Whenever a television show has a wedding episode, it’s always a hit. Fans have waited—sometimes for several seasons—for their favorite couples to finally tie the knot. When it happens, it’s always a glamorous, beautiful episode that fans will never forget.
However, some of these TV weddings are unrealistic. Concerning the couple’s jobs or family life, they wouldn’t be able to afford the wedding. They might be wonderful, like Monica and Chandler’s wedding on Friends. But if they had to plan their wedding along with real-life couples, they would have to make significant budget cuts. Take a look at 10 of the best sitcom weddings that the characters probably wouldn’t be able to afford.
Barney And Robin – How I Met Your Mother
The ninth and final season of How I Met Your Mother was devoted to the wedding of Barney Stinson (Neil Patrick Harris) and Robin Scherbatsky (Cobie Smulders). The weekend was the pivotal moment for the show—because it’s the same weekend Ted Mosby (Josh Radnor) met the Mother (Cristin Milioti).
It’s a beautiful, elaborate wedding. Robin’s Monique Lhuillier Addie wedding dress cost $7,000, which would have been expensive for the news anchor. The banquet and reception hall would have been a stretch for their budget. Regardless, it was still a flawless ceremony that revealed how Ted met the Mother.
Cece And Schmidt – New Girl
It took five seasons of New Girl for Cece (Hannah Simone) and Winston Schmidt (Max Greenfield) to tie the knot. In the two-part season five finale, things don’t go as planned. For one thing, Schmidt misses the wedding when he spontaneously flies to Portland to convince Cece’s mother to attend the wedding. Cece and their guests are left behind at a beautiful vineyard (which wasn’t cheap).
Later on, when Schmidt returns, their best friends throw them an intimate, perfect ceremony in Cece and Schmidt's favorite hangout spot—the loft. Cece’s handcrafted wedding gown combines her Indian heritage with Schmidt’s Jewish customs. It would have been expensive to pull off this wedding.
Liz And TJ – Gilmore Girls
In the season four episode “Last Week Fights, This Week Tights,” Luke Danes’ (Scott Patterson) sister, Liz, marries her quirky boyfriend, TJ. While Liz and TJ are secondary characters on Gilmore Girls, their Renaissance-themed wedding was important to the show’s plot. It was Luke’s first attempt at dating Lorelai (Lauren Graham).
The Renaissance wedding would have been expensive for Liz and TJ, who are jewelry makers and carpenters. They participate in Renaissance fairs, so their income likely couldn't allow for the elaborate attire, decorations, music, food, and guests at the fancy wedding.
Ross And Emily – Friends
In the two-part season four finale of Friends, Ross Geller (David Schwimmer) marries his girlfriend, Emily Waltham (Helen Baxendale), in a beautiful London wedding. It would have been expensive to plan their wedding in just one month. While Emily’s father seems wealthy and Ross is a paleontologist, it would have been expensive to organize everything in a short timeframe.
Many of their plans had to change at the last minute due to the chapel building being torn down for construction. In addition, Ross had to fly his family and friends to London for the nuptials. Roundtrip airfare wouldn’t have been cheap.
Jim And Pam – The Office
Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) and Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) are definitely “relationship goals” on The Office. So, when they finally tied the knot in the two-part season six episode “Niagara,” it was an iconic episode. Fans watched for six seasons as the friends flirted and then finally started a relationship.
The Dunder Mifflin staff traveled to Niagara Falls. Before the actual ceremony, the couple snuck away to have a private wedding on the Maid of the Mist IV ferry boat before their actual ceremony. While it’s adorable, it wouldn’t have been cheap to get married on the ferry boat.
Jesse And Becky – Full House
Viewers could hardly wait to watch the wedding of Jesse Katsopolis (John Stamos) and Becky Donaldson (Lori Laughlin) on Full House. In the two-part season four episode “The Wedding,” they got married in a large ceremony. Becky wore a glamorous gown with a long train, and the wedding reception had a three-tier cake.
From the first time she was introduced to the show, Becky told stories about growing up on a farm in Nebraska. Her family isn’t entirely wealthy, and Becky is a news anchor. In addition, Jesse is a musician. It would have been costly to afford this beautiful ceremony.
Cory And Topanga – Boy Meets World
Every teenager in the ‘90s rooted for Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) and Topanga Lawrence (Danielle Fishel) on Boy Meets World. The high school sweethearts got married while they were still in college in a memorable season seven episode, “It’s About Time.”
Their wedding is adorable, but it would have been expensive to afford. Topanga’s father owned a bookstore and Cory’s father owned a hardware store. In addition, Cory and Topanga still had college tuition fees to worry about. But they somehow still afforded an elaborate wedding dress for Topanga and a tropical honeymoon.
Monica And Chandler – Friends
Monica Geller (Courteney Cox) and Chandler Bing (Matthew Perry) were the ultimate couple on Friends. In the season seven finale, they get married at a fancy banquet hall. Monica was super particular about her dream day wedding details. She had to buy another wedding dress after her first one was forfeited to reserve the Swing Kings.
While Monica and Chandler had good jobs, it still would have been an expensive wedding. It’s already unrealistic how Monica afforded her large New York City apartment. How did they afford their elaborate wedding?
Zack And Kelly – Saved By The Bell
Everyone’s favorite Saved by the Bell high school sweethearts Zack Morris (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) and Kelly Kapowski (Tiffani Thiessen) tied the knot in a two-hour series finale movie, Saved by the Bell: Wedding in Las Vegas. Zack and Kelly are finally going to get married and live happily ever after.
It’s unrealistic that Zack and Kelly could afford the Las Vegas wedding. Zack’s father disapproves of the wedding, so Zack must pay for the wedding with just $1,200. At the last minute, Zack’s parents decide to pay for the wedding, but it would have still been expensive.
Fran And Maxwell – The Nanny
The Nanny’s Fran Fine (Fran Drescher) and Maxwell Sheffield (Charles Shaughnessy) were the original “will-they-won’t-they" couple on television. They had so much romantic chemistry, dating back from the sitcom’s first episode. The two-part season five finale focused on their perfect wedding.
Fran’s wedding dress is fit for a princess. The couple exchange vows in a glamorous chapel. This wedding would have cost a fortune. It’s unclear if Maxwell (a Broadway producer) paid for the nuptials. Let’s hope he did because there’s no way Fran’s parents (who lived in a Flushing, Queens apartment) could have afforded the ceremony. Regardless, the wedding was still the most beautiful ceremony on television in the ‘90s.