Who should buy the bridesmaid pajamas?

It’s not bad to make them pay for it since you already gifting them jewelry and jewelry boxes. Here is one idea: You can always send them inspo pictures and have them get pjs that are similar to the ones you want but within their price range instead. Reality is y’all will only be in the pjs for a short period of time. And plus, allowing them to buy their own style and size is more beneficial to them cause they could always rewear them instead of gifting them ones that say bridesmaid on it ya know. Just an idea.

I would not ask the bridesmaids to pay for pajamas. They already are covering their hair, makeup, and attire, and the matching pajamas are not required for the wedding. If you want them to have matching pajamas for getting ready, you should cover the cost, since the pajamas are pretty much props for your getting ready photos.

I do agree with Lisa, if you aren’t covering but they have to cover for hair, makeup, dresses, then you should cover the cost of pjs. But like I said earlier if you want your bridal party to match. If you don’t, then let them get bring own pjs from home.

I would not ask them to pay for the pajamas. Remember, matching PJs are not something for the wedding – they are props that you want them to wear for your photos. If you are requiring them, should definitely cover the cost of them.

If you want them in matching PJs for your pics, you pay. If you want them to provide their own, then they should also be able to buy whatever they want for getting ready attire.

If you want matching get ready outfits that’s on you. I bought robes for myself and girls, paid for their jewelry and hair and makeup as well as hair and makeup for my mother and MIL. I only required them to buy their own dresses and whatever shoes they wanted to wear

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I wish I could pay for all my bridesmaids costs, but unfortunately I have a small budget considering my fiancé and I are paying a huge portion of our overall wedding expenses/vendors. I love the idea of having all the girls match, but it is just simply out of my price range.

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I totally get it. We paid a lot ourselves and had to use a lot of our gift money to pay off the rest. If you don’t care if they match then that’s fine. But if you’re expecting them to wear some nice pajama set and you’re asking them to buy something else that they don’t already own, considering you’re really not covering any of their costs, I think it’s inappropriate to ask them to purchase something else. A dress, shoes, and hair and makeup all add up for a bridesmaid. I think it’s kind of rude to ask them to then also pay for pajamas if you’re not willing to cover any other costs for them except their jewelry which was really more of a gift. My wedding party were my guests. They were taking time out of their day and money out of their pockets to attend my wedding and stand by me. And then be there when I needed help making decisions and needing opinions so it wasn’t just a one day thing. (Not to mention I was still gifted money by them). And I plan to buy them thank you gifts as well. We just haven’t gotten to it yet. I made sure that if I had to cut costs elsewhere I would to cover things for them as I felt that was the least I could do. This is just how I personally feel about it and it seems others think you should also cover the cost or not require it. You’ll have to decide how you feel about the whole thing. I bought like $15 cheap robes off Amazon for some cute photos and honestly when I got my pictures the last thing I noticed was what they were wearing to get ready in. I feel like the internet makes us feel like we have to do all these kinds of matching outfits and things for our wedding otherwise it won’t be as aesthetic

View Quoted Comment While I completely understand your budget is small, it's very common for the bride and groom to cover the costs of their wedding as they are the ones getting married. If you want them in matching pajamas for pictures then that's a cost you need to cover. Otherwise let then wear whatever they are comfortable in.

The matching PJs are for YOUR getting ready photos. That's it. It's an additional outfit you want them to wear that serves no other purpose than a photo in an album (That's not a bad thing). They probably already have clothes that serve the same purpose of ease to get ready in. If you want them to match, you should pay for them, otherwise let them where what they currently have.

You can also test the waters as see if each of them already own a pair of black leggings (or dark enough) and maybe only buy a button ups for you all to wear to keep costs low and not pay for a full outfit

View Quoted Comment Understand your budget is tied up, but if that’s the case, the proper thing would be to let them wear their own pajamas or getting ready clothes and not ask them to spend money on a set of your choosing.


As someone who bought the sets for their bridesmaids, I can tell you unfortunately there was not even enough time for us to do that kind of photo, so it only ended up being for the fun of everyone matching and the vendors and makeup people knowing who was in the party. Honestly I’d suggest just letting them wear their own thing. If I could do it over, I'd go back and not buy those.

I agree with everyone else that pajamas are a completely optional thing that you should pay for if you want them. What you are already spending on your wedding isn't a good justification for asking your bridesmaids to spend more of their own money on your wedding.

Yes, it's bad. It would be very rude to ask the bridesmaids to pay for their own pajamas (aka photo props). If you don't have the budget for matching pajamas, then just don't have them wear matching pajamas. Let them wear something they already own.

Nah, you can't ask your wedding party to outlay money so you can get photos. If you want them in specific outfits you'll need to get them, and not as part of their gifts because honestly it's just for you and your photos. Also, to add, so is the wedding day jewellery. Another expense to calculate is the professional hair and makeup, if you're requiring it.

ETA: it would also be good to get your wedding party thank you gifts, with items that don't involve them wearing or using at your wedding

Anything that you require them to wear on the wedding day, beyond the dress they purchase, is a prop for your pictures that you must provide and pay for. They are not gifts for them in any form. This includes the ever popular jewelry that is never worn after the wedding day.


Not everyone is comfortable in robes and pjs which is why some bridesmaids wear button up shirts with leggings.

I’m a bridesmaid for this summer and I disagree with most peoples comments. The bride and groom are doing so so much already and paying for so much as is. These days it’s very known to need the matching outfits for the day of, so I think it’s expected of the bridal party to buy it. Asking the bride to pay for that would be no different than asking the bride to pay for every bridesmaid dress, every pair of shoes for the day of, hair, makeup, etc. It’s more of a given that if you accept to be a bridesmaid, then you accept the duties and financial implications that go with it. You can go on Amazon or Etsy and find some for 30-40$ so it’s really not asking too much

View Quoted Comment I disagree with your statement that it is a "need" for bridesmaids to have matching outfits for getting ready. Getting ready outfits are simply a trend, and totally optional. You can absolutely have a wedding party who gets ready in whatever they feel comfortable in, and skip the matching outfits. If the bridesmaids all decide to coordinate, that's one thing, but the couple shouldn't be requiring people to spend money on photo props for their wedding.

View Quoted Comment The entire wedding day is a photo op. If the bride and groom are spending thousands on a photographer, which they usually are, then it’s totally their call to want coordinated outfits in order to create beautiful photos. Also, 1/3 of the wedding day is getting ready with your bridal party, so it’s quite reasonable to want cohesive photos of that happening.

View Quoted Comment The couple can absolutely do coordinated getting ready outfits if they choose! There's nothing wrong with wanting those photos. But it's not a requirement by any means. If they choose to do the matching getting ready outfits for their wedding, they should be the ones to pay for the outfits, just as they are paying to have a photographer there, as well as they are the ones paying for the flower arrangements, centerpieces, ceremony decor, etc., all of which are also usually captured in the photos.

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You won't really be in any getting ready photos, maybe 1, because the photographer cares about the Bride. Matching outfits is a waste of money. Normalize helping friends save their own money for themselves.