Wedding dress prices

I paid $1530 for my dress and $150 on a veil before alterations. Hoping I won’t need many as this is an a line gown if anything I will need taken in at the waist because I am trying to lose another 5 pounds or so prior to my wedding in September. I am expecting to spend no more than 300 on alterations

There are absolutely lovely dresses at several tiers below the price range you listed, so if you’re wondering if you “need” to spend a certain amount to get a certain dress, the answer is a lot of designers copy each other and similar styles will exist across price ranges. It usually comes down to specific details on a dress that become hard to replicate, like falling for a specific lace pattern. I knew I wanted a sweetheart neckline with Aline/ball gown silhouette and these are all the dresses I seriously considered, and shopped both new and used.
This is the dress I bought. 1265 retail before tax or alterations. I bought it for 800 used from still white, already bustled. Alterations cost me 200 due to extensive beading on bodice and horsehair at the hem of two layers making it more work to take in and shorten. It also has boning in the bodice which helps it sit on your hips and stay up with the amount of weight from the layers. This is a Rebecca Ingram dress which is morilee’s more affordable line. It includes four layers of petticoats and a lining layer beneath the tulle with lace, tulle with color, sparkly sequined layer with horsehair, and satin. I think I got a killer deal on alterations considering the beading and layers. I fell in love with this design on the bodice:



To compare to other dresses I seriously considered from low to high:
This is a David’s bridal dress 995 retail. I saw this dress everywhere within 2 sizes of me on preownedweddingdress and still white from 250-600. This dress has boning and the lace-tulle, colored tulle and opaque layer, but no petticoats built in. If you wanted a fuller skirt you might pay 40-80 for one. Hemming would have been simpler, as well as having the sides taken in since no beads.


This is another David’s bridal I considered, about 1100 retail. I found it used for 600 and 800 already altered close to my measurements and hemmed close to my height. Big chain store styles are easier to find used than more boutique designs.
Has boning, some petticoat built in, hemming would have cost more since the seamstress has to remove the lace edge, shorten the dress and sew it back on. Also beaded.
This next one had a longer train, tons of layers of built in petticoats. This was 1800 retail but the store said they would give it to me for 1600. Same comments on alterations. I liked this dress but not 2x or 5x more than the other dresses I was considering. I thought the train would be a pain to deal with and would cost more to bustle as well.


I ended up liking the design of the dress I bought more than this one, it was just a plus that it was also cheaper although both were within budget. You can see up to a certain price the dress might have more functional features (I actually am sad cuz the David’s bridal both had pockets and i was quoted 150 to add Pockets). Boning makes a difference, petticoat layers being included versus a separate purchase, but your alterations will be a significant cost if you aren’t the size of the floor model, depending on what features you love. The lace hem looks lovely but you need someone to fuss with it so it spreads out for photos and added more cost than I wanted to deal with. Whatever budget you set you can find something similar, and beautiful, just keep alterations in mind because that can make or break how confident you feel in the dress (I don’t want to worry about a strapless dress slipping all night). I didn’t go with the cheapest dress that I seriously considered, I went with the dress I loved the most, but the pricier dresses I tried on didn’t necessarily make them “better” in features, function or my preference for the design. Pick a number you are comfortable spending, and stick to it!

If that’s a good number for you it’s perfect you can get a gorgeous dress for that or less! I planned on spending 3k and found my perfect dress for 2.3 WITH alterations and it’s a sottero and miggdly

My dress only cost me 175 and I couldn’t be happier. I have some alterations that need to be done. It came with a Lacey over coat that doesn’t work for me so I’m gonna have it taken apart and added to the dress in different ways. I love my dress it’s simple and beautiful and very me. Plus it looks great with converse sneakers. I’m not a heels person

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Thank you so much!! I definitely was in love with it from the moment i put it on

Having worked in the bridal gown industry, I would say that generally speaking (not always, but usually), a dress that costs 3k is compatible in quality to a dress that costs $250. Once a gown starts costing like 5k and up, then you're starting to get into higher quality fabrics and all that. I think it's best to spend as little as possible unless your budget is 5k+. Sometimes these dresses at the 3k price range feel like a rip-off when you can get something similar for a lot less. Hope this helps!