Wedding preparations can be hugely exciting, but they can also involve some fairly big and often difficult decisions. Your choices should of course be guided by what you both want and what you’ve always dreamed of for your special day, but there’s also your budget to consider.
For grooms, one of the biggest decisions is whether to buy or hire a wedding suit. There are pros and cons for both options, so you’ll need to weigh these up carefully before you decide.
Should You Rent or Buy Your Wedding Suit?
To help you decide whether to rent or buy your wedding suit, it can be useful to look at the main benefits of each option.
Renting offers a clear financial advantage. It’s usually much more affordable than buying a suit outright, especially when you factor in accessories. Hiring a suit can also be easier and more convenient
Buying a suit is quite different. It’s more expensive, but it can also be seen as a personalised, long-term investment. You’ll get a tailored, perfectly fitting and perhaps unique outfit, one with enormous sentimental value.
Renting a Suit: Pros, Cons and When It Makes Sense
Here are some of the main pros and cons to consider for renting a wedding suit.
Pros:
- Affordable and cost-effective – ideal if you’re planning a wedding on a tight budget
- Convenience – you simply choose what you want, based on what’s available. There’s no need to have the outfit adjusted or altered or attend multiple fittings. Plus, many wedding suit hire packages often include everything you need all in one place, including jacket, trousers, shirt, waistcoat and accessories. You might just need to provide a pair of formal shoes.
- No long-term maintenance – this means no cleaning, repairs or alterations, or having to find room in your wardrobe to store your suit.
Cons:
- Limited personalisation – you’ll usually only get a standard fit and fewer style choices with hire suits, so it’s not recommended for those looking for a very unique or highly personalised look
- Extra fees – in some cases, there may be additional charges for cleaning, damage or late return.
When it makes sense:
Renting a suit is potentially the best choice for the following scenarios:
- Your wedding has a very formal dress code (for example, black tie) and it’s unlikely that you’ll wear the suit or tuxedo again
- You’re part of a large wedding party, all wearing matching outfits
- You’re planning a wedding on a tight budget and want an affordable, stress-free, low-commitment option.
You may be wondering – how much do wedding suits cost to hire, and how much cheaper are they than buying a suit outright? It ultimately depends on what you’re buying (for example, whether it’s a standard, high-end or designer suit) and where you get it from, but you could be looking at a difference of hundreds of pounds.
Buying a Suit: When It’s Worth the Investment
Renting is a great option for many grooms, but for others buying a beautifully tailored, bespoke suit is a far better use of the wedding budget.
Here are some of the main benefits:
- A flawless, flattering fit – which you can only get with a customised, made-to-measure suit
- High quality materials and craftsmanship
- Great for future formal events, whether it’s renewing your vows, an anniversary party or even someone else’s wedding
- Sentimental value – where your wedding suit becomes a treasured reminder of your special day.
Ultimately, buying a suit makes the most sense if you have the budget, and want something unique, high quality and well-tailored. If you can find occasions to wear it again in the future, all the better.
Key Considerations Before Making Your Choice
Before you make up your mind whether to rent or buy, there are a few things to bear in mind. Your budget will inevitably be a key consideration, but you should also think about the following:
- The style of the wedding, and whether you can find anything that matches the theme (especially if it’s unusual or personalised)
- Whether you will realistically wear the suit again, and how many times
- Your expectations of the fit – are you happy with a standard fit, or do you want something more tailored and precise?
- The timeframe, and whether you have enough time before the wedding for fittings, alterations or for a custom order to be made. Working out how far in advance to buy a wedding suit is an important consideration. If the wedding is just weeks away, you may not have any choice but to rent a suit.
Timing Tips for Fittings and Final Decisions
Knowing how long before the wedding to get suits ordered is crucial. Get it wrong, and you could end up in a last minute panic,or worse still you’ll have no wedding suit at all and have to walk down the aisle in your work suit.
Here are some of the key timings to remember, for both hiring and buying.
For hiring a suit:
- Book early, at least 2 to 3 months before the wedding.
- Schedule a fitting (if fittings are available) at least 4 to 6 weeks ahead.
- Do a final try-on a few days before, just in case of any issues.
For buying a suit:
- Start shopping at least 3 to 5 months in advance.
- Tailoring can take 2 to 6 weeks depending on complexity.
- Schedule multiple follow-up fittings to ensure the suit fits perfectly – ask your tailor for advice on when to get fitted for your wedding suit, and how many fittings they’d recommend.
And a final tip: Whichever option you go for, make sure you coordinate with your partner early, to ensure your outfits complement each other.
