Is your wedding dress worn down and dirty while collecting dust in the closet? Need it cleaned, but you’re unsure of what it might cost? Dry cleaning your wedding dress is the way to go!
Here’s what you should know about wedding dress dry cleaning costs. The cost of dry cleaning your wedding dress is affordable; however, in some circumstances, you may pay more than expected.
Using a professional dry cleaning service to dry clean your wedding dress will cost you anywhere between $100 and $200; however, that’s only the estimated base price. Also, vital factors such as stains, type of fabric, age, and insurance will influence the drying cleaning cost. Lastly, it’s one of the safest and quickest ways to clean your dress.
How Much Does Wedding Dress Dry Cleaning Cost?
If you’re using a high-end dry cleaning service to dry clean your wedding dress, you can expect to pay around $100, and that’s just an estimate. If you need to add additional requirements, you can expect those costs to increase. When having your wedding dress dry cleaned, you should never pay over $200.
Many dry cleaning services offer fixed rates for your wedding dress; however, some places will charge you extra if the dress needs additional work. If your wedding dress is made of lace or has a heavy beading design, some dry cleaning companies will charge a whopping $500 for this intricate design.
In addition, if you want your dry cleaning service to box up your wedding gown instead of bag it, this will also cost an additional fee, typically anywhere between $50 and $125. The most expensive part of dry cleaning a wedding dress is pulling the oils out, which will cost you between $15 to $50 extra.
How Long Does Dry Cleaning Take?
If you’re using a dry cleaning service to dry clean your wedding dress, it could be anywhere from a few days to as long as a month. The time it takes to dry clean a wedding dress is mainly due to how many layers your wedding dress has. If you catch the dry cleaning service during a slow time, you’ll be lucky to only wait a few days.
In addition, you should ensure that you’re taking your dress to a well-known dry cleaning company and not just your local business down the street. If you take your wedding gown to your local dry cleaning service, there’s always the risk of them sending it to a wholesale company.
Finding a business that dry cleans wedding dresses using their own shop is your safest best.
Factors that Affect Wedding Dress Dry Cleaning Costs
With the price of dry cleaning your wedding dress costing anywhere between $100 and $200, prices vary at every facility due to several factors. Remember, you should never pay more than $200 to dry clean your wedding dress.
1. Stains
If you have minor, insignificant stains on your wedding dress, you likely won’t experience any increased costs of dry cleaning your gown. Certain stains, such as grass and dirt, are some of the easiest to remove; however, if you need to remove stubborn stains, your dry cleaning service will increase the price.
For example, if you have oil stains on your wedding gown, you can expect to pay an additional cost of anywhere between $15 to $50.
2. Fabric
If you’re having a laced dress dry cleaned, these types of fabrics are typically more expensive. Many wedding dress fabrics are also extremely sensitive, such as silk. This is primarily because dry cleaning detergents don’t react well to delicate materials; therefore, special equipment is needed that only dry cleaning companies possess.
| Fabric Type | Average Cost |
| Tulle | $150-$300 |
| Satin | $150-$300 |
| Lace | $200-$400 |
| Chiffon | $150-$300 |
| Organza | $20-$400 |
3. After Storage
Once your wedding dress has been dry cleaned, the dry cleaning service might ask you if you want them to put it in a box or a bag. If you want to preserve your wedding dress, getting a box is obviously the better option, but it may cost you an extra $50 to $125.
However, there’s always the option of picking up your wedding gown in a bag and then storing it in a box yourself.
4. Dress Details
If your wedding dress was made with unique customizations such as crystals, lace, or beading, you can expect the cost of your dry cleaning to increase considerably.
If your wedding gown has a heavy heading, this might even increase your expenses up to $500. It’s essential to know that wedding gowns with beading can’t be combined with perchloroethylene.
5. Age of Your Dress
If you’ve already had your wedding gown bought and altered before your wedding day, you won’t need to worry about this factor. However, if your wedding gown was a family heirloom and passed down through your family, you’ll need to take the age of your dress into consideration.
For example, if the wedding dress was worn over twenty years ago, some dry cleaning services might charge more if they need to perform a restoration procedure on the gown.
6. Location
Like any business, some dry cleaning service locations are more affordable than others. Commonly, many dry cleaning services in major cities will charge more than companies in smaller towns and other suburban areas. The main reason for this price difference is due to maintenance, rent, and the cost of utilities.
| Region | Average Cost |
| Midwest | $150-$300 |
| Northeast | $200-$400 |
| South | $150-$350 |
| West Coast | $250-$500 |
7. Insurance
Many wedding gown dry cleaning services typically have insurance included in their fixed rates. But in some circumstances, some dry cleaning companies will charge an additional cost for insurance. Insurance is a safety precaution for the customer in the event something terrible happens to their wedding dress.
Additional Costs for Wedding Dress Dry Cleaning
There are two circumstances where you’ll need to pay an additional cost for wedding dress dry cleaning, which includes restoration add-on and rush processing.
Restoration Add-Ons
An additional factor that can affect the cost of wedding dress dry cleaning is the restoration add-ons, especially if your dress is stained badly. In extreme cases of stubborn stains, you’ll want to upgrade your dry cleaning service and add a restoration add-on.
Restoration add-ons include additional steps and ensure that deep stains are removed from older gowns and on more delicate dresses to ensure that your dress comes back looking beautiful.
In addition, due to the variety of materials in a wedding dress, wedding dress stains should be handled carefully.
Rush Processing
Rush processing is exactly what you think it means. When you choose rush processing for your wedding dress, this will move your gown to the front for processing for an additional cost. If you have a tight timeframe, this is beneficial if you notice a minor stain that you need to get rid of in a flash.
When you choose rush processing for your wedding dress, you can shorten the time it takes to dry clean your wedding dress.
Benefits of Dry Cleaning Your Wedding Dress
Some of the benefits of dry cleaning your wedding dress include removing stubborn stains, protection from discoloration, and eliminating the stretching of fiber. Sometimes, stains won’t show up until later on, so dry cleaning your dress will remove those visible and barely visible stains.
Over time, the color of your wedding dress might fade. If your wedding dress isn’t cleaned, this may cause your white or cream dress to discolor and turn yellow.
In addition, if you leave your wedding dress hanging in a closet, you increase the risk of fiber stretching. When you put your wedding dress in a box after dry cleaning, you eliminate this risk.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Is it worth it to dry clean a wedding dress?
Wedding dress dry cleaning is more than just washing; it also involves folding and storing your dress in a particular container to ensure it stays moisture-free. Dry cleaning will preserve and protect your wedding dress.
2. How soon after your wedding should you get your wedding dress cleaned?
Dry cleaning your wedding dress right away would be best, although it might look different than when you first tried it on. Dry cleaning your wedding dress will help prevent stretching and keep it looking new.
3. Is it better to hand wash or dry clean a wedding dress?
Many brides prefer to hand wash their dresses, as it’s more convenient and less expensive, but dry cleaning your dress is best for handling delicate fabrics and beading.
Final Thoughts
If you’ve been considering giving your wedding dress a good cleaning, dry cleaning your dress is an excellent option. When having your wedding dress dry cleaned, factors such as staining, the age of your dress, and fabric play a vital role in determining its cost. Dry cleaning your wedding dress can take anywhere from a few days to a month.
Dry cleaning your wedding dress has excellent benefits, such as removing stains discoloration, and eliminating the risk of stretching fibers.
With the assistance of our guide, you can get a general idea of what you can expect to pay when dry cleaning your wedding dress.
Hey there, I’m Jennifer M. Lowes, but my friends call me Jenn. Born and raised in sunny California. By day, I’m a freelance makeup artist transforming everyday people into their best selves. By night, I’m here on this blog, sharing my favorite nail designs, makeup tips, hair styling techniques, and much more.