Are non-refundable wedding deposits legal?

Yes, in most places they are. A non-refundable deposit compensates a vendor for holding your date and turning away other bookings, so courts generally uphold reasonable ones. Most wedding contracts require 25 to 50 percent upfront, and it's rarely refundable. What matters is that the amount is clearly stated and the vendor didn't misrepresent it. Read the exact percentage and dollar figure before you sign, and decide if you're comfortable with that money at risk. If a deposit feels unreasonably large relative to the total, ask about a partial-refund structure in writing.

Why do wedding vendors keep 100 percent if I cancel close to the date?

Because they can't realistically rebook your date on short notice. Some vendors keep 100 percent if you cancel within 90 days of the event, since that window is too tight to fill with another booking, and the contract protects their lost income. Cancellation policies usually tier by timing: you might lose only the deposit far out, 50 percent in the middle, and the full amount inside 90 days. It's standard, not predatory, but you need to know the exact dates and percentages before signing so a postponement doesn't cost you the entire contract.

How much is wedding vendor overtime?

Extra hours typically bill at $150 to $300 each, and they clock in fast when a reception runs long. Photographers, videographers, DJs, bands, and coordinators all commonly charge overtime, so a single extra hour across several vendors can add $600 or more to your final invoice. Check whether overtime is billed in full-hour or half-hour increments, confirm the exact per-hour rate for each vendor, and decide who has authority to approve extra time on the day. Assigning one person to green-light overtime prevents a well-meaning guest from starting the meter.

What is a substitution clause in a wedding contract?

It's the language that decides who covers if your booked vendor gets sick, double-books, or quits. Larger studios often reserve the right to send an equally qualified replacement, which can be fine or can mean a stranger you've never met working your wedding. Read whether the contract names your specific vendor or just the company. If having one particular person matters, get that written in, and for photographers ask to see the backup shooters' portfolios since 'equally qualified' is subjective. A verbal promise won't survive a real scheduling conflict.

What's the difference between a service fee and a gratuity?

They sound alike but aren't the same. A service fee usually covers the vendor's operational costs and often doesn't reach staff at all. Gratuity is the tip meant for the people working your event. The catch is that some contracts auto-add 18 to 22 percent gratuity on top of an already-high service fee. On a $10,000 catering bill, a 20 percent auto-gratuity is $2,000. Confirm whether gratuity is auto-added or optional, what the service fee actually covers, and the combined total. If it's already included, you don't need to tip twice.

6 Wedding Contract Clauses to Check Before You Sign

Before you sign a single vendor contract, check these 6 clauses: deposit terms, cancellation windows, overtime rates, substitution, gratuity, and price locks.

You found the photographer. The portfolio is gorgeous, the vibe matched on the call, and the quote came in right where you hoped. So you scroll to the bottom of the six-page PDF, find the signature line, and sign. Twenty minutes, done.

Here is the problem with that twenty minutes: the quote is the highlight reel. The contract is the full story. The real numbers, the ones that decide what you actually owe and what happens when plans shift, live in the fine print that most couples never read. Not the price on the first page. The clauses on pages three through five.

This isn't about distrusting your vendors. Most of them are honest, and most of these terms are standard industry protection, not traps. It's about knowing exactly what you agreed to before the invoice is due. Here are the six clauses worth reading twice before you sign anything.

1. Deposit terms: how much locks in, and whether you get it back

Almost every vendor asks for money up front to hold your date. That's normal. What varies wildly is how much, and whether it's refundable.

Most contracts require 25 to 50 percent upfront, and that deposit is rarely refundable. On a $6,000 photographer, a 50 percent deposit is $3,000 you're committing the moment you sign. If your date changes or the relationship sours, that money is often gone.

Before you sign, get clear on three things:

The exact percentage and dollar amount due at signing.
Whether the deposit is refundable, partially refundable, or fully non-refundable.
The payment schedule for the balance, including the final due date (often 30 to 60 days before the event).

What "non-refundable" actually means

A non-refundable deposit isn't automatically unfair. It compensates a vendor who turns away other bookings to hold your date. What you want to avoid is a surprise: signing thinking your deposit is a good-faith placeholder when it's actually half the total, gone the second you sign. Read the number, say it out loud, and decide if you're comfortable with that amount at risk.

2. Cancellation: the window that costs you everything

This is the clause that catches people off guard. Some vendors keep 100 percent if you cancel within 90 days of the event. Not the deposit. The whole contract.

The logic is real. Ninety days out, a vendor can't realistically rebook your date, so the contract protects their lost income. But if you don't know that window exists, a canceled or postponed wedding can leave you paying in full for a service you never received.

Look for the cancellation schedule, which usually tiers by how far out you cancel. A typical structure looks like this:

More than 180 days out: lose the deposit only.
90 to 180 days out: owe 50 percent of the total.
Within 90 days: owe 100 percent, no refund.

The exact tiers vary, but the shape is common. The key question is simple: if we had to walk away, on what date does this get expensive, and how expensive? Know that date before you sign, not after.

3. Overtime rate: the meter that runs faster than you think

Your reception is scheduled to end at 10 p.m. The band is playing, nobody wants to leave, and you tell everyone to keep going. Congratulations, you just triggered the overtime clause.

Extra hours bill at $150 to $300 each, and they clock in fast. Photographers, videographers, DJs, bands, and coordinators all commonly charge overtime, and a single overrun hour across three vendors can add $600 or more to your final invoice without anyone signing off on it in the moment.

Check the contract for:

The exact per-hour overtime rate for each vendor.
Whether overtime is billed in full-hour or half-hour increments (half-hour minimums are friendlier).
Who has authority to approve overtime on the day (you, your planner, or a designated point person).

That last one matters more than it sounds. If a vendor can start the meter running on a verbal "sure, keep going" from a guest, you want to know that now. Assign one person to be the only one who can green-light extra time.

4. Substitution: who actually shows up on your day

You booked a specific photographer because you loved their work. But the contract you signed may only guarantee that someone from the company shows up, not that particular person.

Substitution language decides who covers if your booked vendor gets sick, double-books, or quits. Larger studios and agencies often reserve the right to send an equally qualified replacement. That can be totally fine, or it can mean a stranger whose style you've never seen is shooting the most photographed day of your life.

What to look for

Read whether the contract names your specific vendor or just the company. If it's the company, ask what "comparable" or "equally qualified" means in practice, and whether you get any say in the replacement. For photographers and videographers especially, ask to see the portfolios of the backup shooters, because "equally qualified" is subjective and your aesthetic is not.

If having one specific person is a dealbreaker, that needs to be written into the contract, not promised on a call. A verbal reassurance doesn't survive a scheduling conflict.

5. Gratuity clause: the tip you already agreed to pay

You budgeted for tips, planned to hand out envelopes at the end of the night, and felt good about it. Then the final invoice shows gratuity already added. Some contracts auto-add 18 to 22 percent on top of an already-high service fee.

Here's why that stings. A "service fee" and "gratuity" are not the same thing, even though they sound alike. The service fee usually covers the vendor's operational costs and often doesn't go to staff at all. A separate auto-added gratuity of 18 to 22 percent then stacks on top. On a $10,000 catering bill, a 20 percent auto-gratuity is $2,000, and that's before you consider whether you also planned to tip in cash.

Before you sign, confirm:

Whether gratuity is auto-added, optional, or not included.
What the service fee actually covers and whether any of it reaches staff.
The combined percentage of service fee plus gratuity so you see the true total.

If gratuity is already baked in, you don't need to tip twice. Knowing that saves you real money and awkwardness on the day.

6. Price lock: whether your quote survives to your wedding date

Couples book vendors a year or more out. That's smart for availability, but it opens a quieter risk: no lock means they can raise rates before your date.

Without a price protection clause, the number you signed is only an estimate, and a vendor facing higher costs can legitimately adjust it. A quote you signed a year out can drift upward, and you may have little recourse if the contract never promised the price would hold.

Look for language that says your rate is locked as of the signing date and won't change regardless of the vendor's future pricing. If it isn't there, ask for it in writing. A one-line addition ("pricing is guaranteed at the rate signed on this date") protects you from surprises twelve months down the road.

Watch for these red flags

A few patterns should make you slow down and ask questions before signing:

A large non-refundable deposit (closer to 50 percent) with a cancellation clause that keeps 100 percent inside 90 days. Stacked together, that's almost no room to change plans.
Vague overtime language with no per-hour rate listed. If it just says "overtime billed at prevailing rates," pin down the number.
Substitution clauses that name only the company, with no portfolio or approval rights for the replacement.
A service fee and an auto-gratuity that are described in different sections, so you don't notice they stack.
No price lock at all on a contract you're signing more than six months out.
Any clause you had to read three times and still don't understand. Ask. A good vendor will explain it plainly.

None of these automatically means walk away. They mean ask a question and get the answer in writing before your signature is on the page.

Sign smarter: your pre-signature checklist

The quote tells you what a vendor costs on a perfect day. The contract tells you what happens on every other day. Six clauses, and most couples never read any of them. Before you sign your next one, run through this:

Deposit: exact amount, and is it refundable?
Cancellation: on what date do you owe 50 percent, then 100 percent?
Overtime: the per-hour rate ($150 to $300), and who can approve it.
Substitution: is your specific vendor named, or just the company?
Gratuity: auto-added at 18 to 22 percent, or up to you?
Price lock: is your rate guaranteed through your wedding date?

Save this for the next time a contract lands in your inbox, and send it to the friend who just got engaged so she has it too. If you want help spotting these fast, you can drop a contract into Altared and it flags them line by line. Start free at /get-started, and read more on decoding the fine print over in contracts.