How to quote for floristry and wedding flowers
Floristry is one of the hardest things to quote because the raw material price changes weekly and the labour is invisible in the final photograph. A bridal bouquet is not an hour's work, and a ceremony arch is not the cost of its stems. This guide covers building a price that survives a bad market week.
Send itemised floral quotes — stems, labour, installation and hire — accepted on the couple's phone.
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How to price wedding and event flowers
Build every item from three components: flowers and sundries at cost, a multiplier that covers wastage and buying time, and your labour priced separately. Then add delivery, installation and collection.
1. Cost stems and sundries at current wholesale prices
Price the exact stems, foliage, foam-free mechanics, wire, ribbon, vessels and conditioning materials each item needs. Include the stems you will lose to conditioning and breakage — 10–15% wastage is realistic. Never quote a wedding from last year's costing sheet; peonies and garden roses move sharply by season.
2. Apply a markup, then add labour on top
The traditional approach is a 2.5–3.5x markup on flower cost for retail work. For weddings, separate it: flowers at a 2.5–3x multiplier covering wastage, buying trips and cold storage, plus your design labour billed at £25–£45 an hour. A hand-tied bridal bouquet is typically 1–2 hours of skilled work; a 3-metre arch installation far more.
3. Price seasonality and substitution into the quote
State the intended varieties, add a written substitution clause allowing like-for-like swaps in colour and style, and quote against a peak-season price where the wedding is 12 months out. A colour palette rather than a fixed variety list protects you when the market fails to deliver.
4. Charge for installation, setup and collection
On-site installation is a separate job: travel, ladders, a second pair of hands for arches and hanging installations, venue access windows, and the drive back the next day to collect vases and stands. Late-night collection after a reception should carry a supplement.
5. Handle hire items with a deposit
Vases, candelabras, urns, arches, plinths and stands are assets you own. Charge a hire fee per item, take a refundable breakage deposit, and state a replacement value for each. Otherwise a single lost set of urns erases the profit on the whole wedding.
What to put on a florist quote
- Item-by-item list: bouquets, buttonholes, centrepieces, installations
- Colour palette and intended varieties, with substitution clause
- Quantities confirmed per item
- Design and prep labour hours
- Delivery, setup, installation and collection times
- Hire items, hire fees and replacement values
- Breakage or non-return deposit
- Venue access requirements and restrictions
- Deposit, balance date and cancellation terms
- How price changes if quantities change, and the final confirmation date
Realistic UK price ranges for florists
Indicative UK figures for 2026, excluding VAT. Imported and out-of-season varieties, large-scale installations and London venues sit above these ranges.
| Item | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Bridal bouquet | £90 – £250 |
| Bridesmaid bouquet | £45 – £110 |
| Buttonhole | £8 – £18 |
| Table centrepiece | £35 – £120 |
| Ceremony arch / installation | £350 – £1,500 |
| Delivery, setup & collection | £60 – £300 |
Run your own numbers in the free quote calculator or check your margin with the markup & margin calculator.
Common quoting mistakes for florists
- Quoting from a Pinterest board without costing the actual stems it would take.
- Marking up flowers but never billing the design hours.
- Locking a variety list 12 months ahead with no substitution clause.
- Forgetting the collection trip, and the late-night access window that goes with it.
- Lending hire items with no deposit or replacement value stated.
- Not setting a final quantity confirmation date, so centrepiece numbers move in the last week.
Pricing FAQs
How much should a florist charge for wedding flowers?
In 2026, a bridal bouquet typically runs £90–£250, centrepieces £35–£120 each and ceremony installations £350–£1,500. Build each item from current wholesale stem cost with a 2.5–3x multiplier, then add design labour and installation separately.
What markup should florists use?
A 2.5–3.5x multiplier on flower cost is the traditional retail benchmark. For weddings, keep flowers at roughly 2.5–3x to cover wastage, buying trips and storage, and bill design labour separately at £25–£45 an hour.
How do I protect against flower price changes?
Quote to a colour palette rather than fixed varieties, include a like-for-like substitution clause, price against peak-season costs for distant dates, and set a final confirmation date after which quantities can rise but not fall.
Should I charge for delivery and setup?
Always, as its own line. Delivery, on-site installation, a second pair of hands for large pieces and the next-day collection of hire items are real hours and real van runs, not goodwill.
Send itemised floral quotes — stems, labour, installation and hire — accepted on the couple's phone.
Accepted in one tap, invoiced in one click. Free trial, no card needed.
More reading
Want the long-form version with a worked example? How to quote a wedding florist job →