Data regarding prices for wedding DJs has historically been scarce. Many DJ companies do not list pricing information on their websites. In addition, there are a range of packages to select from.
Wedding advertisers on WeddingWire in setting up their storefronts are now asked the question, “what is the price of your most popular package?” Companies are not required to describe exactly what this most popular package entails. For example for wedding DJs, how many hours of service does it cover, what lighting options are included, and how many DJs/Emcees are included in the package? When answering this optional question on WeddingWire, I based our company’s most popular wedding package price on a five hour package with our intermediate lighting option.
Now, when engaged couples go to WeddingWire to shop for wedding professionals in their geographic market area, this most popular package price is listed with each company’s thumbnail image. This is public information that any individual visiting www.weddingwire.com can view.
Here is what shoppers now see on WeddingWire when searching out a Wedding DJ or other Vendor Category in a geographic market – notice a $ figure for “most popular price”
WeddingWire carves up New Jersey into two regions: 1) South Jersey, and 2) North/Central New Jersey. We decided to examine the data for both regions. We evaluated the market data for the first two pages of results on WeddingWire from each of South Jersey and North/Central New Jersey, figuring that these companies are generally New Jersey’s most professional DJ services.
Statistics for Wedding DJs in South Jersey
For South Jersey, there were 32 data points. Numerous companies opted not to provide their most popular package price.
The lowest wedding DJ package price was $800.
The highest wedding DJ package price was $3,000.
The average wedding DJ package price was $1,601.
The median wedding DJ package price was $1,385 (note: the median is a statistical measure that smooths out statistical outliers).
Statistics for Wedding DJs in North/Central Jersey
For North/Central Jersey, there were 41 data points. Again, numerous companies opted not to provide their most popular package price.
The lowest wedding DJ package price was $1,000.
The highest wedding DJ package price was $3,000 (same as South Jersey).
The average wedding DJ package price was $2,148.
The median wedding DJ package price was $2,000.
Comparison of North/Central versus South Jersey
Wedding DJ package prices for North/Central are clearly higher than South Jersey. This is not surprising given the higher disposable income of North Jersey with its proximity to the Manhattan economy, and the higher cost of living in North/Central NJ versus South Jersey. Another theory for the North Jersey premium is that its weddings are more likely to feature event “production” – enhancements like intelligent lighting, uplighting, flatscreen TVs and special effects.
Based on the median figure, the average wedding DJ package price is 44% higher in North Jersey. Based on the average figure, it is 34% higher.
Interestingly, the average pricing data corroborates well with data from The Knot that we examined in 2014. Specifically, the average North/Central NJ bride spent $2,046 on their wedding DJ while the average South Jersey bride spent $1,272. To read the full article describing the Knot data, click here.
Limitations of the Data
There are perhaps 5,000 mobile DJs competing for the 45,000 or so weddings that take place in New Jersey each year. This universe is much larger than the 73 companies used in our calculations. This broader universe includes a fair share of one man operations and part-timers who most likely offer lower pricing. Thus, the true average and median price of “the most popular wedding DJ package” in New Jersey is lower than the statistics that we calculated.
As previously mentioned, the “most popular wedding DJ package” is not an apples to apples to comparison, as the specifics of these packages will vary from company to company.
Yet, for professional DJ companies, the statistics shown above present a fair picture of market prices for the competition. DJs would be wise to check out the WeddingWire price sheet to see how their prices compare to the competition’s. If you’ve always wondered what your competitors charge, now you have the opportunity to learn the answer!
A Word of Caution to Consumers
As we’ve always recommended in the past, do not base your hiring decisions on the least expensive vendor. The wedding DJ service is a specialized service and NOT a commodity. You are well-advised to hire the best wedding DJ that you can afford given your budget. Entertainment can make or break your once-in-a-lifetime celebration! For more insights into wedding DJ pricing and consumer tips, check out our book “The Bride’s Guide to Selecting the Perfect Wedding DJ” – available on Amazon.com.
Ambient DJs 
Wedding dj’s price differ in various manner as it matters according to the quality of the dj’s equipemnt and the dj’s packages and the elemnets they use and you can check your requiements and according to that you can hire them.
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