Couples Who Spend A Lot On Their Weddings Are More Likely To Divorce

Getting married is a big deal. When you’re saying “I do,” you’re declaring to the world that you plan to spend the rest of your life with this person. While you might be tempted to make it a grand event with an extravagant, expensive wedding, that could be a mistake. In fact, a new study has shown that the more costly your wedding, the more likely you are to get divorced.

1. People who spend less stay together more. A joint study performed by researchers at Emory University and the National University of Singapore analyzed the weddings of more than 3,000 people. They discovered that those who spent less than $1,000 getting hitched had nearly a 50% higher chance of staying together than those who spent more than $20,000.
2. The ring price mattered too. It wasn’t all about the wedding ceremony. In fact, the more expensive the engagement ring, the more likely the couple was to split up. You might feel good with that $10k rock on your finger, but you won’t feel too good when the relationship falls apart.
3. It makes sense, if you think about it. The people who are obsessed with having massively over-the-top weddings tend to be more concerned with keeping up appearances than about who they’re marrying and what that kind of commitment actually means. When you lose sight of what’s important, it’s only natural that it would slip through your fingers when you’re busy prioritizing the wrong things.
4. Money issues can destroy a relationship. One of the big reasons for these findings could be down to finances. Given that money is one of the biggest issues couples fight over, it would make sense that trying to pay for an extravagant ring and/or ceremony (and the debt that you’re likely to incur making it happen, if you’re not rich) would cause considerable tension.
5. That’s not to say you shouldn’t celebrate. While the research shows that expensive weddings aren’t all they’re cracked up to be, that’s not to imply that you shouldn’t celebrate with your family, friends, and loved ones. In fact, the larger the attendance at a wedding, the more likely it is to last, as couples with less than 200 guests showed a slightly higher divorce rate than those with more than 200. If you have a small family and/or friend group, it’s not the end of the world, but if you’re purposely cutting the people you care about and who care about you out of the festivities, that may not bode well.