Old St. Patrick’s Church Wedding Cost Guide (2027)

Planning a wedding at Old St. Patrick’s? As wedding videographers who’ve filmed here, here’s the realistic cost breakdown.

Church Fees

Old St. Pat’s publishes its wedding fee directly: for weddings booked on or after July 1, 2024, the fee is $2,000, non-refundable. That covers use of the church, coordination and execution of the required paperwork, and logistical coordination for the ceremony. It does not include music or the priest’s stipend, which are separate.

The suggested priest stipend is $275 to $500, at the couple’s discretion, paid directly to the officiant at the last meeting, the rehearsal, or on the wedding day. Music is arranged separately through the parish’s Director of Music at a Wedding Music Fair. Budget roughly $2,500 to $3,000 all-in for the ceremony itself once the church fee, stipend, and music are added together.

At least one member of the couple must be a practicing, baptized Catholic, and couples complete a pre-marriage program such as PreCana before the date is confirmed. Membership at Old St. Pat’s is not required. Dates book far in advance given how sought-after the church is.

Other Costs to Budget

Because Old St. Patrick’s is a ceremony-only venue, the church fee is just the starting line. Couples are also budgeting for a reception venue, catering, photography and videography, florals, and transportation between the West Loop church and wherever the party continues. Its central location at Adams and Des Plaines makes almost any Chicago reception venue an easy transfer, which is part of why it pairs so naturally with so many different spaces.

Pairing With a Reception Venue

Old St. Pat’s couples celebrate everywhere from the Old Post Office, five minutes away, to Theater on the Lake, River North hotels, and West Loop lofts. Two weddings we’ve filmed show the range:

Kate and Ben married at Old St. Pat’s and moved five minutes to the Old Post Office for golden hour portraits in The Meadow, a reception in the Historic Lobby, and an after-party with karaoke in the Telegram Lounge. Shannon and Michael paired their Old St. Pat’s ceremony with a reception at Theater on the Lake, closing the night with a sparkler exit on the lakefront.

For a downtown pairing with a published cost range, see our University Club of Chicago Wedding Cost Guide, roughly a 10-minute drive from the church.

Sample Budget: Old St. Pat’s + University Club

Church fee: $2,000. Priest stipend and music: roughly $700 to $1,000. Reception at the University Club: around $85,000 all-in for a full wedding, per that venue’s own published average. Total: approximately $88,000 to $89,000, before photography, videography, florals, and attire, which sit outside both venues’ fees.

Is Old St. Patrick’s Worth It?

For couples who want a genuinely historic Chicago church, the kind that survived the Great Chicago Fire, with Celtic Revival stencil work and stained glass unlike anywhere else in the city, Old St. Pat’s is hard to match on film. Kate and Ben’s grand exit into the West Loop light and Shannon and Michael’s ceremony both show why: the light inside is warm and colorful, and it photographs like nowhere else. At $2,000 for the church fee, it’s also one of the more affordable historic ceremony venues in the city, before the reception is added.

Old St. Patrick’s Church Wedding Cost Guide FAQ

Do you have to be a parishioner to marry at Old St. Patrick’s?
No. The parish welcomes couples from across the city, though marriage preparation requirements typical of Catholic churches apply, and dates book far in advance.

What does the $2,000 church fee include?
Use of the church, coordination and execution of required paperwork, and logistical coordination for the ceremony. It doesn’t include the priest’s stipend or music, which are budgeted separately.

Where do most Old St. Patrick’s couples hold their reception?
Anywhere from the Old Post Office, five minutes away, to Theater on the Lake, River North hotels, and West Loop lofts. The church’s central location makes almost any Chicago reception an easy transfer.

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