Different quotes for same vendor

Venues do the same thing. Party vs wedding gives you very different pricing. I can completely understand why a wedding is much different however $1100 is a lot. I would see if he would be willing to negotiate.

Thing is, a DJ offers much more than just music especially at a wedding. A lot of them will be your MC if you need one, they have specific songs to play at specific times, etc..

For me personally, we are not having an MC and we are not doing the dances or the intros so this would be a hard pill for me to swallow. BUT if you are having all of that at your reception then you definitely need to expect to be charged more than you would for just a regular party/event where they basically let a playlist run and check facebook from their cellphones (kidding.. but you get my point).

You are paying for the use of equipment and of course the service and that doesn't necessarily just mean time - you are paying for the level of service to be provided. If you are having songs for your wedding party to be introduced, a song for you to be introduced, your first dance, mother and son dance, father and daughter dance, turn off the music when speeches are happening, turn it back on once their done, etc. that makes their job a little bit harder or requires some more work/effort on their part... just something to keep in mind.

The "wedding tax" can be icky.

I would speak to the vendor and ask honestly ask them what the difference is, so that you can make an informed decision. DJ-ing a party is a bit different than DJ-ing a wedding, but I wouldn't think the difference to be that much.

I second this. I understand why it may cost more for a wedding, but the difference in pricing is huge so maybe he'll compromise as Alycia said.

100% as soon as the word "wedding" is attached to anything the price jacks up! One of the biggest reasons is a wedding is 2 people's ULTIMATE DAY! If a DJ screws up they will hear about it 100x more than if they messed up say a business function! Weddings are generally soooo much more important to people and sooo much more planning goes into them! Everyone who vendors a wedding has massive expectations on them so I understand the additional costs! Now an extra THOUSAND I think is a bit steep... i would address it but never expect them to match it!

Just to play devils advocate here- being the DJ for a wedding is much harder than being a DJ for a party. There is much more planning that goes into it, for example first dance, parent dances, bouquet and garter toss songs, if he is doing your ceremony theres a ton of pressure in the timing of how the songs play and how things flow. A lot more in a wedding can go wrong and if you mess up that spoils a very important day for someone. The cost difference does somewhat reflect that.

There's actually been a few shows that did exposés on 'Wedding pricing', and how it's a real thing. Vendors admit it, as well.

I agree with the others - take that information back to the vendor, and see what they are willing to do. Paying a little bit of a premium for a wedding is normal (most vendors admit they charge more because brides can be more difficult to work with than a regular party thrower), but more than double the price is ridiculous.

Wow... sadly I'm not surprise...

Like Valerie and Alycia said - maybe see about getting a deal? Start off with talking them down from the wedding price and if they don't budge at all or only come down a little then maybe bring up the other quote?

Not very surprised, but you did something most people don’t think of. So take both quotes and ask about it, he might have a good reason for the difference in price. Though I find it quite a HUGE difference, so maybe he’d be willing to meet you in the middle.

I'm not surprised one bit. The wedding industry and inflated prices go hand-in-hand. If I were you, I would use the two quotes to get a deal from that vendor.

There is a huge difference when you look at vendors and mention the word Wedding. They see it as one day of your life celebration that can boost their price up. Anniversaries cost less since they don't look at it the same way.

I had seen a show where 2 ladies went to each vendor separately and got quotes higher for weddings over anniversaries. It was shocking to hear how much more they go and the restrictions that apply too.

Consider looking at vendors quotes as if it was an anniversary instead.