All the matrimonial factoids you’ll never need … but hey, it beats talking about the weather or dredging up embarrassing stories about the best man. The following info was culled from Hallmark.com:
The nitty-gritty
• Weddings are a $25.3 billion industry.
• For the past 20 years, 2.25 million to 2.40 million weddings have taken place each year in the United States, a third of them remarriages.
• The average engagement is 16 months.
• An average of 189 guests attend a wedding.
• The average cost of a wedding is $20,000 to $25,000.
• The average ring costs $2,000.
• 85 percent of weddings are held in a church or synagogue.
• About 15 percent of weddings include ethnic customs.
• More than half of all weddings take place in the afternoon.
The lovely couple
• The average first-time bride was 22 in 1980, 25 in 1990, and 25.1 in 2000.
• The average age of remarrying brides was 32 in 1980, 35 in 1990, and 34 in 2000.
• The average age of today’s first-time groom is 26.8; 37+ for the remarrying groom.
• Half of all adults in the United States are married.
