About this tool
The Event Budget Splitter is a free, in-browser tool that turns a single total budget into a realistic line-by-line breakdown, so you can see how much to spend on the venue, catering, photography, decor, entertainment, and every other category before you start signing contracts. Choose an event type — wedding, general party, or corporate — set aside a contingency reserve, and optionally enter a guest count to get a per-guest cost. All calculations run locally in your browser and nothing you enter is uploaded.
The method first carves out your contingency (default 10%, adjustable 0–20%): allocatable budget = total × (1 − contingency%). It then applies established percentage benchmarks for the chosen event type. The wedding preset follows industry allocations — venue and catering 40%, reception drinks 8%, photo/video 12%, attire 5%, flowers and decor 10%, music 8%, cake 2%, invitations 2%, rings 3%, planner 5%, and transport/misc 5%. The general-party preset splits into venue 30%, food and drink 35%, entertainment 12%, decor 10%, rentals 8%, and misc 5%. The corporate preset covers venue, catering, A/V and technology, speakers, marketing, staffing, and misc. Each line = allocatable × its percentage, and the reserve is shown separately.
As a worked example, a $30,000 wedding with a 10% contingency has $27,000 allocatable: about $10,800 for venue and catering, $3,240 for photo/video, $2,700 for flowers and decor, and $3,000 held in reserve. With 100 guests that's a $300 per-guest cost. These percentages are proven starting points, not rules — a destination venue, a live band, or a photography-first couple will shift the mix, so treat the split as a baseline to adjust against your own priorities.