Event budget checklist: every cost, by category.
Use this list when you build a budget or check a vendor's quote. Not every event needs every line, but every line here has surprised a planner at least once.
Venue
- Room hire per day, including setup and teardown days
- Breakout and meeting rooms
- Technical fees and house equipment
- Furniture, stage risers, cloakroom
- Cleaning, security and electricity
- Minimum spend and overtime after the agreed hour
Catering
- Coffee breaks per day
- Lunches and dinners
- Welcome drinks and reception
- Drinks package or bar consumption
- Special meals: vegetarian, vegan, allergies
- Service charge, waiters' overtime, corkage
Hotel
- Rooms × nights, by room type
- City tax per person per night
- Early check-in, late check-out
- Rooms for crew, speakers and your own team
- Attrition: the share of rooms you pay for even if unused
Production
- Sound, light, screens and stage
- Technical crew and rehearsal time
- Live stream and recording
- Interpretation booths and interpreters
- Power, rigging and permits
Transport
- Airport transfers
- Shuttles between hotel and venue
- Coaches for excursions
- Drivers' overtime and parking
Show and speakers
- Host or MC
- Band, DJ or entertainment, with their technical rider
- Speaker fees, travel and hotel
- Music licences where needed
Staff
- Event staff and hosts
- Registration desk
- Your own team's travel, hotel and per diems
Branding and print
- Signage and banners
- Badges and lanyards
- Printed programme
- Welcome gifts and their delivery
Admin and other
- Event insurance
- Photo and video
- Registration platform or app
- Bank and card fees
- Contingency
- Agency fee
- VAT
Questions
What do planners most often forget?+
Overtime after the agreed hour, service charges on catering, city tax on hotel rooms, setup and teardown days, and the team's own travel and hotel. Put them in the budget from the start, even as estimates.
Is there a ready template with these lines?+
Yes. Our free event budget template has the main categories and typical lines, with quantities that follow guests and days.
How do I keep track of changes to these lines?+
Write each change with its reason and the client's yes. Our template has a change log sheet, and Yestivo does it automatically, with the client approving from a private link.
Bring one real budget. See it under control.
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