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Events & Weddings

Wedding dress alterations cost calculator

Work out what altering your wedding dress will really cost by pricing each job separately: the hem, taking in the bodice, the bustle, the straps and cups, and the final press. Add a rush surcharge if your date is close. See the total, a realistic range, and what each job adds.

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Usually the largest single job on a gown, because a wedding hem is rarely one layer.
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A street dress has a hem. A gown has a lining, a tulle underlayer, an outer fabric and often a lace edge that has to be cut off, shortened and reapplied by hand so the pattern still reads as continuous. That is why a bridal hem is quoted well above a hem on anything else you own.
Bridal gowns are ordered by the largest measurement and cut down to you, so some taking in is the normal path, not a sign anything went wrong. A zipper or a corset back that has to come apart and go back together pushes this up.
The loops and points that lift the train off the floor so you can walk and dance after the ceremony. Priced by the number of points, so a long cathedral train costs more to bustle than a sweep. Zero if your gown has no train.
Sewing in bra cups, shortening straps, adding or removing sleeves. Small jobs individually, and they add up because a gown usually needs two or three of them.
Getting the creases out after the work is done and before the gown goes on you. Some shops fold this into the alterations price and some bill it separately, which is worth asking at the first fitting rather than the last.
Shops want the gown for a couple of months and several fittings. Bring it in closer than that and many add a surcharge as a percentage of the whole job. Zero if you are on their normal schedule.
Estimated cost
$675

Typical range $439 – $1,080

  • Hem$225
  • Take in bodice & side seams$175
  • Bustle$100
  • Straps, cups & sleeves$75
  • Final press & steam$100
  • Rush surcharge$0
  • Total$675
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$400 to $900 is the usual path: hem, take in, bustle and press on a gown with some detail. Get every job itemised in writing.

What this assumes, and where it could be wrong

Every one of these is a place the number could be off. They are here because you should be able to check our working, not because we are hedging.

EVERY PRICE ON THIS PAGE IS YOURS, BECAUSE AN ALTERATIONS QUOTE IS A JUDGEMENT ABOUT ONE GOWN.
A seamstress prices your hem by looking at how many layers it has, whether the edge is lace that must be cut off and reapplied by hand, and how much beading sits in the seam she has to open. Two gowns at the same price off the rack can be quoted very differently, so no published figure could stand in for your fitting. The defaults are ours and editable

Alterations are rarely included in the price of the gown. The dress is sold as a garment that fits nobody exactly, and the work to make it fit you is a separate bill from a separate person, even when it happens in the same shop on the same day. Budget it as its own line from the start.

Beading and lace are the whole spread. Plain satin is machine work; beaded lace means unpicking beads by hand, sewing the seam, and putting the beads back one at a time. That is why the range around your total is wide, and why your quote can be several times a friend's on a simpler gown.

The bustle is priced by points, not as a flat job. Each loop is placed and sewn by hand while you stand in the gown, so a long train with many points takes longer and costs more than a short one.

This is the alterations only. Cleaning or preservation afterwards, a veil, and any accessories are their own lines and are not in this total.

Frequently asked questions

How much do wedding dress alterations cost?
There is no single price, because it is a menu rather than a service. Price the hem, the taking in, the bustle, the straps and the press separately, add a rush surcharge if your date is close, and the sum is your number. The calculator above builds it from the quote you were given at your fitting.
Are alterations included when I buy the dress?
Usually not. The gown is ordered to your largest measurement and sold as it comes; the fitting work is quoted separately, often by a seamstress the shop refers you to rather than employs. Ask at the point of sale what the alterations will run, because that answer belongs in your budget alongside the dress.
Why is a wedding dress hem so much more than a normal hem?
Because it is rarely one layer. A gown can have a lining, tulle, an outer fabric and a lace edge, and each has to be shortened separately so they hang together. If the hem has lace, it is cut away, the layers are shortened, and the lace is reapplied by hand so the pattern still runs unbroken. That is hours of work, not minutes.
How early should I book my alterations?
Shops generally want the gown a couple of months out, with two or three fittings in that window, because your body and your mind both change over it. Coming in later than that is possible and often carries a rush surcharge, which the calculator has a line for.

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