, while a 2-carat oval lab-grown stone is $4,300.
The Knot Real Weddings Study captured responses from 10,474 U.S. couples married between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2025. Respondents represent adult couples from all over the U.S. with various ethnicities, income levels, race, age, sexual orientation and gender identity.
As for the wedding day, couples paid an average of $292 per wedding guest, up $8 from 2024, and $78 from 2019. On average, couples hire around 13 vendors to bring their day to life. The average guest list in 2025 was 117, up from 116 a year ago. Wedding party size remained steady at eight. Seventy-one percent went on a honeymoon, versus 69 percent a year ago, and 17 percent had a destination wedding, versus 18 percent a year ago.
The cost of a ceremony/reception in 2025 was $34,000, versus $33,000 a year ago. And the average average age of the couples is 32, versus 33 a year ago.
One-third of the couples who got married in 2025 met their partners through online dating sites/apps, up from 27 percent in 2024. Other common ways that 2025 couples first met their partners include meeting through friends (14 percent), and at school (12 percent).
The most popular month to get engaged continues to be December, with Christmas Day being the top day of the year, followed by Christmas Eve and Valentine’s Day. Nearly 70 percent of proposals are planned more than a month in advance. Over 25 percent of proposers hire professionals to make the moment extra special such as photographers, florists and planners.
Roughly 40 percent of couples are engaged for 11 to 18 months, with the average being 14 months. Seventy-six percent of couples get married between May and October, with fall continuing to be the most popular season.
Couples shared their attire, photographer and venue are the wedding elements that matter most to them. The majority of wedding celebrations now span two to three days (71 percent), necessitating planning for multiple events beyond the main day, such as the rehearsal dinner (75 percent), welcome drinks (26 percent), after party (27 percent), and day-after brunch (21 percent).
Among the expenses, the average spend for the wedding dress is $2,100; venue, $12,900; photographer, $3,000; caterer (per head) $80; groom attire, $330; cake, $530; hair and makeup, $300; DJ, $1,800; event rentals, $2,000, and florist, $2,800.
According to Knot editors, posed photography is giving way to more editorial and documentary-style candid shots. What’s trending is TikTok/Instagram influenced trends like Pearlcore, candid flash photography, and multiple outfits changes.