Wedding dinners in Singapore can sometimes be a mercenary affair. Don't be fooled into thinking that wedding ang baos (red packets) are purely a gift from the heart. In Singapore, your ang bao symbolises your well-wishes as well as covers the cost of your seat at the banquet table.

Though the couple might not admit it, in their heart of hearts, they'll probably be praying that you at least cover the cost of your meal to offset their wedding expenses.

Remember that broke wedding guest who couldn't afford to give an angbao for their friend's $250 wedding, and later got a text from the bride asking where their angbao was? Yeah. It happens.

If you want to give the socially appropriate angbao amount, you'll have to shell out a 3-figure sum whenever someone you know gets married.

While we certainly don't want to give too little, most of us usually also don't want to give too much. Admit it-you feel the pinch, especially after a couple of weddings! So here's a cost guide on how much to give for a wedding banquet dinner or lunch at hotels, restaurants and more.

1. How do you decide how much to put in a wedding ang bao?

The first thing you need to do is to calculate the cost of your seat. This can vary greatly, depending on factors such as how swanky the wedding venue is. Here are some factors you should consider when trying to figure out how much your meal costs:

1. The hotel or restaurant: Wedding banquets in hotels generally tend to be fancier and pricier than weddings held in a nice restaurant. In fact, hotel wedding prices are only getting higher — some hotels raised prices by up to 40% in 2024! *gulp* We’ll go into the rates at specific hotels and restaurants in the next section.
2. Whether it’s a lunch or dinner — in general, lunch is cheaper than dinner.
3. The day of the week: Mondays to Thursdays are more affordable than Fridays or the weekend. While Saturday and Sunday are usually the same or similarly priced, Saturday night dinners may cost more.
4. Package add-ons: A wedding package covers the basics, but the happy couple might want something more unique. These can include things such as special floral decorations, a fancy three-tiered wedding cake, and additional or more "atas" wine. If each table was made merry by an unusually fine bottle of red, you can expect that the couple probably paid a little extra.

Once you've guesstimated the cost of your seat, you have your base ang bao amount. If you're not close to the couple, you can stop here — it's considered socially acceptable for your ang bao to just cover the cost of your seat.

But if you're close to the couple, you're generally expected to add a little extra (and, if you're close enough, wouldn't you want to?). Topping up your ang bao isn't just a gesture of kinship or friendship — you're also covering additional wedding costs for things outside the food, such as the cost of wedding decorations.

By no means is covering these expected of normal guests, but besties go beyond for each other, right? Here's what some of our colleagues at MoneySmart had to say calculating the cost of ang baos:

2. Wedding ang bao rates for Singapore hotels (2024)

Disclaimer: Most of the prices below are adapted from SingaporeBrides.com, updated Dec 2024 and inclusive of GST unless otherwise noted. They're meant only as a rough guide to the cost of the meal, excluding any wedding package add-ons like fancy wine.

The rates in the section below are costs for a single seat assuming a table of 10, which is the norm for most hotel weddings. However, do note that these might be different if the wedding you're attending seats guests in smaller groups.

Rates will also be affected by what's on the menu — if you see abalone being wheeled out of the kitchen, you might want to make your ang bao a little fatter.

The most expensive wedding ang bao rate is up to $780 per pax at The Barracks Hotel Sentosa, followed by up to $410 at Capella Singapore. On the other end of the spectrum, the most affordable wedding ang bao rate is at Holiday Inn Express & Suites Singapore Novena, where prices start from $$110 per pax. 

3. Wedding ang bao rates for Singapore restaurants and other venues (2024)

For many restaurants, the prices are the same for both days, lunch and dinner. The exceptions are those mainly at country clubs and hotels. The most affordable option is $50 per pax at Plonk, a restaurant and bar in Serangoon Gardens.

On the other end of the spectrum, a floral fantasy wedding at Marguerite in Gardens by the Bay's Flower Dome can cost up to $840 per pax, beating out even the hotel weddings.

4. How much to give at Malay weddings?

While an appropriate contribution will vary according to the cost of the venue and how "atas" your friends are, traditional Malay weddings tend to be a bit more relaxed. However, don't assume that wedding costs are low at HDB locations.

Malay weddings are splendid affairs, and the venues are often adorned with beautiful decorations that can rack up $30,000 to $60,000 if they're very elaborate.

Generally, a contribution of $50 to $100 is the minimum. Of course, on the other end of the scale, the sky is the limit if you are close to the couple.

5. How much to give at Indian weddings?

This depends on the venue and where the reception is being held. The standard format for an Indian wedding is for the actual wedding to take place at a temple, and a reception to be held later on at a hotel, function hall or restaurant.

You should generally budget for a contribution of at least $50 to $80 for receptions at temples and function halls.

If they're held at high end hotels, you'll have to give similar amounts to the rates quoted for wedding banquets above.

You should also add a $1 coin to your contribution, as offering a sum that ends in 1 is seen as auspicious.

6. How much to give at church weddings?

If the wedding is held at a church, there may or may not a follow-up lunch or dinner banquet at a hotel or restaurant. If there is no banquet, there will usually be some kind of reception on the church premises.

If the entire wedding takes place at the church, you can contribute about $50 and up.

If there is also a banquet, refer to the ang bao rates in the table above.

This article was first published in MoneySmart.