The Cost of Prom

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By Matt F., Wilmington, DE

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Every high school junior and senior dreams of attending the prom – the glamour, the glitz, the dressing up, and the memories – but the prom is becoming more and more expensive.

Photo credit: Adeline N., Ridgefield, CT

Is this four or five hours worth the cost? Tickets range from $50 to $80, tuxedo rentals cost about $150, flowers are $40 or more, and prom dresses average at least $250. If you rent a limousine, there goes another $400. Your prom could cost almost $1,000! Is it really worth that much?

Most proms are held at locations that have catering and a DJ. Why don’t we go back to having the prom in the school gym? Attendees could go out for dinner beforehand. Underclassmen could decorate the gym and help pay for the dance. It doesn’t really matter where the prom is held; it is the fun that you have there and the memories that are important. High school students shouldn’t have to worry about going into debt to attend their prom.

Girls could consider renting dresses or making them. I was fortunate that my mother made my date’s dress. This saved her over $100. Since girls only wear their outfits once, why not rent them like the guys do with their tuxedoes? Dresses should not have to cost so much.

There’s no problem with renting a limousine to get to and from the prom as long as more than three couples go together and split the cost, especially with the price of gas lately. Yes, limos mean fewer cars on the road and make socializing more fun, but you can only rent them for so many hours and then you are stuck.

The prom could easily become less expensive if guys wore suits and girls wore nice long dresses. Having the prom in the gym and sponsored by the underclassmen would lower the ticket price. Parents could serve a special dinner at home to defer the cost of eating out.

In these tough economic times, with more and more parents being laid off, young people should not have to spend so much on a big fancy prom.

This piece has also been published in Teen Ink's monthly print magazine.

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This article has 23 comments. Post your own!

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NeverShoutLisa said...
Mar. 18 at 2:25 pm:

Prom Tickets: 20 dollars
Dress and Shoe rental: 75 dollars
Dinner: 7 dollars
Hair & Makeup: Free
Photos: Free
The Memories: Priceless.
My prom last year was held in our High School Gym, which is where it is every year. Only a few girls buy the really lavish dresses, so we generally keep the cost low.

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naturelover123 said...
Mar. 8 at 8:55 pm:

I agree...people don't need to spend so much money on prom. It's just a dance, and the memories are what matter.

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uhohitzfrans said...
Feb. 17 at 5:25 pm:

Our prom tickets cost $65, that includes dinner, rent and music. people get dropped off by their parents and dessert is a collaboration of cookies brought by different families. guys wear nice shirts and some wear ties. some girls buy their dresses, others make them or get them from the thrift store. all the grades 9th-12th attend, and for one night we're all equals, no one cares where you're from or how old you are. there is zero to minimal drama going around about dates and who-dance... (more »)

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phoenixqueen said...
Jan. 4 at 2:50 pm:

I think that proms, and other dances, should be something that anyone can afford. It should not be a popularity contest or a see-how-much-money-you-can-spend thing. It is only one night, so why not spend your money on something worthwhile, that will last longer than a memory. Think of all the things you could do with $1000! Also, it makes the people who don't have that much money to spend (me, for instance) feel really bad that they can't go all out.

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Joey C. said...
Dec. 16, 2009 at 4:36 pm:

This was a very good article, and it brings up a very good point. You have some good ideas for sure, although I doubt underclassmen would help pay for a dance they won't even be going to.

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resilva said...
Aug. 10, 2009 at 9:28 pm:

I agree, prom should not cost more than my entire high school education. I don't know if I'll go to prom yet, but I know I won't spend $250 on a dress I'll only wear once (and if I keep it it will only serve me in 20 years to remind me how thin I used to be). Last year I had friends not just spending several hundred dollars, but several months talking about how they were going to wear their hair. (It sort of made me want to stop talking to them).

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Evelyn said...
Aug. 2, 2009 at 5:51 pm:

i agree completely, you're totally right! :) good job with your writing composure! Very well put together!!!! XD

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Abigail_W said...
Jul. 31, 2009 at 6:53 pm:

Absolutely. I don't even like the way prom dresses look. I'd much rather go in my $40 sundress with big sunflowers spattered over it. I'll betcha it's ten times prettier than the mint green one my older sister has getting moldy in the basement from ten years ago . . .

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Kayoung L. said...
Jul. 31, 2009 at 5:17 am:

I also agree with this piece to some extent. Although I agree that proms may get very pricey, senior prom should be something that you can look back at an cherish. Senior prom is a once in a lifetime opportunity, so if it is something your school/family can afford, you should enjoy it to its fullest.

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mensa4life said...
Jul. 17, 2009 at 9:49 pm:

I think proms are stupid so yeah i dont really care about all that stuff.

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Amy R. said...
Jul. 14, 2009 at 8:02 pm:

u have some really great points. grls should rent dresses or get them from goodwill or even make them. its betr than paying $400 to $500 for sumthing ur only gonna wear once. bsides tht having the prom in the gym makes it so tht school council wont hav 2 pay 4 a difrent location.i only hav 2 problems wit ur statements tho. underclassmen shouldnt hav 2 pay 4 sumthing they cant do. it would be nice of them to do but y should they? and whose parents really hav time to make sumthing 4 ur prom wit li... (more »)

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Alex C. said...
Jul. 11, 2009 at 12:12 am:

I see no problem with an expensive night. Just because the families subsisting on food-stamps and welfare are unable to spend money like this, are those families who can afford it supposed to shop for their prom at Ross so as not to make the poverty-level attendees feel separate? I am wearing an Armani tuxedo to my prom, and taking my date to a 4star restaurant for dinner, and you propose that all of this is excess? That is the only correct claim in your article. It is excess, but it is lavish f... (more »)

pictolover replied...
Nov. 6, 2009 at 12:42 pm :

you have a point. and you can do whatever you want before prom. but how would you feel if you were the one in the 50 dollar tux while everyone else is in armani? i think we should make it to where everyone is equal and no one will get judged for having more or less than everyone else.

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Micheline said...
Jul. 7, 2009 at 3:11 am:

I agree with you but only to an extent. I believe that its only one night if you decide to only go senior year, and you should live it up...maybe the rentals might work but wouldn't you want to treasure what you wore to that one special night??...other than that i totally agree=)

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Clarissa R. said...
Jun. 2, 2009 at 1:53 am:

I think there's a lot of pressure put on senior student council to make the best prom ever, so if somebody wants a cheaper prom, then that person has to get together with whoever's organizing prom and suggest new ideas.

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rubiesrrare said...
May 29, 2009 at 9:07 pm:

i completly agree. if people think that it's too "middle school" (yes, i did hear this) to just have the prom somewhere on school campus and get a "vintage" dress from the goodwill or grandma's closet, then they don't know the extent of the economy. personally, i didn't go to my jr or sr. yr prom b/c i would have had to pay for everything out of my own pocket and it just isn't really worth it.

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Neble11 said...
May 13, 2009 at 11:04 pm:

I Think this is redic! If it is that hard to buy everything fundraise! And If your only going your senior year save up! its one dance... And your last one ! Go all out!!

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HOPEMVP said...
Apr. 29, 2009 at 5:24 pm:

I agree in many aspects. the pressure on one to the other on is how much each other wants! (LIMO, FLOWERS, TIP, RESTOURANTS, etc.) It gets crazy!

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liz H. said...
Apr. 27, 2009 at 3:15 pm:

I agree with you. My school is under going major budget cuts and when I suggested that we go back to crepe paper and the gym people that the idea was ridiculos. Why not save money and have the same amount of fun.

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forever_dancer said...
Apr. 14, 2009 at 12:41 am:

that was extremely smart of you.. ps, i thought that it was funny that there ws a prom drees ad on the side! how ironic!

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AKlore said...
Mar. 31, 2009 at 9:43 pm:

I completly agree with what you are saying. My own Prom is coming up this month and I would much rather do something simple than have everything be dramatic. Eating in your kitchen with dollar-candlesticks is just as much fun as going to a resturaunt.

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iTrumpet42 said...
Mar. 31, 2009 at 1:33 am:

really good
My brother has his prom coming up, hes so xcieted but its gonna cost lik 1000 dollars!
i ttly agre wth u!!!

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SmileyRiley<3 said...
Mar. 4, 2009 at 11:36 pm:

that was rele good i liked your take on the subject

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