Is it wrong to have Bridesmaids and groomsmen pay for their own attire?

I had my bridesmaids pay for their attire. The thing is that I told them it just had to be this color and this long and let them find whatever they liked. They still complained about the prices though....

It's most common for the WP to pay for their own attire. It's literally their one responsibility.

There isn't really a "rule" I don't think. When we asked our bridal party, we made it clear that they would be expected to pay for their own attire. We asked everyone what their budget was, and chose what they wore based on that. For my girls, the only requirement I had was color. They could choose their own style, whatever they felt most comfortable in. I feel like you can't really dictate too much when your asking them to pay.

Buy their own, but keep that in mind when you pick a dress!

I've been in 6 weddings and paid for my dress in all of them. The brides made sure they weren't insanely expensive. In 2, they paid for our shoes and the rest we got to choose our own in a requested color. I'm having my girls mismatch in Navy and just asking for not too much cleavage or too short, besides that they have free range. I will likely buy them matching bracelets or necklaces as a gift.

I personally think it's really rude to ask your bridal party to pay for their own attire. They're doing you a favor by being in your wedding and probably throwing you a shower and a bachelorette party and basically just doing everything you ask them to do and then you're going to ask them to buy a $100 dress that they'll only wear once too? Just seems rude to me. We'll be paying for our wedding party's attire.

We paid for anything over $150 for the BM and anything over $200 for the GM (since it's more likely that they will use their bluish gray suit again compared to the BM dresses).

My bridesmaids and groomsmen are all buying/renting their outfits. I'm paying for the jewelry and make up for them, since it's something I required. How their hair is done is optional to me, so they will pay for it if they want.

Also, they aren't "doing you a favor" by being in your wedding. My wedding isn't a favor. THAT'S rude. They were asked and could have said no, and they know that there are expenses that go along with being in a wedding.

I have always paid for my own attire, shoes and hair/makeup. Most of the time the bride will supply accessories as gifts if she wants them all to match.

My girls paid for their dresses, but MIL offered and paid for the guys' tailored suits instead of renting because most of the GM were her sons.

I have never had someone pay for my dress. Although, I thought that was the norm-I'm pretty sure I was wrong. As I look back and am planning my own wedding, I asked my one person to choose her own dress and shoes (within certain guidelines) as she will be the paying. She was curious and asked if she could send pictures to get my okay. I told her absolutely. I would rather her money be spent on something she thinks she will use again rather than something I choose,

that she may actually hate. Lord knows how many dresses and shoes I have that I have purchased for weddings that will never see the light of day again.

ETA-clarity.

I've always had to pay

@Macey - It's normal/standard for BP to pay for their own outfits. The couple shouldn't even have to ask them; it's just expected. It's not rude.

When I was a BM, the bride paid for all of our dresses because she found them on clearance (in larger sizes) for $30 each and we paid for the alterations, which was only $25.

She also paid for our hair and our earrings, so that was her "gift" for us, since she paid for pretty much our entire outfit!

I tried to find cheap BM dresses too but to no avail! So they're paying for their own (and also finding their own. We're doing mismatched. Amazon ftw) and I'll just be buying separate thank you gifts!

Mine are paying, but I'm trying to go with something really inexpensive. I will be shelling out for one of my BMs dress because she's traveling from out of the country and I want to help offset her costs.

Our entire wedding party paid for their own outfits. We just let them know what colors we'd like for them to wear. My bridesmaids found their dresses on Lulus.com for around $80 and our groomsmen rented their suits from a local shop.

Wedding ediquit. The bridal party each pays their own suite/ gowns. Get a price everyone is comfortable with so you can decide on price range.